by Jo Talbot
Beginning what appears (stay tuned) to be a burgeoning theme, Jo’s Featured Race, the second at Penn last night, was rained off the turf; that’s the bad news, since her picks were based on a grass race. The good news, on the other hand, is that she did tell us that favored Lawyer Dave was a bridesmaid, which meant that it made sense to look elsewhere. Lawyer Dave was up to his old tricks last night; he was sent off at 3-5, made the lead in the stretch, but ended up second. She also gave some love to Southern Prize, mostly for reasons having nothing to do with the surface, and that one led for a long way before finishing third — at 28-1!
As for the developing theme, well, today’s Featured Race, the fifth from Pimlico, also was slated for the turf and also has been taken off and moved to the main track. Hence, our “never mind” headline. We’ll need to speak with her about handicapping races that remain on the original surface!
