Betting the stakes action on Churchill’s ‘Downs After Dark’ Saturday card

"Downs After Dark" at Churchill Downs (c) Coady Photography

by Scott Shapiro

The lone September “Downs After Dark” card at legendary Churchill Downs on Saturday night includes three Thoroughbred stakes events over the strong 11-race slate headlined by the $200,000 Lukas Classic (G3) featuring $4.1 million-earner Mind Your Biscuits.

The stakes action commences in Race 7 with the $100,000 Jefferson Cup.

The 1 1/8-mile affair over the Churchill lawn drew a field of 10 three-year-old males led by 5-2-morning line favorite Majestic Eagle (#6).

The Southern California import makes his second start of September following a fourth-place finish in the Del Mar Derby (G2). In that first try versus graded competition, the Neil Drysdale trainee was caught wide throughout and farther off the pace than usual, but still showed some fight under Hall of Famer Gary Stevens to earn a 100 BRIS Speed rating in the process. The son of Medaglia d’Oro should appreciate the class drop, but how he will respond to his first race away from home remains a mystery.

Hot Springs (#5) (3-1 ML) moved into stakes company two-back in the Kent (G3) at Delaware Park and ran a solid second despite struggling to find room at the top of the lane. The son of Uncle Mo was in a bit over his head against a strong group in the Saranac (G3) but still finished fourth. He should get a perfect stalking trip on Saturday under jockey Ricardo Santana Jr. and is my top choice.

The Ack Ack (G3) is the 8TH race on the card and drew a compact field of seven. The one-turn mile event over the main track appears void of significant speed for a race of this nature, so horses with early zip are definitely at an advantage in the first of two Grade 3 races on the “Downs After Dark” card.

C Z Rocket (#7) (2-1) is the clear horse to beat after a stalk-and-fade fourth-place finish in late August in the Forego Handicap (G1) at Saratoga. The $800,000 OBS June 2016 purchase by Frank Fletcher Racing Operations has won four of seven lifetime, including two of three over this racetrack, and draws the favorable outside post. This should offer veteran jockey Shaun Bridgmohan options after the break, but given his tactical speed he should find a favorable early spot. The son of City Zip will be tough to beat.

Giant Expectations (#2) (3-1) is the wild card in the Ack Ack. The New York-bred ships East off a 6 1/2-month break for West Coast-based conditioner Peter Eurton. The five-year-old has trained forwardly for his return and should be keen off the freshening, but will he have the foundation to win off the layoff or will he need a race to be at his best?