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.

1^st race [Md Sp Wt, 1 1/16 mi TURF] – (5) Feral was fourth in his debut last month and that gives him a positive experience factor. (6) Bottas was a $300,000 2-year-old purchase from a $35,000 stallion that is producing debut winners for the Clement barn which is doing well with firsters. (4) Quiet Power was touted as a promising 2-year-old by his trainer. (1) Remember Mamba is a son of the great turf sire Kitten’s Joy showing a strong series of workouts.

2^nd race [OC 75k/N2X, 1 3/16 mi TURF] – (8) Vesting is in fine form following a layoff for the hot Saratoga barn of Mike Maker.  (7) Crystal Quest was second in a similar spot last month with plenty of stakes-placed finishes before that. (3) Then won a first-level allowance following a layoff in July for a trainer that is winning at a high percentage at Saratoga. (1) Early Adopter was a debut winner last summer for Chad Brown who won an allowance at Keeneland in the Spring amongst a few tries in stakes.

3^rd race [Md Sp Wt, 6½ F] – (1) Celebrity Quest and (1A) Bet the Gray make a Tom Amoss entry for the trainer whose horses are all coming out ready to run including the top 2-year-old of the summer thus far. (5) Icecreamforevryone will debut for Repole Stable and Todd Pletcher. Ignore Pletcher’s firsters at Saratoga at your own peril. (2) Glamorize was a $1 million yearling purchase for Resolute Racing and Chad Brown and is from young sire Maxfield so this one must have been a great shower at the auction. (8) Tam Tam was just shy of being a $1 million Saratoga yearling for a trainer who is a high percentage winner this summer.

4^th race [NY, Md Sp Wt, 6F] – (10) Merica’s Back shows up as a new gelding following a June layoff with a pair of second-place finishes for Mike Maker. (7) Keepinitreal finished in the top three in all four races and now adds blinkers after two races on wet and sealed tracks this year. (8) Call Bob returns from a year layoff when he showed lots of early speed and a pair of seconds at Saratoga. (1A) Alzero is the stronger half of the Bond trained entry that retains Jose Ortiz to ride and finished just behind the second choice.

5^th race [NY, Alw 95000 N1X, 5½ F TURF] – (10) Silsbee (A) got blocked in the stretch in his first stakes race and once clear rallied to just miss third by a nose. (2) Inflammabelle (2) pressed the pace, went six wide on an inside favoring turf course, and rallied to get second. (6) Annascaul was a debut winner at Saratoga last year who since has a pair of seconds in turf sprint stakes including the Blue Sparkler last month at Monmouth Park. (8) Phoebeinwonderland tried the turf for the first time last month and came with a late run. Rosario stays on board as one of the best turf sprint jockeys in the country.

6^th race [Md Sp Wt, 6F] – (6) Vino Vici set the pace and finished third in his debut for Pletcher last month at Saratoga. (5) Big Dom will make his first start for Tom Amoss with an impressive work tab at Saratoga showing. Amoss has only brought winning prospects upstate from Kentucky. (9) Old Time Rocknroll has also been prepping at the Spa for his first race for Chad Brown. (2) Paul’s Recovery is a $310,000 yearling purchase for Ken McPeek from the first-crop stallion Independence Hall who stands for only $7,500.

7^th race [Lake Placid(G2), 1 mi TURF] – (1) Play With Fire won the Hilltop at Pimlico on Preakness weekend and then was second in the Wild Applause last month for Chad Brown. (3) May Day Ready won her first three races and then was second in the Breeders’ Cup. She appears to be ready to get back to that form after the trip to Japan. (6) Reining Flowers was third beaten by just a neck in the Lake George (G3). (2) Eponine comes over from France with Repole Stable showing as the owner, so we have to assume that she is in the barn of Todd Pletcher. She was second in a Group 2 race at Chantilly and gets Irad Ortiz.

8^th race [NY, Alw 95000 N1X, 1 1/16 mi TURF] – (2) Gallant Greta ran her two best races when she broke her maiden and came back to miss the win by a half-length in the allowance against winners. A sharp recent work points to her readiness. (8) Loveumissumeanit had a starter allowance victory up at Saratoga three weeks ago that fits well with this field. (6) Dividend Recap came back from a 20 month layoff to win impressively and the Clement barn was lucky to slip her in for a $50,000 tag and did not lose her. (5) Backcheck is another Clement runner that won a maiden claimer and did not get taken. She then raced wide in an allowance and was gaining round at the end.

9^th race [Personal Ensign (G1), 1 1/8 mi] – (2) Dazzling Move (C) was bet down from 6-1 to 4-1 in the Shuvee (G2), set the pace, and was second. (7) Thorpedo Anna bounced back from her loss in the La Troienne (G1) to  win the Fleur de Lis (G2) at Churchill Downs. (6) Leslie’s Rose defeated two horses in this field in the Shuvee (G2) when she raced wide on an inside and speed favoring track. (1) Randomized has three victories at Saratoga including the Ogden Phipps (G1) last year with a front-end effort. Her win in the Molly Pitcher (G3) may have signaled her return to top form.

10^th race [H. Allen Jerkens (G1), 7F] – (1) Patch Adams got plenty of speed to run into when he won the Woody Stephens (G1) in June at Saratoga and it appears that the pace will be fast again. (6) Smoken Wicked also benefitted from a hot pace when he was victorious in the Amsterdam (G2) with the best performance of his career. (5) Verifire is undefeated in three starts including the Maxfield at Churchill Downs and should get the right pace set-up. (4) Chancer McPatrick will cut back to seven-furlongs at which he won the Hopeful (G1) at Saratoga last summer.

11^th race [Ballerina (G1),7F] – (9) Hope Road does not have to face the likes of Kopion and Ways and Means in this field. She gets a favorable rider change and returns from a short break with impressive workouts showing. (4) Halina’s Forte will be running late as she did to win the Honorable Miss (G2) last month at Saratoga. (5) Claret Beret loves the seven-furlong distance and gets Irad Ortiz. (3) Majestic Oops cuts back in distance and gets Kendrick Carmouche who has been making the right decisions recently in a wide-open field that is the most difficult to handicap in this card.

12^th race [Forego (G1), 7F] – (8) Scotland (A) was much the best in a top-level allowance after racing wide on an inside-favoring track to finish third just a length behind. (4) Book’em Danno loves Saratoga as seen in his pair of speedy wins this year in the Vanderbilt (G2) and the True North (G3). (5) Extra Anejo would benefit from a fast pace to set up his closing move. (7) Mullikin ran second behind Book’em Danno in his last two starts and won this race last year as a fourth win in a row.

13^th race [Travers (G1), 1 1/4 mi] – (4) Sovereignty is the top-ranked thoroughbred in the country and the dominant winner of the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes. (1) Magnitude was a powerful winner of his last two starts in the Risen Star (G2) on the Derby trail in February and then returned last month to overwhelm a weak group in the Iowa Derby. (3) Strategic Focus gets blinkers on following a third-place finish in the Curlin at Saratoga for Chad Brown where he set the pace. (5) McAfee had top three finishes in his last three starts in graded stakes against fellow 3-year-olds.

14^th race [NY, Md 50000, 1 mi TURF] – (9) Catholic Edition (A) had an awkward break, paused in traffic, clipped heels, checked, and finished third in her second start. Blinkers go on. (1) Dancin Jane returned from a long winter layoff to finish third in June in a similar spot. (10) Rad Llama will drop in for a tag for the first time and was well bet in her first three races. (4) Fire Agate was 5-1 in her debut in July at Saratoga, finished fifth, and was claimed for $50,000 by Mike Maker.

Saturday Pick 3 Special --
The Saturday Special $1 Pick 3 on races 9–11 is an all-(G1)-Pick 3 à 7 with 1, 4, 5, 6 with 3, 4, 5, 9 = $16.

No.	Name	Letter last race	Today's Race	Comments
(2)	Inflammable	B on 7/20	5	Rallied for second while running against a bias.
(10)	Silsbee	A on 8/7	5	Got blocked in the stretch in her only stakes race.
(2)	Dazzling Move	C on 7/18	9	Set the pace and finished second in the Shuvee.
(8)	Scotland	A on 7/12	12	Closed strongly against an inside bias.
(9)	Catholic Edition	A on 7/25	14	Finished third after a trouble-filled trip.