Spa selections 2018: Saratoga August 5

Pret Say Eye was antsy early, strong late for trainer Lacey Gaudet (left) at Saratoga in 2016. Photo by Teresa Genaro.

by Joseph Aiello

In Spa Selections, Saratoga on-site correspondent Joseph Aiello provides picks for a handful of key races at Saratoga, including all of the exciting stakes action!

Race 5 – Grade III Troy Handicap

1. #2 Holding Gold (9-2) – Assuming the race stays on the turf, this five year old gelding should run well coming out of a Grade I try in which he was only a length behind the winner

2. #7 Sandy’z Slew (7-2) – Step up in class will be a challenge, but is the most likely to steal this race on the front end; seems to be in good form at eight years old winning three of last four

3. #3 Disco Partner (8-5) – Near Grade I Breeders Cup Turf Sprint winner is obviously the best here but isn’t improving and most likely won’t like the surface

Race 9 – Alw 90000n1x

1. #1A Gauguin (5-2) – Should sit easy on the lead with soft fractions, seems like everyone in this field comes from the middle to back of pack

2. #8 Captain Hardship (8-1) – Took a while to break his maiden, but Jose Ortiz sticks with the mount and this gelding seems to be well suited for this long distance

3. #2 Im the Captain Now (4-1) – The other captain should find his way into the money with a late charge, and gets the edge over Uncle Gio and Thunder Mesa with consistency

Race 10 – Alydar Stakes

1. #3 Timeline (7-5) – Assuming the track stays sloppy after yesterday’s rain, stay away from Outplay and go with the most likely front end winner

2. #4 Kurilov (3-1) – Turf to dirt Brown trainee is coming from a Grade I and has won at this distance on a muddy surface

3. #5 Patch (5-2) – Take a shot over Outplay for this closer who will need the other four to go at each other early and fade late