Betting With, and Against, Ag Bullet in the Franklin Stakes

Grade 1 vixen #7 Ag Bullet (2-1), who has hit the board in the last two editions of the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint (G1), leads a field of eight in Sunday’s $400,000 Franklin S. (G2) at Keeneland. The field is loaded with stakes winners and talented runners from top to bottom, but the morning-line choice is the clear one to beat for conditioner Richard Baltas. 

Ag Bullet – With

• $1 superfecta 7 with 3,5 with 1,3,5 with all ($20)
• $1 superfecta 7 with 3 with 1,5 with all ($10)

Ag Bullet – Against

• 50-cent superfecta: 3,5 with 1,3,5,7 with 1,3,5,7 with all ($30)

The excellent daughter of Twirling Candy had a misstep by her standards at Kentucky Downs last time when failing to produce her best effort, but her body of work is fantastic, and she will be formidable with something close to her top performance. The gray mare has amassed more than $3 million in earnings in her lifetime, and she has proven to be more than capable of firing when up close early, or from rallying from off the pace, with equal effectiveness. John Velazquez will take the reins. 

Defending champ #3 Time to Dazzle (8-1) is winless since eclipsing this race in 2025, but the late runner from the barn of Mark Casse landed in a field where the pace could be rapid and contested, and she is very appealing at a price. The five-year-old by Not This Time has rallied to be second in a pair of races in succession leading up to Sunday and will be in range late at a nice price under Irad Ortiz Jr. 

#5 Shoot It True (9-2), one of two in the group for Wesley Ward, has won or placed in all seven career tries on the grass including an allowance second on the local green in April. The Munnings four-year-old has come up short in the stakes ranks on a few occasions on the lawn this campaign, but she dominated allowance foes at Saratoga in her latest performance and comes in fresh as a contender today with Yedsit Hazlewood in the stirrups. 

Grade 1 queen #1 Usha (4-1) could be overbet in her first lifetime try on the sod, but she is bred to handle the surface, and the wildcard rates as an exotics contender in the dash. The Tiz the Law four-year-old will have blinkers on for her turf bow and will save ground from the rail with Flavien Prat in the silks.