2-year-old Desormeaux stands out in victory

Photo: Eclipse Sportswire & Coady Media – edited

In this biweekly series, racing analyst J. Keeler Johnson highlights promising horses from his handicapping watch list, discusses runners that have caught his eye recently, and previews horses whose next races are scheduled for the future.

Result from Wednesday

Churchill Downs, Race 9: Optical is new to my watch list. He didn’t show much in his first three starts when he sprinted on dirt and ran long on turf, finishing fourth, eighth and fourth. But when he tackled his first dirt track in a one-mile, maiden special weight race at Churchill, the young colt trained by Keith Desormeaux improved dramatically. Optical led throughout with splits of 23.55, 46.84 and 1:11.70 before running his final quarter mile in 23.95 seconds and dominating by 14 lengths with a time of 1:35.65 seconds. The road to the Kentucky Derby certainly beckons.

Result from Friday

Churchill Downs, Race 7: New on my watch list is Muhimmaha 2-year-old mare from Brad Cox’s stable who crushed a 6 1/2-furlong race in a 1-1 special weight at Churchill. The daughter of Munnings ran split times of 22.36 and 45.11 seconds before finishing well with a third quarter mile in 23.94 seconds and a final sixteenth mile in 6.50 seconds to win by 7 1/2 lengths in 1:15.55 seconds. She looks a player for the Kentucky Oaks (G1).

Results from Saturday

Parx Racing, Race 8: It is not surprising Next was a watch list winner as the 1:20 favorite in the 1 1/2-mile Greenwood Cup (G3). The standout dirt marathoner ran stretches of 24.96, 49.94, 1:16.55 and 1:42.97 in second place before easily taking the lead and winning by 10 lengths. Even without any spurring from jockey Luan Machado, Next ran his final quarter mile in a quick 24.58 seconds and stopped the clock at 2:33.61 seconds, earning him a Beyer Speed ​​Figure of 102 from Daily Racing Form. The Breeders’ Cup Classic or Breeders’ Cup Turf could be next on the schedule for this star stayer.

Los Alamitos, Race 1: I’m adding Silent Law to my watch list after she won comfortably on her debut in a Maiden Special Weight over five furlongs. The Bob Baffert-trained young mare was on the gas at the start before taking the pace and picking up the pace with ease to gain a 10-length lead in 57.18 seconds. Silent Law was sold for $400,000 as a 2-year-old in training and could soon redeem that purchase price with a win in a stakes race.

Parx Racing, Race 12: As the 1-10 favorite, she had to work harder than expected, but Thorpedo Anna was one of the winners of the 1 1/16-mile Cotillion and secured her fourth Grade 1 victory of the year. After forcing the pace from the start on the inside lane, Thorpedo Anna caught up and finished behind her rivals with no way to avoid them. Fortunately, she squeezed through a gap between her rivals in the homestretch and overtook 44-1 outsider Gun Song, who was a neck ahead at 1:45.45. At this point, Thorpedo Anna is a surefire champion of 3-year-old fillies at the Eclipse Awards.

Parx Racing, Race 13: Unmatched Wisdom fell short of my expectations in the Pennsylvania Derby (G1), slipping from a pace-chasing position to finish fifth, eight lengths back. He has fallen off my watch list after two consecutive losses at Grade 1 level.

Entries from Wednesday

Parx Racing, Race 9: Drum Roll Please looked to be a serious prospect for the Kentucky Derby player after winning the Jerome and finishing third in the Remsen (G2) behind eventual Belmont winner Dornoch and Kentucky Derby runner-up Sierra Leone. Unfortunately, he was forced to retire due to injury and has not raced for about 8 1/2 months.

Since his last race, Drum Roll Please has been handed over to Chad Summers by trainer Brad Cox. He will make his highly anticipated comeback in a one-mile, 70-yard race for Pennsylvania-born horses at Parx, where Drum Roll Please is undoubtedly the horse to beat if he picks up where he left off.