Thanksgiving Day 2024 Spot Plays at Fair Grounds

Whether you're stuffed with turkey or waiting for it to come out of the oven, betting Fair Grounds is always a tasty side dish to gorge on during your Thanksgiving Day afternoon. A nice 10-race card kicks off at 1 p.m. ET on Thursday, with several interesting maiden and allowance races leading up to the featured Thanksgiving Classic. Here are some horses of interest:

Race 2: Maiden, 1:30 p.m. ET

Trainer Brendan Walsh has enjoyed a productive last week or two at various tracks across the country, and his second-time starter #4 El Muheet (5-1) is worth a look in this turf maiden for two-year-olds. The son of War Front was reasonably well-backed in the betting on debut at Keeneland last month but found immediate trouble leaving the gate and lagged far behind before passing a few stragglers in the final furlong.

El Muheet adds blinkers and Lasix for this try, and if there was something behind the expectations bettors had for him in Kentucky, he should run a much improved race with better luck.

Race 4: Allowance, 2:30 p.m. ET

This entry-level turf allowance is populated by a lot of fillies and mares who have been stuck at this level for quite a while. One of the few exceptions is #2 Nippy Star (9-2), whose career only got started in July. After whiffing in that first race, she's improved in a pair of starts at Horseshoe Indianapolis this fall, including her turf debut last out at this level when she futilely chased a rival who set insanely fast fractions and kept on going. Nippy Star finished a clear third and remains with upside for trainer Brad Cox.

Race 7: Maiden, 4 p.m. ET

This tricky maiden special weight for two-year-olds has quite a few first-time starters. I'll side again with a Cox runner, namely #5 Zoom (4-1). Owned in a partnership headed by WinStar, the Speightstown colt sold for $500,000 at Keeneland September and is from the family of 2005 Kentucky Derby (G1) upsetter Giacomo. Zoom shows a steady string of works dating to September, and climbing aboard here is Colby Hernandez, with whom Cox has won at a high percentage at Fair Grounds over the past couple of years.

Race 8: Allowance, 4:30 p.m. ET

This second-level allowance for older horses on the turf looks like a good spot for #3 Higgins Boat (9-2), who has breathed new life since switching to the turf in late summer. The son of Omaha Beach won his debut on the surface at Ellis Park and then lost by short heads in both the Hawthorne Derby and a Keeneland allowance. He'll be able to look his rivals in the eye more easily this time around, as trainer Tom Amoss removes blinkers from the gelding's equipment.

Race 9: Thanksgiving Classic, 5 p.m. ET

A graded quality dash over six furlongs, this edition of the Thanksgiving Classic might go the way of #2 Minnesota Ready (8-1). The five-year-old turned in one of the performances of the 2023-24 Fair Grounds, scoring by more than three lengths in the Colonel Power S., and it appears he could get a highly favorable setup if rivals like #4 Motalcino and #11 Champlin duke it out in the early stages. Minnesota Ready settled in locally more than a month ago and has posted several quick drills in advance of this.