USTA Play of the Day

by Michael Carter

The Meadows Racetrack and Casino Race 4 (Pick 4)
Date: 6/20/2018  Carryover: $0   Guarantee: $7,500

Ticket: 1,3,4,5,8/3,4/2,4/2,4 – Cost: $20.00 (.50 base)

Yesterday’s Recap – We had a rough go of things yesterday with only one winner in the Pick 4 sequence, which paid very well considering there was only one long priced horse that scored.  The official Pick 4 was 5/1/7/6 and paid $267.80.

Breakdown:

Race 4: #1 FLY WITH THE BEST is taking a step up in class for trainer Kevin Johnson off a game victory against lower level company last out.  He set some pretty good fractions during the mile and if he can ration out the speed again, he will be tough.  #3 ITS A DEW THING gets Tony Hall back today and one thing about him is he has really gotten along with him from just about any post.  Throw the start out two back from post seven.  #4 ZERO THE HERO has had some time to freshen up after taking a couple months off after a short stint at The Meadowlands.  He has had a couple of tough goes at it, but the driver change to Palone could present some value.  #5 ALL MUSIC gets Aaron Merriman for the first time this week off a tough effort last week where he got a good beginning, but tired late in the trip.  He has speed and I think Merriman will be more aggressive with him.  #8 HE’S A LOVE SHARK draws the outside in a shorter field and while he doesn’t have a lot of early speed to work with, he likes to get into a good mid-pack position and come from off the pace.  Expect him to be coming late.

Race 5:  #3 WHAT A HUNK made a costly break two starts back and then in his next start was parked the mile.  He gets some post help and Palone back this week to potentially score at a little bit of a price.  #4 IGOTSOMETHINGTOSAY had a lot of ground to make up last week and had just too far to come.  She takes a small drop in class this week and has a little bit of early speed to be close to the pace.

Race 6: #2 NOT A LOTTA FUN could be the pace-setter, but with a lot of early speed in the race that might allow him to set back off the pace a little and attack up the inside.  He has three straight second place efforts, which is a little concerning, but seeing the transition from two to three going well makes me hopeful.  #4 CRAZY SMART makes her second start on Lasix this week after tiring late last week against tougher company.  She’s in a good spot this week and has the speed to be close to the pace.

Race 7: #2 DANIKOVA takes a pretty big drop in class this week and gets another good draw.  She hasn’t been the quickest filly off the gait as of late, but she has some speed to work with.  #4 DIME HANOVER was forced to come first over last week and she took over pretty easily.  She gets another good draw and Palone back; that could spell victory.