BetOnline has a big nine-race card on the schedule Wednesday across the US. Wednesday is when things tend to pick up following a slow Monday and Tuesday with regard to horse racing. Stakes racing isn’t the main course on the menu generally on Wednesdays, but there are still a lot of options for wagering. There are no stakes events scheduled for Wednesday, with one Friday to get the weekend started at Fair Grounds.
That is worth just $50,000 before a lot of stakes races on Saturday. Fair Grounds will have the most with seven events. Six are for $100,000, while the feature event, the running of the $150,000 Louisiana Champions Day Classic is the big race of the day in Louisiana. If you want the feature race of the day in the US, you have to go to Florida for the $200,000 Fort Lauderdale Stakes (Gr. 2).
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We open the day at Delta Downs in Louisiana on Wednesday afternoon. Delta Downs has $146,000 in prize money available at Delta Downs. There are nine races expected to be run. There are a few horses that caught my attention upon handicapping this card. Head below for our free Delta Downs picks for December 9, 2020.
Race 1
Post Time: 12:55 p.m. EST
Distance:5 Furlongs
Purse:$10,000
The first race of the afternoon at Delta Downs will get us started on Wednesday. This is for a $10,000 purse across 5 furlongs on the dirt. Favorite Son and Bourbon Revenge are on my shortlist for the event. Favorite Son is winless in eight races, but can strike at this level. He has yet to place as well, with his best effort on August 25 for a $8,500 purse. Favorite Son showed in that race to get into the money.
Favorite Son followed up for 5th on September 14 in a $8,500 event. Despite the hike up in class, this isn’t really any tougher, though. I don’t believe Favorite Son has it in him to record a win here, but should be able to run strong enough to be in the mix. Failing to get into the money would be a disappointment for his connections. He is fresh off a productive workout on November 30, with a time of 48.80 seconds.
Expect Favorite Son to be competitive, but come up short against the likes of Bourbon Revenge from the No. 1 post position. Bourbon Revenge has been a consistent runner, placing 2nd from July 24 to September 9. In his most recent appearance, Bourbon Revenge placed 2nd behind Swinging Galaxy by a neck for a $10,500 purse. Bourbon Revenge is competing in a more than winnable event on Wednesday afternoon. If he runs his race, then a win should be within his capabilities.
Race 2
Post Time: 1:22 p.m. CST
Distance:6 ½ Furlongs
Purse:$12,000
Race 2 is for a $12,000 purse on the dirt across 6 ½ furlongs. Hatties Jewel and Apalachee Bay on the outside should be able to do something with this race. Hatties Jewel has to be noted in this one, but hasn’t hit the winner’s circle since December 6, 2019. Since then, Hatties Jewel has lost eight straight events. He has been in the top-3 in two of his previous three outings, though, and sees weaker competition on Wednesday.
Hatties Jewel placed 2nd on August 18 behind Game Day Decision for a $9,000 purse. That was a 1 length loss for Hatties Jewel, as he came on hard a bit too late. In his most recent race, Hatties Jewel showed 3rd on September 10 for a $10,500 prize. He’s moving up in class slightly, but should find this event to be manageable. Overall, Hatties Jewel is 6 for 50 in his career, so his strike rate hasn’t been all that impressive. Against this level of competition, a win should be nearby, though.
Apalachee Bay is 4 for 25 with some nice momentum in his favor. He has finished in the top-3 in three straight performances and top-2 in two of three events. In four of five races, Apalachee Bay was in the top-3. In his most recent showing, he ran well to place 2nd behind Calculating King. Apalachee Bay is the most consistent in this group of horses and should compete well here for the top prize.
Race 3
Post Time: 1:49 p.m. CST
Distance:5 Furlongs
Purse:$22,000
Race 3 is our next and final stop at Delta Downs on Wednesday. Note that there is no Pick 3 available at BetOnline, but there is a Daily Double. So, if you want to play a multi-bet between Race 1-2 and 2-3, then that’s possible. Race 3 features 5 furlongs on the dirt for a $22,000 purse. Grace’s Gal and Scampering Grayce should have a good run in this event.
Grace’s Gal made her debut on August 19 at Evangeline and finished 7th in a $29,000 event. Following that weak performance, Grace’s Gal moves down in class to a $22,000 race on Wednesday at Delta Downs. This should be a better race for her down in class on Wednesday. The horse lining up beside her, Scampering Grayce. Scampering Grayce enters today winless in three races, but was in terrific form the last time out.
She has finished 4th, 10th, 2nd in her career. In the event she finished 10th, Scampering Grayce was competing for a $29,00 purse. In her next performance, she looked much better to place 2nd for a $35,000 purse. Sometimes a debut can be a bit of a crapshoot. The next race can say a lot more about a horse. I’m going to bet that Scampering Grayce does one spot better to win on Wednesday.
