Super Saturday

With the Super Bowl on Sunday, I thought I would do a larger then normal preview. This weekend, it's the first G1's for the year for three year old fillies, older males and turf horses, plus a TC prep at the Big A (weather permitting), and two of my favorite horses are back in action at Oaklawn. I'm also instituding a jump break for Weekend Preview and Weekend Recap posts only. This is because these will be longer then useal posts and I don't want you to have to scroll all the way down to find a post you want to read, and this not it. If you don't like this, then please let me know for the future. So let's get started!
Starting at Aqueduct,

3rd (1:26)

Whirlaway S.
1 1/16 Miles
Open
3 Year Olds Stakes
Purse: $100,000
Prg. # PP Horse Jockey Trainer
1 1 Turf Melody Napravnik A R
2 2 Eightyfiveinafifty Chavez J F
3 3 Peppi Knows Migliore R
4 4 Afleet Again Serpa A
5 5 Three Day Rush Cohen D 
6 6 Papa's Nice Cat Luzzi M J

This race may get postponed due to a nasty storm currently hitting the East Coast. Still, all eyes will be on the interestingly (and I'm sorry horribly named) Eightyfiveinafifty.  I'm going to try to beat him with Peppi Knows and Afleet Again.
 
At Gulfstream,

9th (5:02)
Gulfstream Park Turf H. (G1)
1 1/8 Miles (Turf)
Open
4 Year Olds And Up Stakes
Purse: $300,000
Prg. # PP Horse Jockey Trainer
1 1 Le Grand Cru Lezcano J
2 2 Yate's Black Cat Desormeaux K J 
3 3 Court Vision Albarado R J
4 4 Never On Sunday (FR) Bravo J
5 5 Take the Points Prado E S
6 6 Adagio (GB) Velasquez C

Last year IEAH and Rick Dutrow won the race with fan favorite Kip Deville, this year they have Court Vision who ironicly is the full brother to Kip's sire Kipling. Take the Points showed signs of promise on the turf since switching to the surface after his horrible Preakness. He has 2 G1 wins, but is coming off finishing midpack to the The Useal Q.T. in the Hollywood Derby, to make matters worse the Q.T. finished last in last weekend's Sunshine Millions Classic. Never on Sunday is best known for handing Goldikova one of her two losses last year, unfortanlly he has landed in the barn of Patrick "Cobra Venom" Biencone. I'm going with my boy Points for the win with Court a very close second. Shame Just As Well is skipping this race, he was closing fast on Kip last year.

10th (5:31)
Donn H. (G1)
1 1/8 Miles | Open | 4 Year Olds And Up Stakes | Purse: $500,000
Prg. # PP Horse Jockey
1 1 Kiss the Kid Castro E
2 2 You and I Forever Trujillo E
3 3 Duke of Mischief Coa E M
4 4 Quality Road Velazquez J R
5 5 Dry Martini Castellano J J
6 6 Past the Point Prado E S
7 7 Helsinki Albarado R J
8 8 Mambo Meister Desormeaux K J
9 9 Dubai Gold Lezcano J
10 10 Delightful Kiss Leyva J C

For those old enough to remember The Brady Bunch (I'm not, but I've seen it on syndacation), then you will know how Jan used to go "Marsha, Marsha, Masha!". Well, this race "Quality, Quality, Quality!" in this case I mean Quality Road. I wasn't all that impressed by his Hal's Hope, but he is the deserving favorite. With that being said, I would love to see Dry Martini upset him.

At Oaklawn

9th (5:02)
Essex H.
1 1/16 Miles | Open | 4 Year Olds And Up Stakes | Purse: $100,000
Prg. # PP Horse Jockey
1 1 Jonesboro Castellano A Jr
2 2 Racing Bran Emigh C A
3 3 Crook's Bodgit Rini W
4 4 Spotsgone Court J K
5 5 Ready Set Thompson T J
6 6 Win Willy Berry M C
7 7 Prom Shoes Nakatani C S
8 8 Glamour Guy Borel C H

Win Willy won his first race of the year and is the deserving favorite. Spotsgone will be setting the early pace for his stablemate Prom Shoes, but I'm not expecting him to win as he is returning from surgery (although he's been posting bullets, so hopefully a good sign). Jonesboro may not go if it's a wet track and Ready Set has a trainer change. My heart says Shoes, Jonesboro in a deadheat, with Willy in third. I have a feeling that Willy will win with Jonesboro second and either Shoes or Ready Set in third. However, I really shouldn't count out Jonesboro, the last time he won the Essex, it was only a few days after his mom, the Hall of Famer Mom's Command was euthanized. This time around, his dad Sefapiano passed away from a heart attack. By far he's his best foal, much like he was the same for his mom.

Last, but not least at Santa Anita,

3rd (1:32)
Leriodesanimaux H.
1 Mile (Turf) | Open | 4 Year Olds And Up Stakes | Purse: $65,000
Prg. # PP Horse Jockey
1 1 Sudden War (ARG) Solis A
2 2 Quindici Man Rosario J
3 3 Fluke (BRZ) Talamo J
4 4 Battle of Hastings (GB) Baze T C
5 5 Mr. Big Smith M E
6 6 Cherokee Artist Leparoux J R
7 7 Blue Chagall (FR) Gomez G K
8 8 Great Siege (IRE) Espinoza

The last time Fluke won, it was in the Citation right after his former trainer passed away. And now here he is in a race named after a fellow BRZ bred, and ironcly trained by the same trainer he was. Don't count out Cherokee Artist though.

4th (2:03)
Las Virgenes S. (G1)
1 Mile (All Weather Track) | Fillies | 3 Year Olds Stakes | Purse: $250,000
Prg. PP Horse Jockey
1 1 Summer Games Baze M C Dominguez
2 2 Blind Luck Bejarano R
3 3 La Nez Smith M E
4 4 Switch Baze T C
5 5 Evening Jewel Espinoza V
6 6 Crisp Rosario J

This is Blind Luck's race to lose, however keep an eye on Crisp. Both of her races I've seen where pretty impressive, especially her maiden which she went really wide in the stretch and still won.

8th (4:07)
Robert B. Lewis S. (G2)
1 1/16 Miles (All Weather Track) | Open | 3 Year Olds Stakes | Purse: $150,000
Prg. # PP Horse Jockey
1 1 Macias Espinoza V
2 2 Dave in Dixie Rosario J
3 3 Tiz Chrome Gomez G K
4 4 Caracortado Atkinson P
5 5 Tango Tango Bejarano R
6 6 American Lion Leparoux J R
7 7 Domonation Talamo J

Tiz Chrome or American Lion, ennie meenie mighty mo! I'm going with American Lion, since he's on my list. However a good race by Tiz Chrome might change it up.

So that's it for this week, the Strub doesn't appeal to me and I think the La Canada is not until next week. So I hope everyone enjoys their weekend, and if you are like me and will be snowed in this week grab some hot coco and watch some races. Oh and enjoy the Super Bowl (Go Colts!).

Edit 12:09 PM Saturday: Santa Anita has canceled for the day due to rain. Hopefully for the Oak Tree meet, there will be a dirt surface, the draining problems are just too bad there :(.