Laurel Park’s Late Pick 4 this Friday, March 7, will hold added meaning for some horseplayers before it begins. Those who pick the winners of the two preceding races could be alive in the Jackpot Pick 6 that features a $9,548 carryover pool. Here’s a look at the Late Pick 4 with a suggested $36 ticket:
LRL 6th race (2:29 p.m. EST) -- THE WOLFMAN can be excused for a horror trip off the claim. He was sandwiched at the start, steadied several times on the backstretch and fanned 7-wide at the top of the stretch after making progress on the turn. He gets in light-weighted and should get first run on most of the field. IRISH HERO, the likely pace setter, shook a 3-wide duel through fast fractions in a 4-1/2F allowance at Charles Town two starts ago, only to get caught by his closest pursuer. LIEUTENANT BROWN took back to last in a two-turn sprint at Charles Town, rallied on the rail from the backstretch to top of the stretch and came up just short of reeling in pace-controlling winner Pink Dinghy (21/6-5-3, $118k).
LRL 7th race (2:59 p.m. EST) -- PENNY LOAFER tracked the loose leader until he was put to a drive midway on the final turn and held second despite not changing leads. The winner, Supreme Law, won by 26-1/2 lengths with a 100 Beyer in his race prior. MAD BANKER led throughout and dug in to beat a much weaker field than this, but he has license to repeat in a pace-less race for Ness, who is 98-for-327 the last 3 years with the second-off-the-claim angle. RUN FOR YOUR LIFE took back off the pace and rallied 3-wide on the turn to finish a distant second to next-out allowance winner Socially Awkward (5-10, $129k). He finished ahead of two other wire-to-wire winners in their next start with an average 70 Beyer.
LRL 8th race (3:27 p.m. EST) -- CHESAPEAKE DREAM, well-handled as a debut favorite, was content to track the loose leader, secured ‘command’ at the top of the stretch and dug in late under an all-out drive to prevail at 7F. SLAM NOTION ranged up on the favorite mid-turn and dueled to the wire, losing by nose after his jockey lost the stick. CHANGE MY WORLD, improved with blinkers and Lasix and was no match for SLAM NOTION, but he’s a viable longshot in a speed-laden field. FASTER GATOR beat four next-out winners at 4-to-5 odds in his 2-year-old debut, now makes his seasonal debut. He zipped 3F in :36-1/5 in his first workout after eight months away.
LRL 9th race (3:58 p.m. EST) -- KEY STAT faced 11 next-out winners in his first six starts, including Kohler’s ($171k), a winner of four straight. He rallied to finish second to the favorite in his last two go-rounds and could be the target today in a field that lacks speed. TELL ‘EM I’M COMIN finished in the money in four of his last seven starts on dirt out of town, now runs for the cheapest tag of his career for a barn in the midst of a 4-19 run with new acquisitions.
Suggested 50-Cent Ticket
LRL 6th Race: 5, 6, 9
LRL 7th Race: 4, 5, 7
LRL 8th Race: 1, 5, 6, 8
LRL 9th Race: 2, 3
Cost: $36
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