Top pick: #2 (BULLSBAY) - Looked great winning the "Whitney" (G1) here on August 8 and if you eliminate his "poor" effort on the Hollywood "poly", he's a very consistent runner. Best "figure" ever came last out and it was his only effort in his career on this surface. Very sharp and the top pick.
2nd pick: #1a (Cool Coal Man) - For a race of this magnitude, there's not a lot of speed signed-up and this speed ball has a legitimate shot of taking them from start-to-finish. In the best shape of his life and comes off his best race ever. Likes this distance (three for six) and is a win candidate.
3rd pick: #3 (Rachel Alexandra) - "Super" filly faces her toughest test today taking on this group that cumulatively has won 23 stakes and almost $9,000,000. Continues to train brilliantly and she's certainly capable of winning this (but the risk/reward is small as she'll be a very heavy favorite).