Belmont at the Big A: Friday 5/1 Plays R9 - Pete's Picks

Little Pete
May 1
3 min read

Nine races scheduled for Belmont at the Big A. The Derby is one day way so lets build a bankroll for the big day. I will be condensing my plays down to just the numbers and attacking the early double (Races 1 & 2) and a spot pick 3 (Races 4-6). Big Pete will attack his "Play of the Day" and the late pick 3 (Races 7-9). We appreciate you taking a look at this write-up and GOOD LUCK.

Little Pete's $ 5.00 Early Double:

R1: 6

R2: 3, 5 Cost: $ 10.00

Little Pete's $ 1.00 Spot Pick 3:

R4: 3, 4, 6

R5: 4

R6: 3, 6 Cost: $ 6.00

Big Pete's $ 1.00 Late Pick 3:

R7: 2, 3, 4

R8: 1, 2, 7

R9: 2, 7, 8, 11 Cost: $ 36.00

Big Pete's "Play of the Day":

Race 3:

With a few speeds signed on, this will likely set up (6) EARLY ON to come running late at the end. She ran big two back and it may have taken too much out of her as her last race was a dud. A stiff wind may have stalled her closing kick that day so I'll give her a pass. She recorded a bullet last week for this and appears ready to bounce back today.

I’ll use (2) Mommasgottagun and (5) Sweetest Princess underneath for the exacta.

$ 7.00 WPS 6 Cost $ 21.00

$ 7.00 Ex 6 w/ 2, 5 Cost $ 14.00

We’ll also use (6) Early On in R3 and try to cash in on a Daily Double.

(3) Playa Del Mar and (6) Refuah in the 4th.

$ 7.00 Daily Double 6 w/ 3, 6 Cost $ 14.00

Big Pete's Late Pick 3:

Race 7:

The Stymie was a bit of a head-scratcher for (4) PHILEAS FOGG. We weren't expecting that. I'm guessing that just was not his day. I'll include but there are two others I like more. (3) LE GRIS may try to steal this one and hope that Fogg has lost a step. If he can get clear turning for home, he could prove tough to run down. I want to take a shot with the now rail runner (2) PAY BILLY. He has been keeping good company in his Maryland races and they ship him in with his regular rider. He goes back on the L1 medication which seems to help with two wins and a 2nd while on it. This gut was one of the better 3yr olds last year leading up to the Preakness and then Journalism put him in the 2nd tier. He's back with some decent runs this year and looks live to me. today.

$ 7.00 WPS 2 Cost $ 21.00

$ 3.00 Ex Box 2, 3, 4 Cost $ 18.00

Race 8:

(2) MIDNIGHT CONCERTO moves back to the grass. She did okay on the dirt, but she's slightly better on the lawn. She'll need others to not show up, though, as she has a hard time getting to the wire first. (1) SCYTHIAN is the one to beat. She exits stakes races where she was close at the wire. The class relief is hard to overlook here. (7) NATIONAL ARCHIVE is cutting back after posting her best speed figure to date. She finished right next to the favorite going long, and I think the shorter distance gives her an advantage with her speed.

$ 7.00 WPS 7 Cost $ 21.00

$ 5.00 Ex 1, 7 w/ 1, 2, 7 Cost $ 20.00

Race 9:

(2) MAGNUM'S MICROBURST drops again and figures to take money. I'll use defensively because she looks desperate, so I'll try to beat her. (11) SWEET MACKENZIE draws in off the AE's. They dropped her to this level in January, and she woke up with a decent 3rd place finish. Ships north for this. (7) MO COMPLEX has been sprinting on the grass, and now they stretch her out. With Mo underneath, that should not be a problem. I landed on (8) LEADING ROLE to steal the show. She got bumped around in her debut and never looked into the race from there. She got close early and then just coasted home. The addition of L1 explains a lot to me as she may have had trouble getting her air. Santana returns, and he's on a roll of late. I'm expecting a big run today.