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 worse
* - 4 or more betting notches if 11-1 or more.

1^st race [OC 50k/N1X, 6F] – (2) Gun It won his last two starts while moving up the claiming ladder from $32,000 to $40,000 and got claimed three weeks ago. (4) Aggelos the Great has two races back from a three-month layoff finishing third and then did not appreciate a sloppy and sealed track at Saratoga last month. (5) One Nine Hundred broke his maiden at Aqueduct in March and then tried the Chick Lang on Preakness weekend where he set the pace.

4^th race [Clm 12500, 1 1/8 mi] – (3) Peek was a voided claim for $25,000 in May when he ran second for Linda Rice. He drops down now as Rice tries to pile up winners at Saratoga having won twice on opening day. (4) Tiberius Mercurius caught two wet and sealed tracks at Aqueduct in his last two starts finishing second and third. (5) O P Firecracker gets blinkers on in his second start since getting claimed and running third on a muddy track. He was a winner at the Big A in March. (1A) Aint No Joke has 3 wins from his last 4 starts and was claimed twice in that sequence for $16,000 and $17,500.

5^th race [Clm 17500 N2L, 6F] – (6) Trade Imbalance was claimed from Chad Brown for $17,500 by Linda Rice after setting the pace and finishing third. (3) Sittin Chilly was a debut winner in a NY-bred $30,000 claimer for Wesley Ward and he gets entered in an N2L condition where he is a serious win contender. (5) Fly’n Frisbee broke his maiden for a $20,000 tag in April at Aqueduct and then ran twice in races that were way too tough. (7) Brave Bear was claimed from a similar spot three weeks ago where he was second and comes back as a new gelding.

8^th race [Clm 12500, 6F] – (4) Rithm Nic was previously seen at Saratoga last summer and makes a significant drop in class when he was claimed five times for prices ranging from $32,000 to $62,500. (8) Forgiving Spirit was claimed at Keeneland for $20,000 by Linda Rice and was second for that price in the spring meeting. (5) Takeschargesmiling was claimed in March from an easy front-end victory at Tampa Downs. (2) Brew Pub was taken for $20,000 at Aqueduct in April and had three starts for $25,000 since then.

Best bets: Peek (4^th); Rithm Nic (8^th). Best value: Gun It (1^st); Trade Imbalance (5^th).