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Saturday’s Cross Country Pick 5 features action from three tracks

by Brian Bohl

Free Equibase PPs available 

Races from Aqueduct Racetrack, Oaklawn Park and Tampa Bay Downs will comprise the Cross Country Pick 5 on Saturday as part of the wager hosted by the New York Racing Association, Inc.

Live coverage will be available with America’s Day at the Races on FOX Sports. Free Equibase past performances for the Cross Country Pick 5 sequence are now available for download at https://www.nyra.com/belmont/racing/cross-country-wagers.

Aqueduct will commence the sequence with a six-furlong allowance optional claiming sprint in Race 8 at 3:54 p.m. Eastern. Golani Brigade, the 2-1 morning-line favorite for trainer Chad Brown, will make his 5-year-old debut while South Africa, at 5-2, has finished first or second in his last four starts for trainer Michelle Nevin.

Oaklawn will kick off the stakes action with the $200,000 Martha Washington, a 10-4-2-1 Kentucky Oaks qualifier for 3-year-old fillies going one mile in Race 5 at 4:06 p.m. Coach, listed at 7-5, is 3-0-1 in four starts for trainer Brad Cox, including a win in the Rags to Riches in October at Churchill Downs and a strong third in the Grade 2 Golden Rod in November at the same track. Joy’s Rocket, listed at 5-2 for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen, has won her last two starts, capturing both the Songbird and the Letellier Memorial. Novel Squall, Will’s Secret and Sylvia Q will all be looking for their first respective stakes wins.

Tampa Bay will get in on the fun in the third leg as a full field of 3-year-old filly maidens compete at one mile on the turf in Race 8 at 4:10 p.m. The Irish-bred Rastafara will make her first career start for Brown at 3-1 odds, while conditioner Christophe Clement will send out a first-time starter of his own in Tranquillina [4-1].

Brown will send out another contender with Mystic Night in Aqueduct’s Race 9, a one-mile maiden special weight, at 4:25 p.m.  Mystic Night will be making his third career start and comprise an eight-horse field that includes slight 7-2 favorite Mandatory, who has run second and third in three career starts for trainer John Kimmel.

Oaklawn will host the finale with a six-furlong allowance sprint in Race 6 at 4:38 p.m. Cox has another formidable challenger in The Mary Rose, who will be making her first start for her new conditioner after previously being trained by William VanMeter. The Mary Rose, 3-1, drew post 9 with 4-1 selection Bettyann will also run for the first time for a new trainer, breaking from post 10 for Kenny Smith.

The minimum bet for the multi-track, multi-race wager is 50 cents. Wagering on the Cross Country Pick 5 is also available on ADW platforms and at simulcast facilities across the country. Every week will feature a mandatory payout of the net pool. The Cross Country Pick 5 will continue each Saturday throughout the year. For more information, visit NYRABets.com.

Cross Country Pick 5 - Saturday, January 30:
Leg 1 – Aqueduct, Race 8: (3:54 p.m.)
Leg 2 – Oaklawn, Race 5, Martha Washington: (4:06 p.m.)
Leg 3 – Tampa Bay, Race 8: (4:10 p.m.)
Leg 4 – Aqueduct, Race 9: (4:25 p.m.)
Leg 5 – Oaklawn, Race 6: (4:38 p.m.)