Super Stars And Co-Stars Charge In Stakes

It's time to launch the 2015  Breeders Crown Countdown, the exclusive blog that will coordinate with our general weekly harness blog at TwinSpires.com and the Hambletonian Society to find great wagering opportunities for "Crown" eligibles as they race their ways to the finals.

This season we will once again be watching the top horses in the divisions, those which have made most stakes races competitive and good betting propositions.

In our first installment we look at soph-filly trotters, most of which, two weeks ago, battled in the Hambletonian Oaks.

The winner of the “Oaks,” Wild Honey, is not among the two, $20,000 Hudson Filly Trot elims at Yonkers on Aug. 22. But two others from the field are here—Rules Of The Road and Bright Baby Blues. There are only five in the first episode.

Bright Baby Blues made a strong move in the Oaks after a third in the elim. She has been improving. Her single win this season was in a strong state-bred event and here she may wind up, even in a small field, worth a bit more based on the public’s focus on Rules Of The Road.

Only one gal from the Oaks is available in the five-filly field of elim two. Lady Winona was a value bet in the Oaks and picked up fourth to Wild Honey but here she has only to trot smoothly to beat these. On the tote board she won’t be the choice. Marion Millonair will probably take the most win money, leaving a good percentage of the pool for Lady Winona. Magic Marker will be a good exotic companion with both of them.

On the big Pocono program Aug. 22 (see TwinSpires harness blog), top older trotter JL Cruze returns after a brief rest to take on eight in the $100,000 Sebastian K Invitational.

”Cruze” has lost only two of 18 races and in those he was second. The trotter has done everything right and beaten about every older trotter in the division. If you attempt to bet against him, the Plan B should include Natural Herbie, who comes off two tough trips and is comfortable in this class of elder square-steppers. As well as “Herbie” performs, he always seems to pay top dollar when he wins and certainly agains Cruze he will offer plenty should the upset occur.

After conquering many of the boys in the Hambletonian, Mission Brief returns to the track on Aug. 21 against four other fillies in the $174,000  Moni Maker at the Meadows. She will face Oaks-winner Wild Honey, a foe she has put away before.

Mission Brief stayed flat in her elim heat and while trying to chase down Pinkman in the main event. She is tons better than any in her division as long as she doesn’t gallop (even then she is capable of getting back on stride and winning). She is a fine key for exotics in a six-filly field and you can pump the price of an exotic up if a difficult situation presents itself for Wild Honey. Using either Ron Burke’s other entry, I’m So Fancy and/or Jimmy Takter’s other entry, Smexi, you are looking at a worthy exotic/triple.

Follow major BC hopefuls on their road to the Breeders Crown at Woodbine at the Breeders Crown Countdown blog and the TwinSpires harness blog weekly, with archived reports on the results at the Hambletonian Society web site.