February Finale Filled With Pure Profit Expectations

The forecast looks well enough to try again at the Meadowlands with its triptych of winter-series finals on the last weekend in February. Our suggested contenders for Feb. 28’s features are rehashed below.

Our overnight races chosen this weekend include a Pick 3 at the Meadows on Friday, Feb. 27 and a feature that night at Western Fair. Saturday also features a Yonkers race of interest. It isn’t over there because from Thursday Feb. 26 through Monday, March 2, you can follow contenders in our popular horses-to-watch (H2W) list. It’s proven to be great harness action with win, place, show and exotics in play to complement your handicapping skills.

Meadows Pick 3
Feb. 27

The following horses are recommended in your Pick-3 combos. At odds you judge worthy, consider them as win wagers or across-the-board wagers.

Race 3

Thunder Chaser deserves to step up after a magnificent win from post 9 and should be taken very seriously from the inside with this group. We suspect the hike will be too much for bettors to consider his recent form treacherous.

Prima Dragon has been solid at this level and may be dismissed for being on the outside. However, there is not a lot of classy power on the inside, especially with a shaky probable favorite in Sand Tilly Lace.   

Race 4

This odd non-winners of 1 with conditions that allow a winner of 2 by earnings presents a corral of proven losers and a few late starters (one of them a first-time starter who did not race at two. Second-time starter Sparky Sir jumped early in his first start and still managed to pick up the fourth check. He needs to be on the ticket because if you take that break away he wins for fun.

The first-time starter, Woody Hanover, gets post 8 coming in from Miami where his qualifier was fast. But there has been seven months since his first qualifier, a galloping game, though he could be far better than all of these.

Race 5

Maddys Dolly has failed twice in her recent pair but her Feb. 20 race (at 6-1) was an enthusiastic attempt from post 8, hanging for three calls before a complete tanking. She steps down a condition, to around where she was when she won her first effort on this track. 

Feature Race 
Feb. 27, Western Fair
Race 9

We have to toss out the Feb. 20 performance of Daquiri Seelster and consider it a recent anomaly because inspection of her five races before it qualify her as a major contender in this event. Long, outside trips over the four London turns took their tolls on her but on Feb. 13 she was clearly the next best against the morning-line favorite in this event, Soxtoobu. She has strong early foot and as you can see from her Jan. 23 race, she can keep command and win (two of the horses in that race are in this one). If she goes off anywhere near her morning-line odds, she is well worth the wager.

Another Saturday Night

The Meadowlands tries again to offer three winter-series finals on Saturday, Feb. 28. These are the races postponed from Feb. 22 due to inclement weather. What follows is how we analyzed those races.

The Charles Singer Memorial ($49,000) is for three- and four-year-old trotters. There are some arguments for a few in here, including each in the three-horse entry. You should get a good price, however, on Walk The Walk, because the money should be spread out a bit. This one comes from a “Singer”-leg win and, according to his connections, is fine fettle right now.

The $59,000 Sonsam Final for older males is hard to zero in on a public choice. However, Bettorever was hanged early in last week’s leg while well supported, coming off a monster second at 44-1 in leg one and he could have a major say here at a higher price than his chances should allow.

The $50,600 Burning Point Final may wind up offering a good price for Witch Dali, who has been beaten in two legs after coming into the series looking like she could sweep it and has been heavily supported. Even with those that have beaten her going for the big money here, Witch Dali should be expected to put in a giant mile for the largest purse and it is not a stretch of the imagination to see the crowd dismiss her when she can pay her best.

Feature Race
Feb. 28, Yonkers
Race 5

This year, Simply Business has raced five times and has been on the board all of them. Formally with Jimmy Takter (we gave him to you at huge odds when, at two, he won the Metro Pace), Ian Kaufman is making a professional racehorse out of him, cashing checks in the upper conditions on the New York half-mile. Simply Business is in a perfect spot here to put his first 2015 number in the win column and perhaps begin a skein as he strengthens with age. He could also be prepping for the “Levy” series, where he would fit perfectly this year.

H2W Legend

Review our choices and follow the wagering at the prescribed track. These are possible contenders we have judged from reviewing races. The horses’ names are listed beneath the name of the track after the date they will be racing. The race in which they are entered (R and race number) follows. If a + is in front of a horse’s name it means it is appearing on the list for the second (and last time) because it failed to win the first time it appeared. An “ae” signals the horse is entered on the also-eligible list. If a horse is listed twice, refer to the entries on the night of the race since a horse may enter in more than one race. Types of wagering on any of the H2W listed horses are based on your judgment. If you have any questions, email us at TwinSpires.

H2W

Buffalo
2/27/15, +Real Bravo R4; Power Off R7
2/28/15, +Bakken R1; +Keystone Reactor R2; +Elite R2; Dash N R3; +Mach Stockn Barrel R4; +Enzo Seelster R10; KC Colt R13

Cal Expo
2/28/15, Intended Gold R11; +Cowboy Cold R14; +Bit Player R14
3/1/15, Don’t Hurry Love R12

Dover
2/26/15, Celtic Thunder R2; +Hemingway R6; Contraband Hanover R7
3/1/15, Sir Global Z Tam R10

Flamboro
2/28/15, +Solano Beach R3; Selmas Wish R7

Freehold
2/27/15, Cultured Pearl R3; Shiner Hanover R5

Maywood
2/26/15, +Anightwithwilma R8
2/27/15, Misspanderosajones R6; Some Heart Throb R9; +Cuatro Cinco R11; Cantholdmebackmack R11

Meadowlands
2/27/15, +Four Star Roe R2; ++Wickedwitchothewest R9
2/28/15, +Capozzo R8

Meadows
2/27/15, +Black Silk Jammys R7; +Tune In R10
3/2/15, +Delmary R3

Miami
2/28/15, +Defective Sham R4; +Comicbook Hero R10; +Master Stroke R11

Monticello
2/26/15, +Watch Me Too R4; Noble Logans Lou R8; Best Friends Always R9

Northfield
2/26/15, +Tsm Soul Sister R6; Threefold Breanna R10; Playa Del Rylee R14; +Nirvana Gear R15; Caramel Chinno R15; Flight Seelster R15

Northville
2/27/15, +Hot Cycle R9; +Little Amos R10

Pompano
2/28/15, Pontiac Luck R1; +Pacific Cyclone R2

Woodbine
2/27/15, PL Hurricane R10

Yonkers
2/26/15, +Tashia R3
2/28/15, +Grand Master R3
3/2/15, +Electric Cruiser R8

Ray Cotolo contributes to each edition.