Who can figure out this year's 3 yr. old crop?...Monmouth Results

Remember back in March and April of this year? Remember who we were talking about as the Derby favorites? Seems a while back right? We were big on McCracken here. After floundering in the Derby, he has returned pretty well...winning the Matt Winn at Churchill and finishing a nose back in second yesterday in the Haskell to Girvin...another one we were high on back in April and paid you generously at 9-1 if you were wise enough to include him. His trainer Joe Sharp said he was ready to win a Grade I race and he did just that with cagey Robby Albarado tracking down another favorite jockey of mine in Brian Hernandez, Jr on McCracken in the final jumps to get the upset win and complete a sweet exacta for us ($77.90 on a $1 box) and the Pick 3 ($193.50)...which we handed to you yesterday free of charge.

I came close to making the wager a Pick 4. I loved both Chad Brown horses in the first leg (Race 9) but didn't go there. That mistake cost me a $671 payout on the sequence (on a 50 cent wager).

We live and learn. Wind Tartare and Joel Rosario did the job for C.B.

We take our Pick 3 win, though, and are satisfied with it...specially since it only cost $32 to invest.
Money's On Charlotte was a nice way to start the Pick 3 and I gave you the exacta and trifecta in Race 10 as well. Next, Wekeela downed odds-on favorite Miss Temple City in the Matchmaker and I predicted that one also...along with another exacta and trifecta for you. Girvin finished the job.  Pity the poor fool on "The Horse Racing Network" who boldly proclaimed he was going six deep in the final race of the Pick 4 and tossing out Girvin. Hey, buddy...ever heard of the "all" button if you're going that deep?

Sadly, a similar story from Saturday where a couple of associates nearly took down the Saturday late Pick 4 at Saratoga ($4667 on a $2 wager). They had 3 of the 4 winners and took six horses in the race they lost (The Bowling Green) but left out Hunter O'Riley...the 16-1 winner. An "all" button there would have cost just a few dollars more per person. I'm sure they're tired of hearing about that...I can't fault them...I didn't like or use Hunter O'Riley either. Another reason why they call Saratoga "the graveyard of favorites" right there for ya....

This year's Derby winner Always Dreaming ran third Saturday. The Preakness winner Cloud Computing finished behind him in Saratoga's Jim Dandy...where a first-time dirt participant (Good Samaritan) and first-time two turns runner (Giuseppe The Great) stole the show. How many of you remember that "Good Sam" actually ran on Derby Day at Churchill? Not in the big race, of course...but in the American Turf Stakes...where he came flying down the center of the Matt Winn Turf Course and edged out Big Score to finish second to Arklow? I had him that day and remembered the run...I didn't know how well he'd adjust to dirt...but it seems he likes it just fine.

So...who is the top of the three year old crop currently? Will we ever see Classic Empire again? Any love left for Irap? How do Irish War Cry and Timeline rebound from yesterday's defeat?

The Travers at Saratoga may provide a few more answers before the Breeders Cup...the Travers is about a month away. Who will head to the Spa to contest it?

Plenty of questions remain about this 3 year old crop.


paulie
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