How to bet the Aspirant Stakes

A cast of 10 New York-bred juveniles will speed 5 1/2 furlongs on the Finger Lakes dirt on Monday in the $104,338 Aspirant S. One of four black-type contests on the big card, this one looks like it will be a formful one as the top two choices loom large in the dash. 

Aspirant Wagers

• $25 win #10 Arctic Beast ($25)
• $10 exacta 10 with 4 ($10)
• $4 trifecta 4,10 with 4,10 with 3 ($8)

#10 Arctic Beast (2-1) brought $275,000 as a yearling at Saratoga and debuted at The Spa on Aug. 15 for conditioner Mike Maker. The son of exciting young sire Yaupon flashed good speed and displayed a strong closing kick in graduating over a potentially good group on that day, while earning a hefty 90 Brisnet Speed rating in the process. 

The morning-line choice was flattered when the third-place finisher in his first run, a $700,000 two-year-old purchase trained by Todd Pletcher, came back to win next time out at 3-10 odds at Aqueduct. Arctic Beast is the first foal out of an excellent mare, and the January foal has posted a trio of maintenance drills in advance of his stakes bow. With a draw on the outside to ensure a clear voyage, the colt looks formidable with Ricardo Santana, Jr. inheriting the mount. 

The Jeremiah Englehart-trained #4 Party in the Army (3-1) was second-best in a 12-horse special weight field at Saratoga in his first showing and will improve from the experience for a solid juvenile conditioner. The Army Mule colt is kin to a stakes-placed two-year-old and gives the impression of a precocious one with room for growth going forward. He is a late foal who might need another run or two to reach his peak in 2025, but he fits well in this contest, nonetheless. Dylan Davis retains the ride and will have him forwardly placed from the opening bell. 

Of the two youngsters from Anthony Ferraro's barn, I have a slight preference for #3 Hey Pal (6-1). The Bustin Stones colt raced in second throughout in his unveiling on this course while finishing well clear of the third-place runner, and he came back with a bullet half-mile drill in advance of this heat, too. His half-sister was a stakes heroine on the oval in 2022, and I expect him to make the frame with Coa in the stirrups.