Bet this race at Diamond SportsTop pick: #8 (KING'S HONOR) (5-2) - Irish import stretches out in distance after finishing fourth sprinting on the Belmont grass at this level Sept. 27. Colt took a bad step at the break and did well following that mishap. He worked three times during October and trainer Jon Thomas drops him into a claimer for the first time. Castellano stays aboard and I give this 2yo a slight edge.
2nd pick: #6 (Hostile Witness) (10-1) - Longshot has early speed and is racing on the grass while dropping into a claimer, both for the first time. Colt is bred for turf success and I like that Irad Ortiz Jr. takes the mount.
3rd pick: #5 (Le Coste) (15-1) - Anothr longshot, home bred tired when debuting against tougher in a Belmont grass sprint Sept. 27. Trainer Bob Falcone Jr. drops him into a claimer, stretches him out, adds Lasix, and removes this gelding's blinkers. All those changes can lead to a competitive effort at a big price.
4th pick: #1 (Upham) (5-1) - Bred/owned/and trained by 'Hall of Famer' Bill Mott, colt rallied to finish a distant second going 6 furlongs at this tag on the Belmont turf Oct. 11. The figure earned wasn't much, but he's stretching back out, has the rail, and is capable of factoring.