StableDuel Contest Picks for Keeneland’s Wednesday Oct. 20 Card

Gambling
Eclipse Sportswire

America’s Best Racing is excited to partner with StableDuel, a first-of-its kind platform for daily live horse racing contests. For the second year in a row, ABR will present with StableDuel a contest featuring racing at Keeneland Race Course.

If you’re not familiar with StableDuel, think of it the same way you’d think of any fantasy sports platform. To win, you have to create the best roster of horses – a stable – just as you would select football players for a fantasy team. The better each horse performs, the more points you rack up. The top horses in each race (based on morning-line odds) are assigned the highest salaries. Since each team has a salary cap, teams can’t consist of all “favorites” and inevitably require players to identify winning “longshots” or sleeper picks that can be added to a stable for lower salaries.

The Wednesday, Oct. 21 Keeneland contest requires the standard selection of 10 horses per team. Each stable assembled must stay within a $50,000 virtual salary cap. The horses available for selection in the contest are the runners from all eight races that are scheduled at Keeneland on Wednesday.

America’s Best Racing’s John Piassek is an avid StableDuel player, who plays under the username “Bob Sacamano.” He recently won the Santa Anita Smash contest on Oct. 2, cashing for $3,300. Here’s some horses Piassek likes for Wednesday’s card.


Race 3

Horse: #2 Barstow

Salary: $3,000

Analysis: The third race on the card is a maiden-claiming race for 2-year-olds at seven furlongs on the dirt. In cheaper races like this one, it helps to find horses who have not lost under these conditions before. Ten of the 11 horses have already lost a race on dirt, and most of them have lost a maiden-claiming race. The exception is Barstow, a second-time starter for Rodolphe Brisset. He debuted in a two-turn grass race at Indiana Grand Race Course on Sept. 14, and received some action, going off at 8.80-1 odds. Unfortunately for his backers, he proved no factor and lost by 14 lengths. He now tries something new, switching surfaces and cutting back in distance. His workouts since that race have been respectable, and Brisset hits at 23% with horses making their second career start. He’s drawn toward the inside, which might be helpful. Over the past few days, horses who race on the rail have done very well in dirt races. This one looks ripe for improvement and, at a cost of just $3,000, he’s worth a shot.

Race 4

Horse: #3 Super Design

Salary: $7,500

Analysis: This race is a first-level allowance at 5 ½ furlongs on the grass. Wesley Ward has had a fantastic Keeneland meet so far. He’s won six races from 14 starts and has hit the board with 11 of those runners. Here, he’ll send out Super Design, who broke his maiden in his debut last out. He stalked the pace and drew off to a 2 ½-length win at Kentucky Downs on Sept. 6. He’s one of three in here who has never lost against winners and is the only undefeated horse in the field. Considering how dominant Ward is right now, $7,500 is a fantastic value on this horse.

Race 6

Horse: #5 Our Bay B Ruth

Salary: $1,000

Analysis: The sixth race is a fourth-level allowance-optional claiming race at 1 1/16 miles on the grass, featuring a field of six fillies and mares. Two horses loom large in here, #1 Daddy is a Legend, who costs $9,600 in StableDuel, and #4 Dominga, who costs $9,400. However, I’m not sure either one is worth the high cost. Using either one would take up a large percentage of your bankroll and they would have to win by a big margin to be worthwhile.

Because of that, I’ll look elsewhere. Our Bay B Ruth doesn’t win too often; in fact, she hasn’t won since December 2019. However, she hasn’t run many bad races lately. She’s finished in the top four in each of her last five starts, including a near-miss against stakes company last out at Colonial Downs. The winner of that race, Tuned, came back to win the All Along Stakes at Laurel Park next out. Even if Daddy is a Legend and Dominga finish 1-2, Our Bay B Ruth has a good chance to get third and put some points on the board.

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