By Matt Shifman and Bob Ehalt

Hot List Key:
 A: A preferred horse to watch                           B: Secondary horse to watch
*C: Went down 2 or more betting notches and finished 1st through 3rd
*D: Went down 2 or more betting notches and finished 4^th or worst
* - 4 or more betting notches if 11-1 or more.

2^nd race [NY, East View, 7F] – (5) Blue Note (A/C) was a rare debut winner for Linda Rice whose horses usually take a step forward in their second starts and was bet down from 7-2 to be the 2-1 favorite. (4) Galinda was a first out winner as the favorite against a field of 10 with a front-end effort. (1) Pinky Brier won 3 out of her 4 most recent starts in a maiden claimer where she was taken by Brad Cox, a starter allowance, and a NY-bred allowance. (2) Victory Hall was last seen in November winning a stakes at Finger Lakes against open company and had an allowance victory at Delaware Park.

5^th race [Clm 20000 N2L, 6F] – (2) Purple and Gold (B) set the pace on the inside on a dead rail at 2-5 and folded but got claimed for $20,000. (7) Mo Attitude pressed the pace last month in his first run at Aqueduct and finished third. (5) La Gran Artesana has shown plenty of speed and that has been a big advantage the past couple of weeks and drops down to her lowest level. (6) Syl’s Pleasure ran evenly in a similar spot in his first start against winners.

6^th race [Clm 10000, 6 ½ F] – (5) Leading Role got his second win for a $17,500 tag with a front-end trip and last month pressed the pace, got to the lead, and was third for $12,500. (2) Divine Leader finished third for $16,000 with the waiver in his second start after a layoff. (3) Brew Pub was claimed for $25,000 in November and ran well at that level four times and now drops to this low level as an 8-year-old. (1) Glint was a winner for $10,000 on the last day of 2025 and then was fourth for $20,000 in January.

10^th race [NY, Md Sp Wt, 1 mi] – (1) Hurricane Kaz (C) was bet down from 17-1 to 13-1, raced with Lasix for the first time, set the pace, and finished second beaten by only a half-length. (7) Pride of the Union had a second and a third at Aqueduct as a 2-year-old after pressing the pace and now gets Lasix. (2) Mach Seven pressed the pace in his debut at 7-1 in a good field at Gulfstream Park. (4) Prospector also comes up from Florida to face NY-breds after two races for Saffie Joseph.

Best bets: Purple and Gold (5^th); Leading Role (6^th). Best Value:  Blue Note (2^nd); Hurricane Kaz (10^th).

Saturday Pick 3 Special --
Saturday Special $1 Pick 3 covers races 4-6 and includes the Damon Runyon à 6 with 2, 5, 6, 7 with 1, 2, 3, 5 = $16.