Weekend Winners Club

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Friday, May 20, 2022.  Pimlico kicks off its biggest weekend of the year with 6 stakes races today, highlighted by the Black Eyed Susan G2, the filly version of the Preakness, and preceded by other graded stakes including the Pimlico Special G3.

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The Pimlico Special was a Grade 1 race for many decades until the recent mismanagement of Pimlico which included the race not even being held in 2007, 2009, 2010, and 2011, despite its rich history of great horses.

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The race is near and dear to the heart of most true horse fans, with its inaugural champion War Admiral in 1937 paving the way, before being narrowly beaten in the famous match race the next year by Seabiscuit. 

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Other great champions of the Pimlico Special include Challedon, Citation, Assault, Tom Fool, the incredible Cigar, and more recently, Skip Away, Real Quiet, Mineshaft, Eddington, and Invasor.

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Unfortunately for us, such great horses now get retired at age 3 and never get to run in this race.  Also of misfortune for gamblers, the two top ML choices are legit, and the Grid confirms this.

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But, in a 9.5f race, regardless of its locale, you have to look at top LP, which the Grid provides you.  Among the top 4 in LP are two 12-1 late runners, including Treasure Trove, who has a strong record at nearby Laurel and good situational trainer stats (which the Grid also provides, unlike other PP’s.)

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In the Black Eyed Susan, the 13 talented filly field is favored with the great Adare Manor, who fought vigorously for 2^nd by a neck in the Santa Anita Oaks.  She is also the 4rules filly and top in power, etc.

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But you can see from my personal notations that I have Morning Matcha ranked #1 for this race, mostly because of the top LP rating.  This race has 6 horses with Quirin points above 5, so it has to be considered as one in which the pace will be hotly contested, lending a hand to the late runners.

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Morning Matcha at 20-1 has never had a fast pace up front in 10 career races, including the 5 sprints before she broke maiden.  I think this race finally sets up for her closing style at a big price. Midnight Stroll also catches the eye at 15-1, with good LP albeit a frontrunner thus far.

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The fillies with single digit odds have good credentials and are impossible to ignore, but with all this speed I’m trying to focus on the late runners. Miss Yearwood should have a great shot if this speed duel develops, and Beguine can run from off the pace at 12-1.

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Racing starts at 11:30AM today at Pimlico so I’m cutting the analysis short.  You can get the full Pimlico Grids for Friday and Saturday, and in fact all of your favorite tracks, right here, so check out the options.

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And stay tuned to this free portion of the site for the Preakness Precap and some good handicapping lessons for the big Saturday races.

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