Friday’s Best Bets and Quick Picks: $30,249 Pick 6 carryover

Handicapper J. Keeler Johnson shares best bets and quick picks for Friday, Feb. 16 at Turfway Park and Santa Anita, along with horses to single in Pick 6 carryovers at Aqueduct and Fair Grounds.

Today’s special offers from TwinSpires include:

• Winter Money Back: Receive refunds on win bets (up to $10) if your horse finishes second or third in select races every Thursday-Sunday.
• Fraser Downs 25% Win Bonus: Receive a 25% bonus (up to $25 per day) on winning single-horse win wagers at Fraser Downs every Thursday and Friday from Feb. 8 through Feb. 29.
• 10x Points at Meadowlands: Receive 10x reward points on all wagers (excluding show bets) at Meadowlands on Fridays and Saturdays in February.
• Turfway Park $2,500 Late Pick 5 Hit It & Split It: Hit the Late Pick 5 at Turfway Park on any Friday in February to win your share of a $2,500 daily bonus jackpot.
• Kentucky Derby Week Bankroll Builder: Wager at least $50+ during the duration of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager Pools and receive a cash bonus to wager during Kentucky Derby week, May 1 through May 4.

Best Bets and Quick Picks

Turfway Park: Race 1: $5,000 Claiming (6 1/2 furlongs on Tapeta, 5:55 p.m. ET)

#5 Merry of Soul (15-1) earned decent Brisnet Speed ratings in the 67-73 range when finishing fifth, fifth, seventh, and fifth in a quartet of $15,000 claimers during the 2022-23 racing season at Turfway. She subsequently cracked the trifecta three times against $10,000 claiming and $10,000 starter optional claiming competition on dirt and turf at Belterra Park.

Returning to Turfway for a $5,000 claimer can put Merry of Soul in contention for victory at enticing odds. She’s been freshened since September and is making her first start for trainer Phyllis Shetron, who has gone 2-for-4 (50%) at Turfway since November. Throw in the fact Merry of Soul will be guided by jockey Fernando De La Cruz (2-for-2 teaming up with Shetron over the last two months), and there’s a lot to like about Merry of Soul’s chances.

Selections

• #5 Merry of Soul (15-1)
• #9 Anaita (2-1)
• #8 Quiet Dawn (5-1)

Wagers

• $25 to win on #5 Merry of Soul

Santa Anita: Race 7: $50,000 Allowance Optional Claiming (1 1/4 miles on turf, 6:29 p.m. ET)

#11 Maltese Falcon (7-2) put up a good try in a $50,000 allowance optional claimer racing 1 1/8 miles over the Santa Anita turf last month. After trailing the field early, he launched a big inside rally to lead passing the eighth pole, only to flatten out late and finish second by a half-length.

Last year, Maltese Falcon ran second in the 1 1/4-mile Cinema S. on grass at Santa Anita, so stretching out in distance shouldn’t be an obstacle. If Maltese Falcon can save some ground this Friday under renowned jockey Frankie Dettori, he can spring a mild surprise against morning line favorite #5 Aligato (5-2), a consistent runner but one who hasn’t visited the winner’s circle since January 2022.

Selections

• #11 Maltese Falcon (7-2)
• #5 Aligato (5-2)
• #4 Calm Sea (4-1)

Wagers

• $20 to win on #11 Maltese Falcon
• $5 Exacta: 11 with 5
  Total: $25

Turfway Park: Race 8: $25,000 Allowance Optional Claiming (1 1/4 miles on Tapeta, 9:25 p.m. ET)

#4 Presider (3-1) got caught up in a speed duel when finishing third by three lengths over this track, distance, and class level on Jan. 25. Vying for command through early splits of :23.66 and :47.84 understandably left him vulnerable to late runners in the homestretch.

Presider figures to work out a much easier trip in his second try over 1 1/4 miles. There’s very little speed entered in Friday’s field, so Presider has every chance to shake loose on an uncontested lead and prevail in gate-to-wire fashion.

Selections

• #4 Presider (3-1)
• #11 Dr Kringle (7-2)
• #3 Bluegrass Parkway (10-1)

Wagers

• $25 to win on #4 Presider

Carryover Watch

Aqueduct: Race 3: $30,249 Pick 6 carryover (2:20 p.m. ET)

Fans of five-figure, non-jackpot Pick 6 carryovers will be happy to hear Friday’s $1 Pick 6 at Aqueduct has tossed up an appropriate prize pool worth $30,249.

The sequence gets underway in Race 3, a $32,000 claimer for fillies and mares sprinting six furlongs on dirt. It looks like the perfect spot for #3 Starship Defiant (9-5) to shine. The six-year-old mare misfired over a wet track in a $10,000 starter allowance at Oaklawn Park last time out, fading to finish fifth after running into traffic trouble, but two starts back she trounced a $62,500 allowance optional claimer sprinting six furlongs over a fast track at Aqueduct by 5 1/4 lengths.

That decisive victory yielded a career-best 98 Brisnet Speed rating. Starship Defiant is facing only five rivals in her return to Aqueduct and has the tactical speed to work out a favorable trip for the hot jockey/trainer duo of Isaac Castillo and David Jacobson, so we view the daughter of Empire Way as a viable single to start the Pick 6.

Fair Grounds: Race 3: $1,640 Pick 6 carryover (2:45 p.m. ET)

Fair Grounds is joining in on the non-jackpot carryover action with a $1,640 prize pool available to chase in the $1 Pick 6.

The feature event of the afternoon is Race 7, a $100,000 allowance optional claimer for three-year-olds dashing 5 1/2 furlongs on turf. The eight-horse field features a logical single in the form of #5 Committee of One (5-2), a son of Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (G1) winner Mendelssohn.

Committee of One has cracked the trifecta in four of his five starts. His lone miss came when rallying to finish seventh by only 2 1/2 lengths in last year’s five-furlong Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G1). He’d previously closed strongly to win Keeneland’s 5 1/2-furlong Indiana Summer S. by a nose.

Committee of One recently kicked off his three-year-old campaign with a respectable third-place finish in the Texas Turf Mile S. at Sam Houston. Racing one mile over yielding turf that day possibly stretched the limits of Committee of One’s stamina, as he made a mid-race move before flattening out and losing ground in the homestretch. Cutting back to 5 1/2 furlongs can return Committee of One to the winner’s circle for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen.

Good luck!