10 Will Compete Against Record Holder Stuck On Cards in SaltystickySweet

In a very rare stake start, record holder Stuck On Cards has been entered into the Saltystickysweet Turf Spint in Maryland.   This is a 5 furlong turf event with fast track expected as there is a chance of thunderstorms, but they are forecast for the night, well after the race concludes.

Ten others will take on this record setter who has shown that he has durability.   Well, that’s about all he has as he is reluctant to die as we will see in a moment as we look at the field.

1 STARSWITHSTRIPES   334/1

Has been racing in claiming race level most of the year with a spot start in MSW and starter allowance.   He hit the board with some frequency early in the year as a maiden but lost that touch after maiden was broken.   Steep odds come as he will wrestle with the listed stake level and bypass all the other levels in between.  Speeds in the mid-60 range look ill-fated against the competition in this field, perhaps Stuck with Cards being the exception.

 

2  ROADCITY  7/2

A late runner who will be making his fourth start of the season.  He’s been close in all three starts this year with a second and two thirds.  Crossing the line first has been a challenge that he’s trying to overcome with the last win coming in April of 2017.  He’s finished ITM 7 of 9 races since that win and shown he can compete.  This race may be the right road for him.

 

3  CITY OF GIANTS  9/2

A throw away start in his last in the G2 Dancing North Cup where he finished well back while experimenting with the 12 furlong route on a yielding track.  He’s done well on the off-track, so the long distance was the cause of the failure.  He’s back to a distance he’s comfortable with.  All year long, speeds have been 100+ with the exception of the graded race and he’s been ITM 4 of 6 this season which includes a pair of allowance wins.   Should go well this time out.

 

4  PAYTON CUNDUIT  9/2

After starting the year with a 6th in a listed stake and then a 10th when trying the dirt for the first time, things have sweetened up.  He finished third in an allowance in March, he marched back into the listed stake category and replicated the third place finish.  His most recent start, which was also a listed stake in July, scored a win as the 5/2 choice.   Looks to repeat.

 

5  MOTH INTO FLAME   10/1

Five races have scored two wins this year with a second.   He’s been racing in the allowance group and his most recent start was a poor 8th finish, going a mile, however he did move up five spots in the stretch run and sliced his deficit by about four lengths.   More was expected out of him after finishing second at 7.5 furlongs and the smidge of extra distance should of helped.  It didn’t.   Nonetheless, he’ll put his late run ability to the test as he gives the listed stake level a shot.

 

6  PASTIS  35/1

Winning a listed stake race to start the 2018 season off was a nice way to start his 3 year old season.   The speed of 89 wasn’t bad but he has not been able to improve the speed in three subsequent starts after the win.  He finished out of the money in each start.   Horse may be in need of some class relieve to regain confidence.

 

7  DECLARATIONOFDYLAN  16/1

Taking a bit of a holiday in 2018, this entrant came back to the track in April and scored a quick win by a head at 13/1 as he returned to the turf.  Two months later he would hit paydirt again at 10/1, wiring a field.  Both of these were allowance races and he navigates into the starter allowance class.   He seeks his third straight and should not be ignored as the rest seems to have produced results.

 

8  STUCK ON CARDS   “SCR”

Those odds are correct.  Our record setter has odds of “SCR”.  According to the game creator, this means that a horse that has been scratched from a race has a better chance to win the race than he does.   So non-entered horses can beat him?  Yes, they can.    This record he holds is for most career starts which will hit 364 when he enters the gate for this race.    And with only 2 career wins, his chances of finishing better than last are zilch.   He ran a rare 53 speed back in May, but other than that, speeds have been sub-20 all year.   The tote board will explode if he wins.  That is a huge “IF”.

 

9 HOT SHOES  9/2

In five stake races this year, four have concluded with a finish of fourth or better.  Out of the money only once this season which came in the G3 King Georgie Sprint where he was overmatched and finished 9th.   He’s competitive in the listed stake ranks and will be out on the front end early on.  Hanging on to that lead will be the hard part as he often gets caught in the stretch run.

 

10  RADIATE  7/1

This 6 year old took all of 2017 off and nearly half of 2018.  He returned in June and has raced in a pair of allowance and one listed stake race.   After a nice 96 speed in his return, he hasn’t been able to keep things up there and has dropped to the 80-range.   That’s a bit concerning as speeds will often improve after getting some of the cobwebs out when returning to the track.  Maybe he needs a bit more than others but if it takes too long, he may need to drop in the racing ranks to find a better spot to be competitive.

 

11  NICANATIVE  4/1

After some success in 2017 that featured a pair of wins and a second and third in listed stakes he has struggled throughout the 2018 season.   In five listed stake appearances (in a mix of dirt and turf), he hasn’t had a top three finish.  He’s finished fourth as his best result this year.   Speeds have been in the 90-100 range and fit in with the top runners in this field, but the results just have not been delivered.

 

My Picks:

Stuck on Cards for last.  You can bet the house on that, if you can find someone to take the wager.

Otherwise I’m going with Roadcity for the top spot.  He’s got good form and the late run could catch the early speed who may tire themselves out.

City of Giants has very good chance to take top spot as he returns to sprint and listed stake level.

Declarationofdylan has been surprising with each start since returning after layoff earlier this year.  Could keep the surprises coming.