Betting with, and against, Coach in the Bayakoa Stakes

An excellent field of seven fillies and mares will travel 1 1/16 miles at Oaklawn Park to contest the competitive $250,000 Bayakoa S. (G3) on Saturday. The morning-line choice is the Brad Cox-trained #7 Coach (5-2), who was last seen driving home a convincing winner of the Pippin S. on the course. By Commissioner, the talented four-year-old has won two races in succession on the oval and could move forward in her third outing off the long absence, as well.

Coach appears to be peaking, and if she catches an off-track again, then she will be even more difficult to knock off while stalking the pace from the opening bell. The dark bay filly will have Ricardo Santana Jr. in the silks once again, but the favorite has serious competition from numerous foes, and she will have to be at her best to improve her win streak to three on Saturday.

#5 Mariah’s Princess (5-1) capped her sophomore season with a pair of excellent victories for conditioner Phil Bauer and will be a major threat if she is ready for her season debut. The $350,000 daughter of Ghostzapper aced her local and two-turn test in her three-year-old finale with a powerful Mistletoe S. triumph, and she appears to be training in fine fashion since that tally. Kentucky-bred will track the pace while forwardly placed beneath Martin Garcia.

#1 Matera (3-1) displayed excellent form since joining the Cox shedrow in 2021, and she is a winner from her lone try on the oval. The versatile Tapit mare is lightly raced with room for improvement, and if she runs her best, then the gray mare will be a major factor from the break. Florent Geroux riding adds to her appeal.

I could make a case for every contender in the cast to make the frame, so the "all" button is a necessity for the lower rungs of the vertical exotics.

Coach – With

• $12 exacta 7 with 1,5 ($24)
• $1 superfecta 7 with 1,5 with 1,5 with all ($8)
• $1 superfecta 7 with 1,5 with all with 1,5 ($8)

Coach – Against

• $2 trifecta 1,5 with 1,5,7 with all ($40)