How to bet With, and Against, Tejano Twist in the Whitmore Stake

An accomplished field of seven dashers will speed six panels at Oaklawn Park in Saturday’s $250,000 Whitmore S. (G3). #2 Tejano Twist (9-5), is the defending champ and morning-line choice in the cast, and the fast-closing son of Practical Joke will be a tough beat with his top performance in the heat. 

Trained by Chris Hartman, the consistently very good chestnut owns a 6-3-2-1 mark on the surface, as well as a 13-6-4-3 record at the distance, and he is obviously a top-three must-use at the very least. He has banked more than $1.2 million in his lifetime and is not showing signs of slowing down as of late either. Chris Landeros will be in the stirrups aboard the five-year-old. 

Tejano Twist – With

• $30 exacta 2 with 3 ($30)
• $10 exacta 2 with 4 ($10)

Tejano Twist – Against

• $10 exacta box 3- ($20)
• $2 trifecta key 3 with 2,4 with all ($20)

#3 Ryvit (2-1) is the potential pace of the race and comes off of a strong allowance victory on the oval in his most recent outing. The Grade-3 winning son of Competitive Edge doesn’t need the lead in order to succeed, but the four-year-old does look like the quickest horse in the event and he likes this locale, as well, evidenced by his 4-for-6 mark at Oaklawn. The bay colt will be difficult to deny with something like his latest under Keith Asmussen. 

The value horse in the field for me is Keith Desormeaux’s #4 Surveillance (6-1). While I am a bit concerned that the seven-year-old might be a savant at Fair Grounds and merely above average elsewhere, I love his current form and will give him a major chance in the dash. By Constitution, the seven-year-old gelding has run a pair of good ones since returning off the layoff since the summer, and he finished less than one length behind the favorite when on this strip in the 2023 Count Fleet S. (G3), as well. If the gray shows the same early interest that he did last time out, then he will be in with a chance turning for home while getting the jump on Tejano Twist. James Graham will be up.