How to bet the Wishing Well Stakes

A full field of fillies and mares will vie in Saturday’s $125,000 Wishing Well S. at Turfway Park. The wide-open affair features numerous legitimate win threats and I’m having a hard time focusing on just one. 

Wishing Well Wagers

• $3 exacta box 1,3,4,10 ($36)
• 50-cent trifecta 3,4 with 1,3,4,10 with all ($30)

The most interesting horse in the field to me is #4 Julia’s Dream for conditioner Mike McCarthy. By Flameaway, the four-year-old was very impressive in taking the Gowell S. in December 2023 on the course but has raced just once since that endeavor, and she will be equipped with blinkers for this contest. She has trained well leading up to the race and I’m expecting her to run to her juvenile form with Abel Cedillo in the stirrups. 

#3 Nice as Pie aims to snap a five-race losing streak for Kelsey Danner and will have the blinkers removed after an experiment with the hood on last time. The Tapiture four-year-old has four wins from five local attempts on the Tapeta at Turfway with a pair of those resulting in facile stakes triumphs last campaign. The Kentucky-bred filly possesses a fine closing punch and will be getting into range approaching the turn for home with Adam Beschizza in the irons. 

French import #1 Opera Mundi defeated lesser in an allowance race locally in her second run on U. S. soil, but the filly did it the right way after a poor break and has appeal to me despite drawing inside in the sizable field. This Kingman four-year-old could round up to a peak showing in her third run off the long absence, and the price should be solid with Luan Machado on board. 

#10 Awesome Treat was very impressive in topping a nice field on the oval on December 14 and will be tough with anything resembling that outing under Sophie Doyle. The seven-year-old mare owns five top-two finishes on the oval in her career, and she draws well outside of the majority of the pace in the group, too. I expect her to stalk the early tempo and get into contention at the top of the lane.