Gil Winston touts $129 winner at Big M

The objective of this analysis is to identify harness racing horses via plus or minus scores that are not identifiable in the past performances. Horses whose races are accurately captured in the past performances are not captured here, regardless of how well or poorly they may have raced.

Consider all races without comment as WUSIWUG – an acronym for What U See (in past performances) Is What U Get. Some races may identify multiple horses that are scored, while other races are clearly defined in the past performances, and no horse is scored. These unscored horses all had clearance in the pivotal part of the stretch, and no uncharted exertion earlier.

Scores do not indicate must-bet or must-toss the next time they race as other handicapping factors come into play. But these scores give the bettor a huge edge in what is frequently the most important factor when making betting decisions and many scored horses have been coming in with generous payouts.

This week, a scored-in-previous-race JUST A ROCKET MAN paid $129 for a $2 wager at The Meadowlands. (HARNESSLINK.COM article published 6-19). That was the second biggest price of a scored horse since this column started last August, and there have been many more long prices. There have been a number of cold exactas, and two cold trifectas when three scored horses ended up in the same race.

You cannot assume scored horses will race the following week. Here is the best way to profit from this analysis. On the day you are wagering on races, and see Freehold or Meadowlands in the past performances, go to here This will open up the list of all articles. For horses that show lines that pique your interest, find the article that analyzes the races for that day, then search for the horse. If the horse has a positive score, you know the horse is better than the pp line shows. Click on other weeks that the horse raced if the most recent race does not complete the story for you. This will give you access to all analysis.

Tracking shippers is not part of this analysis, but out-of-town winners are identified on occasion.

It’s June and the 2yos are making their appearance. This has been the most powerful crop of 2yo trotters and pacers I have ever seen this early in the season. Many players have no intention of playing any 2yos until they have raced a few times. Many players love playing the early 2yos because they believe they offer the most value. Historically, the first week of 2yo betting races give a big edge to the favorites.

More of the same in the second week, but a few more longshots sneak in. Starting with the third time out, the bombs start falling regularly. But that’s history. We all know the line about the past not necessarily predicting the future. Consider putting scored horses in your virtual stables for when they go out of state for stake races. Tracking of out-of-town shippers is hit-and-miss in this column.

This week’s winners that were identified in previous analyses

M’lands               6-21       Race 6   JUST A ROCKET MAN     $129.60

Scored in last. One of the craziest overlays ever. JUST A ROCKET MAN was the beaten favorite in this class last week. He was scored because the race was to be ignored. My comment was, “checked and lost momentum.” Besides the win price, hopefully some of you were one of the lucky ones who hit the exacta $1,186, the trifecta $3,775, or pick-4 $15,254. The Meadowlands is a tough track to handicap, but as you see, sometimes it only takes one.

M’lands               6-21       Race 13 DAIQUIRI HANOVER      $ 3.40   Scored in qualifier

M’lands                6-22       Race 4   WINNER’S BET                 $ 2.60   Second straight win since being scored +2 in qualifier.

M’lands                6-22       Race 6   HASTY BID                         $ 7.40    Scored in last

Pocono Downs   6-22       Race 11 TACTICAL LORI                 $20.20   This was one of those “magical” qualifiers at Magical Acres only 3 days earlier. She was really good, but she was not scored because the field was suspect, and the race fractions were 34 1.06.3 1.38.1 2.07 (not a typo). I did not see the entries at Pocono. Was the Magical Acres line on the program?

Magic Acres Qualifiers 6-19

*** A strange morning of races. Despite the heat wave in the northeast, Magical Acres seemed to escape it. They published a 62-degree temperature and there were strong winds throughout the races. Race times were very slow for most races, and there seemed to be racehorses in with the 2yos. The USTA failed to provide entries, so I even question if the right horses were identified in the races. I strongly recommend observing the times of the first Magical Acres horses when they race to see if the times improve dramatically. This may prove invaluable when future horses from this date race.

GREEN PASTURES ‘allegedly had the 5-post in the 8^th race. He raced on Friday at M1, with no acknowledgement of the line of 6-19 for his race of 6-21.

Hopefully, you will be able to track Magical Acres qualifiers in the future. In previous years, Magical Acres lines were in the past performances. ***

Race      Horse                                   Score     Analysis

1             3 FUN WITH FLAGS          1             Impressive. A 3yo filly. This was supposed to be a 2yo race.

4             5 STEVEN’S SALOON        2             Looks like a good one. Missed start, raced to top, responded to urging.

5             5 PEACE TALKS                  1             Two moves

6             1 CAPTAIN ALBANO         2             Impressive. Was it CAPTAIN ALBANO? He finished 3^rd in 1.48.4 in NA Cup in Woodbine a few days earlier. These were the qualifying race fractions: 30.0 1.02 1.30 1.58.1

8             1 PACKMIA                         1             Sneaky mile. Let horse pass him in slow fraction, then stayed on. A 3yo trotter by the same name raced two days earlier at Saratoga. In this race, PACKMIA was driven by Trond Smedshammer. Lucy, you got some ‘splainin’ to do.

Gaitway Qualifiers 6-20

Race      Horse                                   Score     Analysis

2             1 SWEET BALLAD              1             Had more

3             4 DEMARARA HANOVER1             Most trot when given clearance

4             2 ROBBED BY FORCE       1             Strong close when given clearance

4             4 RAILROAD STATION      1             Impressive

5             1 FREE CLIMB                    2             Strong move, then lineup behind winner

5             3 MS PRADA                      1             On own

6             2 SHES A STREAKER         2             Under wraps while drawing away

8             3 HIDALGO                         1             Looked horrendous scoring down, then was perfect during race. Don’t know if that poor score down was a one-time thing, but do not shy away if he looks bad before racing.

9             1 GO GO GRASSHOPPER 1             Impressive

13           6 SWEETEST BELLE          1             Older horse. Dug in willingly when challenged.

Meadowlands Qualifiers 6-22   

*** The number of 2yos that looked outstanding was amazing for June ***

Race      Horse                                   Score     Analysis

1             7 WARRIOR                        2             Strong trot in the stretch

WARRIOR REPLAY

2             2 NORDIC CATCHER S      2             With a last quarter of 26.3, looked like he had a lot more

3             5 GUCCI HILL                     1             Shut off while moving best

4             1 GRANDE VIA                  1             Had more

4             3 IMPRESSIVE LANDING 1             Shut down when trotting strong in midstretch

7             1 TARRISI                            1             Had more

8             6 MONI MULTIPLIER        1             Clear too late with trot

9             2 AMAZON FASHION       1             Good trot when finally clear

10           1 TANDEM HANOVER      1             Good recovafterery  interference by bad actor

11           2 PRETENDER                    2             Strong acceleration under hold when clear

PRETENDER REPLAY

12           6 RIZZO                            1             Very wide first turn

15           2 ASCENDANCE                1             Never clear with pace

16           2 CAPTAIN OPTIMISTIC   1             Had more than the 26 last quarter

16           6 WORLD BEATER            1             Lined up behind winner

18           1 NAMASTE HANOVER   1

Race      Horse                                   Score     Analysis

*** WUSIWUG races 1 through 8 ***

9             10 MAJORLY SEXY A        1             Most pace in the lane

10           3 FADE OUT                       1             Taken out by dead cover on the turn

10           7 AVF CLAIRE                     1             Clear too late with the most pace

10           8 ABSOLUTE POWER       1             Wide the first 1/8 in fast 1q

12           1 EA MUSHU                     1             Shuffled out, lineup in stretch

Meadowlands 6-22

Race      Horse                                   Score     Analysis

1             7 KID DID IT                       1             Big move in third quarter

*** WUSIWUG races 2 through 6  ***

7             10 CUPID SHUFFLE           1             Tight between in stretch

9             2 SRONEBRIDGE REEF     1             Clear too late with pace

11           9 BET A BUNDLE               1             Weave with most pace

by Gil Winston, for Harnesslink