Harness Preview: Picks and Horses to Watch Sept. 1-5

Selected features, stakes coverage and the never-ending TwinSpires’ horses-to-watch list (H2W) share keys to success in exotics, win, place and show payoffs.

Thursday, September 1

MOHAWK MILES

Each Thursday we highlight some probable long shots from Mohawk Park. If they do not win at first crack we add them to the H2W the following week as bet-backs or in selected features, adding new possibilities to this section.
R5 — #2 Better Sing It (6-1): draws inside for the extra steps needed to win.
R10 — #1 Night Shadow (5-1): coming off a sharp qualifier with more speed than shown.

SIRES SERIES

Hoosier

Race 10
Two divisions of $68k Indiana Sires Stakes (INSS) for frosh-filly pacers open with Erv Miller’s duo bound to get the most attention. However, we’ll take #4 Miss Cadet (6-1), only once out of the money and here on the verge of another slight upset.

Race 12
The INSS nightcap leans again towards Miller product but we’ll go with unbeaten #6 Rollin Rosie (8-5). She could top the division with a season’s win streak, paying fairly.

Saturday, September 3

GRAND AGAIN

Mohawk - Races 1, 3, 8

The Grand Circuit presents the Simcoe Stakes. Two splits are for soph-filly trotters with purses of $80k and one is for colts ($165k).

Race 1
Five meet the gate in the colt episode and no matter which one leaves there will be a showdown late as these green trotters face the stretch where #4 Safe Conduct will either be closing or leading. Either way he could win against these.

Race 3
The first of the two for fillies. #3 Mischievous Rose appears to out-class the rest but we like the chances versus the probable price on #1 Monkey Queen better. It may not be a leap of faith betting her stepping up but it shouldn’t be a long leap; she won like mad at The Red Mile and may have a lot of speed in her.

Race 8
The other filly contest features our bet-back with #2 Pencils Down. She was laggard last week in the Casual Breeze but found some breath to finish fourth at 48-1. Worth the shot here.

DERBY DOG

Mohawk - Race 9

What can one do? #4 Bulldog Hanover doesn’t stop being better than the other elder pacers and continues to hand pennies to the masses. The Canadian Pacing Derby ($650k) does not satisfy its definition—this derby is not a matchup or a showdown or a clash and hardly a contest. Thus, we will go again with #6 Desperate Man, who as a shocking 38-1 finishing second in the elim. He beat Bulldog Hanover once remember.

MAPLE MONSTER

Mohawk - Race 7

With $610k on the line, older trotters contend with the domineering #7 Alrajah One It. Ake Svanstedt plucked this one out of thin air and the horse loves the atmosphere. It’s to be quite an exhibition if he races his usual ‘look-out-here-I-come path which deceives the field turning into the stretch that a competitive race is in progress. Key this one with the longest shots for exotics or pass.

Horses to Watch

H2W Legend

Review our choices and confirm the wagers available at the prescribed track. H2W offers possible contenders researched from reviewing races. Horses’ names are listed beneath the name of the track with the date of their race and the race number (R6) follows. If a + is in front of a horse’s name, it appears on the list for the second time (horses are listed twice only if, at first, they failed to win. An “ae” signals also-eligible. Types of wagers to make are based on your judgment.

H2W LIST

Freehold
9/2/22, +Allindotime R10

Hawthorne
9/2/22, +Fox Valley Ozzy R3; Louscardamon R4; +Romantic Warrior R7

Hoosier
9/2/22, Rockin Speed R12

Meadowlands
9/1/22, Charleston R4; Downrightdelicious R6; Ants Marching R8
9/3/22, Keystone Cecilia R4

The Meadows
9/1/22, Seein Red R10

Monticello
9/1/22, +A B Collins R7; Pay Later R10

Northfield Park
9/3/22, Cruzin Coco R4; +In Love Again R12; +Narcian Jewel R14

Philly
9/1/22, +Priceless Shadow R13

Plainridge Park
9/1/22, The Wise One R2; Emmajean Jellybean R7; +Chocolate Xplosion R9

Pocono
9/3/22, +Carlas Mach A R2
9/4/22, +Purple Poet R5

Red Mile
9/4/22, Caviart Leeloo R4; Seaside Baby R5; Calgary R12; +French Wine R13

Running Aces
9/1/22, Bobleeswagger R7

Saratoga
9/2/22, +Create R4; +Imsporty R5
9/3/22, +American Soul R1
9/4/22, +Split Rail R1

Scioto Downs
9/1/22, Lash High R3; +Jengish Chokusu R5
9/2/22, +All I Could Afford R2
9/3/22, +Dealt A Winner R7; Odds On Capitalism R12

Yonkers
9/1/22, Importer Exporter R3
9/2/22, +Monty Mono R1; +Arabella's Cadet R5; +Sweet Soul David R9