Want Some Roasted Weanies?

When I was asked which track I wanted to cover this week, I jumped for Epsom.  It wasn’t because of the warm atmosphere and the cheerful people that are at the track.  It wasn’t for the refurbished press box with cable television.  It was for one reason… Roasted Weanies.  I heard the track had a promo going on, 10-cent Weanies!!!!  Who could turn that down?  Throw on the kraut, add some mustard, and ya got yourself a delicacy!  And, who could believe that the track also has a race called the Roasting Weanies Stakes starring eight 3-year olds going 7 furlongs on a firm turf track.  They are all looking for there share of the $125,000 purse in this grade III race.  That will buy the winner a lotta Weanies!!!

1.  Tobyhanna   9-2

Although not the favorite, Tobyhanna offers some value at 9-2.  He comes in with a 5-race win streak on the line.  He sports a record of 5-2-0 in only eight starts.  He’s won three stake races, which include a grade 3 and grade 1 race.  His last race scored a win in the Duetoburst stakes (grade 1) where he set a career best mark of 96, winning by over a length.  He is a slow starter but is able to keep alot of fuel in his tank to make a late mad dash.  He should be a contender and may end up paying off some nice mad money!

2.  Pirate Treasure  6-1

Pirate Treasure, in 7 starts, has recorded a record of 1-2-2.   Pirate does have some early footing, and should be running near the pace setters early on.  He has two races, both at miles, where he has posted an 89 for a speed.  This race marks his debut on the turf and I generally do not throw my backing at horses switching surfaces for the first time.  I’m not making an exception to my rule here…let him run and see what he can do before you back him.

3.  Copper Canyon  7-1

In the Giants Ack Bonanza, Copper Canyon set a new career speed of 88, finishing third by over 4 strides.  Copper doesn’t show any early speed, so expect him to be in the back half of the field early on.  He does have the ability to reel horses in late in the race, however, his late moves aren’t always well timed.  He does draw the experience of the 16-year veteran T. Nugent who has come in the money 43% of his career.  This may help improve Copper’s chances to hit the board.

4.  Buda Storm  4-1

Buda’s last two races are interesting, but I wouldn’t put a lot of weight on them.  In his last race, he finished 8^th in a field of 15 (set career mark of 88 for speed), finishing a good 10 lengths back in the Grade 1 race.  The race before was a win in a non-graded race, however it was against a field of four.  Both races were run on the dirt.  Buda is being put back on the grass where he seems to excel.  In 5 starts, he’s posted a record of 2-0-2 on the turf.  On the grass he’s got two thirds in Grade 3 races and a forth in a Grade 1.  All three graded races boosted large fields.  This race has a moderate size field and I think Buda will benefit in this race.  He’ll be running near the lead early and should be well suited to walk away with some purse funds.

5.  Tycoon Wells  5-2

Tycoon Wells has been established as the favorite in the field.  His last two races weren’t impressive, finishing 5^th and 8^th in Grade 1 races.  He’s back to the Grade 3 level where he has been competitive.  In September, he finished 2^nd going 8.5f, yielding the lead he had late in the race.  In August he won a 7f race and ironically was the 5-2 favorite in that race.  He’ll be running close to the lead and we may find him to be the leader by the 3^rd call.  He’s back to the level he has had success making Tycoon a force to contend with.

6.  River of Fun  6-1

River of Fun has won 3 of 8 turf starts coming in the money 5 times.  Hitting the board 5 of 8 races isin’t bad, but looking closer, River of Fun has 3 stake starts…and has not hit the board in any of those races.  Now we look closer…two of the stake starts were on a wet track, where he finished 4^th in both…perhaps he doesn’t like the moisture.  The other stake start was an 8^th place finish in his only graded start (G1), so maybe he was outclassed.  Believe it or not this is the smallest field he has faced in his career.  All of his other races sported fields of 11 up to 20, with half his starts against fields of 17 or more.  River does like to run on the front end and I wouldn’t be surprised if he bullied his was as the lead.  For those risk-takers out there, this one may be for you!

7.  Proud Ziggie  8-1

Proud Ziggie has only a maiden race that he competed in at the end of November, winning a 6.5f race by 2 and posting a nice speed of 81 his first time out.  He shows nice breeding Proud Citizen x Danzig x Tom Rolfe.   I expect this race to record a speed near 90 and I think that Proud will need a couple of races to elevate himself to be competitive at the graded level.

8.  Mister Cricket  12-1

A horse loaded with early speed, Mister Cricket comes in as the long shot in the field.  He has been on the board in 6 of his 9 starts.  Stake racing-wise, he has four starts and finished third once.  This is his premier race at the graded level and he will have his work cut out for him.  For him to win, I believe he will need to develop a good lead early on.  He’ll probably need a 3-4 length lead heading into the stretch to beat his foes here.  Several horses in this field will be running close behind him early, and I doubt he’ll build up a large enough lead that they can’t cut into.  Mister Cricket looks best at the allowance level.

I’m going for a little value here and I think Tobyhanna has a good chance to extend his streak.  He’s coming off a career best speed of 96 and will be eating up the grass as he strides down the stretch and will catch the front runners.

Tycoon Wells is back to the G3 level where he has had success in the past.  He’ll put in a good race and will be dangerous here.

River of Fun intrigues me enough to make him my third choice.  It’s not often that a field of 8 is the smallest field a horse has faced after having 8 starts.  He has a chance to hit the board in this smaller stakes field.

Now….go get some of those bargain weanies and good luck at the track!