by Keith McCalmont
Sunday’s card at Belmont at the Big A will be bolstered by a Pick 6 carryover of $86,598 after the multi-race wager went unsolved on Saturday’s 11-race program.
The $1 Pick 6 returned $7,216.50 to bettors who selected 5-of-6 winners correctly.
Saturday’s sequence kicked off with Antiquarian [No. 6, $13.80] making the grade in the Grade 3, $200,000 Peter Pan in Race 6 for his Hall of Fame connections in trainer Todd Pletcher and jockey John Velazquez.
Silver Knott [No. 8, $10.20], with Flavien Prat up for trainer Charlie Appleby, stalked and pounced to an impressive victory in Race 7 – the featured Grade 2, $400,000 Man o’ War, one race before the Jose Jimenez-trained and Eric Cancel-piloted Carol T [No. 7, $49] provided the biggest upset of the sequence in Race 8, a six-furlong maiden for New York-bred fillies and mares.
In Race 9, New York-bred Runningwscissors [No. 3, $12.80] was sharp late to burst the chances of the favored French-bred Belouni in an optional-claiming turf route for 3-year-olds and up. Hall of Famer Joel Rosario provided the upset for trainer Fernando Abreu.
Midtown Lights [No. 7, $22.60] proved best in Race 10, a one-turn mile optional-claiming event for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up as Manny Franco engineered the victory for trainer Brad Cox.
With the carryover already confirmed, the Marcelo Arenas-trained Brooklyn Dantz [No. 10, $30.40] staved off all challengers under jockey Lane Luzzi to take the Race 11 finale, an off-the-turf maiden claiming event for New York-bred fillies and mares.
Sunday’s Pick 6 will kick off in Race 4 at 2:35 p.m. Eastern and includes an overflow field of sophomore filly turf sprinters in the featured Grade 3, $175,000 Soaring Softly in Race 8. First post on the nine-race card is 1:05 p.m.
America’s Day at the Races will present daily coverage and analysis of the Belmont at the Big A spring/summer meet on the networks of FOX Sports. For the complete broadcast schedule, visit https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/tv-schedule.
NYRA Bets is the official wagering platform of Belmont at the Big A, and the best way to bet every race of the spring/summer meet. Available to horseplayers nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.