Race 1.  While Midnight Hawk has strong figures, I tend to want to give the West Coast horses that DJ has picked up a look to see how they adapt to Big Sandy. I’m looking at Lucky Lotto who is three of three in the money at BEL and has been dropping down the price ladder looking for a win. He showed well in his last and the final drop could be enough for him to get the win. Primary 4-5-1  Secondary (6)

Race 2.  Foglio was off slow in his debut but closed very well to miss by a length. Have to make him the choice, but there are a lot of unknowns here. First timers Heaven is Waiting goes for Chad Brown who is very strong first on the turf. Arch of the Diver goes second time for Albertan and he is stronger second time out. Primary 1-2-5  Secondary (7)

Race 3. Dad’z Laugh makes it three in a row where the favorite looks toughest. Chelios steps up a bit coming off a nice win for Chris Engelhart. Storm Pursuit has a lot of speed and I like his chances to be a part here. Primary 2-5-7  Secondary (3, 4)

Race 4.  Ascend hasn’t run a bad race in a year and is still in good form. Almanaar goes first time in NA for Chad Brown who is a solid 26% with Euro shippers. Infinite Wisdom ran decently in the Oceanport but is 2 for 2 racing at BEL. Primary 1-3-5  Secondary (2, 4, 7)

Race 5.  Avail Ekati was a half million dollar purchase off a $15K stud fee. I like the workout pattern. Hammerin Aamer never had a chance last out and adds blinkers today. Dupree also had a troubled start but still gave a good effort last out.  Primary 6-8-3  Secondary (1)

Race 6.  Crowd Funding showed a different dimension last out and appears to have rounded into top shape. At 10-1 ML he’s worth a look. Stormin Stephen has done well at the distance and at BEL and should be close up early. Timbar ships over from MTH where he ran a sharp sprint. Step up in price should be no issue. Primary 2-1-9  Secondary (4)

Race 7.  Lead By Example broke his maiden at BEL in July, jumped up to this level and ran well despite steadying in the lane. Rider switch to Jose Ortiz doesn’t hurt. The J Y should be setting the fractions and has the talent to be a factor with these. At 15-1 he holds some interest. Prophet’s Cat has been knocking around at this level for ages. Not likely a winner but good prospects in the verticals.  Primary 8-4-1  Secondary (5)

Race 8.  Jet Black has done well since breaking his maiden at BEL. He was ambitiously placed in the Albany, showed some speed but couldn’t sustain a run with the runners at that level. Seems better suited for the middle distances. The jet exacta could very well be Get Jets who comes off a long layoff for Tony Durrow. He won first time out so he’s show he can fire off the rest. Positive workout patter and Castellano in the saddle is a plus. Testosterstone has run well at BEL previously and is having a good 2016. He’s got outs at 12-1.  Primary  2-9-1  Secondary (10)

Race 9. I had a hard time eliminating any horse from the race. Elysea’s World ran a nice second in the Lake George and lost all chance in the Lake Placid when she stumbled badly at the start. With a clean trip I like her chances. Diamond Fields ran well to be second in the Lake Placid and seems to be on the improve. Galileo’s Song was coming well in a G3 at MTH and hasn’t run a bad race lifetime. She has two wins in three tries at BEL.  Primary 6-2-1  Secondary (3, 4, 5, 7)

Race 10.  Bushmill Giant came close to breaking his maiden in July at BEL and seems to be working well after the freshening. Dot Matrix threw in a clunker on a race taken off the turf but prior to that had been running close up in turf races at today’s distance. Leaveematthegate is another who didn’t thrive on the dirt but looks better on the turf. Switch back to Ortiz is a positive. Primary 7-4-5  Secondary (6)