Churchill Downs: Horse racing pick of the day for Oct. 30

Weekday picks and plays for Thoroughbred racing.

Friday, Oct. 30

Churchill Downs, Race 2: Maiden special weight (1 1/16 miles, 1:30 p.m. ET)

In a small field without much speed on paper, #2 Speightstown Again (9-2 on the morning line) can vie for victory in his route debut.

A stoutly bred son of Speightstown, out of a Tiznow mare, Speightstown Again sold for $675,000 as a yearling and showed potential sprinting at Churchill Downs last year, where he finished behind future stakes winners Halo Again and Little Menace in his first two starts.

After eight months on the sideline, Speightstown Again returned to action in a 6-furlong maiden sprint Aug. 1 at Gulfstream Park, where he finished third after a duel for the lead, through splits of :22.87 and :46.22.

He has since turned in encouraging workouts at Churchill Downs, culminating with a half-mile in :47.80, so I’m optimistic this Kenny McPeek trainee will show improvement in his second run of the season.

Let’s bet Speightstown Again to win and key him in the exacta, with #1 Twenty Twice (3-1) and #3 Pledgeofallegiance (3-1).

$8 to win on #2 Speightstown Again
$2 exacta: 2 with 1,3 ($4)
$4 exacta: 1,3 with 2 ($8)
Total: $20

Good luck!