How to bet the 2021 Alabama Stakes

A fine field of seven three-year-old fillies will take aim on the $600,000 Alabama S. (G1) at Saratoga on Saturday. The 1 1/4-mile affair attracted some of the top sophomore fillies in training, led by Kentucky Oaks (G1) star #6 Malathaat (1-1) from the Todd Pletcher barn. The classy daughter of Curlin suffered her first setback when narrowly defeated in the Coaching Club American Oaks (G1) on the surface off the shelf, but I expect the bay to get back to her winning ways on Saturday.

Malathaat made all of the running while under pressure throughout before being caught late in her most recent outing, a race that she might have needed off the break. The well-bred miss has posted a pair of decent half-mile morning moves since, which will have her fit and ready for her second run at The Spa. Regular pilot John Velazquez retains the mount.

#7 Army Wife (6-1) has steadily improved since moving to the dirt and comes in with a pair of convincing graded stakes wins in succession for Mike Maker. The daughter of Declaration of War returned from her facile tally in the Black-Eyed Susan S. (G2) to trounce her foes in the recent Iowa Oaks (G3) in her return. She sports a career 6-4-1-1 dirt record, and I don’t feel that she has distance limitations on the move to 10 furlongs. Tyler Gaffalione will guide the consistently good filly.

I will play a cold exacta with the aforementioned duo and use two additional runners for the trifecta. #2 Will’s Secret (15-1) offers huge value at her morning-line price for conditioner Dallas Stewart. The Honeybee S. (G3) queen, who was third in the Kentucky Oaks (G1), didn’t fire off the layoff last time out but will show vast improvement second time back in the Alabama.

It seems that #3 Clairiere (6-1) is unable to make that next step at this stage of her development for Asmussen, but she is still an obvious top-three contender. The well-bred Curlin filly has never run a bad race in her lifetime, and she will benefit from having a race over the course, as well. Irad Ortiz Jr. will ride the Stonestreet homebred.

Alabama Wagers

• $25 exacta 6 with 7 ($25)
• $10 trifecta 6 with 7 with 2,3 ($20)
• $5 trifecta 6 with 2,3 with 7 ($10)