How to bet the Smart and Fancy Stakes

Nine fillies and mares are entered for the turf in Friday’s $150,000 Smart and Fancy S. at Saratoga. The 5 1/2-furlong heat on the green attracted a really good group of grassy dashers, led by four-time graded heroine and defending champ #6 Future Is Now (6-5) for trainer Michael Trombetta. By Great Notion, the Maryland-bred has exquisite form coming into the tilt with six wins and two fine placings in her last eight appearances dating back to the spring of 2024. 

Smart and Fancy Wagers

• $12 exacta 6 with 1,7 ($24)
• $2 trifecta key 6 with 1,4,5,7 ($24)

The five-year-old loves this venue with a 5-3-1-1 mark at The Spa, and she shines at this distance as well with a 14-9-2-1 record at the trip. The Great Notion mare is fast from the gate and will be forcing the pace from the onset, with regular pilot Paco Lopez coming in to retain the ride. 

The 2024 Caress S. (G3) queen #7 Dontlookbackatall (15-1) has missed the board in four straight races in total but beat the favorite at The Spa last campaign and dons a 3-2-1-0 line over her favorite course. The Keystone State-bred gave a decent account of herself at Woodbine off the bench most recently and could be rounding back into something closer to her best in advance of this contest. The Miguel Clement pupil will have blinkers on for the second time and could grab a share at a big price beneath Manny Franco. 

Clement’s #1 Gal in a Rush (12-1) is a deep closing type with a perfect draw on the fence in a field with a bevy of early speed in it. The six-year-old daughter of Ghostzapper owns a victory on the local lawn and comes in with a swift half-mile drill on the grass in preparation for the event. She will be saving ground throughout and appear in the late stretch at a square number. Irad will be in the stirrups, too. 

#4 Ellen Jay (3-1) is unbeaten on the turf and has to be included, as does four-time stakes victress #5 Twirling Queen (6-1), who finished a close fourth in the recent Caress S. (G3) here most recently.