Free Selections / Oaklawn Park / 4-13-2013

Hot Springs has been the place to be for years. The town has thermal pools, Mammoth displays, and the sprightly Fall River. Oh, and did I mention it is home to  historic Oaklawn Park?  This weekend is the finish line for ” The Racing Festival of the South.”  Since 1905, Oaklawn has been stamping itself as one of the premier race meets in the country, and this Saturday in no exception. So grab up your E-Z Win Forms, and lets enjoy the Arkansas Derby card!

 

Oaklawn Park

The weather forecast calls for mostly cloudy skies, and a high of 64 degrees.

 

Race #8- The (G-2) Oaklawn Handicap – 1 1/8 – 5:14 p.m. ET

#4 – Atigun (9-2) = Rafael Bejarano is in the irons for Kenny McPeek. This son of Istan finished a good third place effort in the (G-3) Razorback. The handy icons illuminate the fact he has “Blinkers On,” and “Moving Up in Class.”  The McPeek barn scores 30% ITM with this equipment move, and owns a couple of morning works to keep him on his toes. His last race rating is a solid 56, and his composite race rating is 57. This guy is as honest as the day is long, and has faced some very nice graded runners in the past. He has seen much longer distance, and that should be no problem as he appears to be getting ready at the right time. Bejarano replaces Victor Lebron, and that moves this runner up a few notches as he is no stranger to Oaklawn Park.

 

Race #9 – The (G-3) Count Fleet Sprint – 6f – 5:50 p.m. ET

#2 – Apprehender (6-1) = Alex Birzer has the call for trainer Chris Richard. They have been hitting on all cylinders winning at 25% this meet. The four-year-old son of Posse sports the “Should Improve” and “Moving Up in Class” icons. If you go back and toss out the sloppy race, you will see a very consistent runner. His race rating is a crisp (65 +), and his composite rating yields a solid 62. The (+) symbol means that a top performance is coming his way. A speedy sort, that looks to relish the Oaklawn surface. By all accounts, it will be tight and fast track this Saturday. That may be just what the doctor ordered for this runner.

 

Race #10 – The (G-1) Arkansas Derby – 1 1/8 – 6:28 p.m. ET

#3 – Divine Ambition (20-1) = B.J Hernandez gets the call for Darrin Miller. This grey son of Divine Park has shown some good early turn of foot. I would look for him to be forwardly placed, and his last race workout of 47.3 at Keeneland may have given him the added bounce in his step. His last race rating is a 54, and his composite rating is also a 54. His last race was against Crop Report in the Rushaway Stakes at Turfway, and he finished a game second to a colt pointed toward the Belmont. He owns the “Moving Up in Class” icon, and his race record shows that he very capable of bringing his “A” game.

 

This race has produced some solid betting opportunities, and this is where the E-Z Win Forms have been of great help finding that blockbuster payoff. If the weatherman is wrong, that is no problem. All that you have to do is “click” the weather tab, and you will have a brand new set of E-Z Win Forms that are suited to the updated track condition change. Everything is in real time, and Winning Ponies can give you up-to-the-minute changes, and scratches. No more jumping around from site-to-site, as Winning Ponies is your one stop shop for all of your racing needs.