Maiden King

Maiden claiming $32,000, 5-1/2 furlongs, 3-yo fillies

Possible overlays                          Morning line

#1 Count’n Tears                               8/1
#2 Tripped Fuse                                10/1
#5 Molly Moonshine                            20/1
#7 Hypnotizing                                  12/1
#8 Dixie Lucky                                   2/1
#9 Sky Martini                                   8/1

This looks like a very strong race for the level, as the median Beyer Speed Figure is 66 and many of these horses have run races in the mid-60’s.

However, there are also many first and second-time starters with potential in here and they always seem to pay better than a horse with a high Beyer number.

On the rail, #1 Count’n Tears is running in her second lifetime race and she looks like the quickest horse. That’s important with a short run to the turn. Another second-timer who could run big is #9 Sky Marni, who steadied in the stretch on Jan. 2, yet still ran a 59 Beyer.

Garrett Gomez is certain to depress the price on 2-to-1 morning line favorite #8 Dixie Lucky, but #7 Hypnotizing, who is another second-timer, will probably go off at a decent wagering price.

Peter Eurton, who’s won with six of his last 13, trains #5 Moonshine Molly, but she has all slow workouts showing for her debut. Another running for the first time is #2 Tripped Fuse, who is worth a wager if the price is right.

I will bet $200 to win on #1 Count’n Tears, and $150 on #7 Hypnotizing and #9 Sky Marni — all at 3/1 to 7/1 only, and I will reduce the wagers on all three to $100 at odds of 8/1 or more. Also, I want $200 on #2 Tripped Fuse and #5 Molly Moonshine, but only at 10/1 to 19/1.

Jockey Michael Baze sped to the lead with #9 Betty boomboom

If you see trainer Peter Eurton at Santa Anita, don’t bump into him because you might burn yourself.

He is that hot right now.

In 2008, trainer Peter Eurton ran 124 horses and won 19 races for a respectable winning percentage of 15.  But during the Santa Anita meeting, which began Dec. 26, Eurton’s horses have won six of their 13 races, or 46 percent of the time.

On Jan. 15, Eurton saddled 7-to-1 shot Dish the Dirt to a maiden win and Thursday #9 Bettyboomboom went wire-to-wire at 9-to-2. As Bettyboomboom was loading into the gate, her odds were 6-to-1, but they plummeted to 9-to-2 as the race was being run. The same thing happened to Dish the Dirt, which tells me that the stable bets at the last possible moment.

Although I acknowledged Bettyboomboom’s speed when evaluating this race, I instead went for first-time starters #6 Excessive Charm at 6-to-1 and 18-to-1 shot #3 Play Reveille.

To watch a replay of this race, go to calracing.com