Another exciting weekend of horse racing action is approaching, as the start of the Breeders’ Cup gets ever closer. This weekend there is captivating action taking place at Keeneland and Belmont Park, and below we will run through the best plays with the leading sportsbooks for the three huge stakes races at the tracks.
Raven Run Stakes (Grade 2)
We will start with the graded action on a very exciting day at Keeneland. The home of the 2022 Breeders’ Cup features a huge race this weekend, as the Raven Run Stakes has attracted a field of nine for the Grade 2 race over seven furlongs.
There are a number of interesting contenders here, beginning with Obligatory. The three-year-old has done very little wrong this season, winning the G2 Eight Belles earlier in the season. She has also been second in both the G1 Acorn and G1 Cotillion, and rightly is a main contender here.
Cilla shouldn’t be overlooked after winning her last three, and has also picked up a win over Souper Sensational already this season in the G2 Prioress. However, Souper Sensational is still preferred on her first start at Keeneland, as we consider her to be the class of the field. Just Read It could be an interesting play underneath, and the same can be said for Strong Silent, who was very impressive in a competitive allowance race at Churchill Downs last time.
Pick: 1. Souper Sensational 2. Strong Silent
Perryville Stakes
The other stakes race that will be taking place at Keeneland on Saturday is the Perryville. A field on nine have declared for this, which is run over a short distance of seven furlongs. Much of the attention will be on the horses that are returning to this company after runs in the Triple Crown races.
Soup and Sandwich was last seen when 19th in the Kentucky Derby, but was very impressive when finishing second in Grade 1 company before that in the Florida Derby. However, after a long break away, he could be a dangerous bet. He’smyhoneybadger and Ram both have excellent quality, but we will be taking on the big guns.
Pipeline is our pick, who returned following a break of two months with a fresh-looking display at Saratoga in a maiden special weight. He certainly has talent coming into this race, after clocking a speed figure of 108 earlier in the season.
Pick: Pipeline
Hill Prince (Grade 2)
The final race that we will look at is the Hill Prince, which is a Grade 2 taking place at Belmont Park over a mile and an eighth on the turf. Chad Brown certainly has a couple of live contenders in this field, including Public Sector.
It is hard to pick too many holes in the form of Public Sector, as he has already won the G3 Saranac and G2 National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame this season. To make matters more interesting, he was beaten by Original in the Manila Stakes at Belmont already this season.
Sifting Sands and Never Surprised are also very competitive horses in this field, and could run well at slightly bigger prices. However, we think Soldier Rising is the best bet. He finished second in both the Saratoga Derby and Jockey Club Derby, but the conditions will certainly get the best out of him this weekend.
Pick: Soldier Rising
