2009 BREEDERS CUP SPRINT PICKS AND TIPS

Bob Baffert's Zensational is commanding the bulk of the attention in this $2,000,000 six furlong dash. The 3 year old colt, out of Joke by Unbridled Song comes into the race off four straight victories and one place lifetime. Unraced as a two-year old I think this is a horse getting good at the right time. The only issue is the #1 stall draw, but I think that may turn out to be a bit of a blessing in disguise. He's at 7/5 in the morning line and around 3.3 on Betfair. After coming off the Allowance circuit at Hollywood Park he jumped straight to Grade 1 action scoring a cadre of first-class victories. He took the Triple Bend Handicap at Hollywood, the Bing Crosby Stakes and the Pat O'Brien Stakes at Del Mar. Gayego is a Godolphin-owned runner who is a clear 2nd place favourite for this race. He's trading at about 3.5 on Betfair and 5/2 in the ML. He's a real forgotten horse this year and I didn't even know he'd run in the Preakness and the Derby last year. Those are by far his two worst lifetime performances and I can see why as all his other races have garnered first and second place finishes, barring one exception, and they have all come on west coast synthetics or in Dubai. For me, as much as I like Zensational, I am going to be keeping my eye on a runner that caught my eye a few months ago, The Ian Wilkes-trained Capt. Candyman Can. He won the Kings Bishop off a clear disqualification in the home stretch and I think he would have won it without the interference. He came 2nd in the Grade 3 Phoenix Stakes at Keeneland over the polytrack and he boasts stakes wins at every level. That's something that belies confidence as you know he can take on all sorts of runners and all sorts of races. This gelding, if well-poised for a stretch drive, could be one of the big stories of the day. He's listed at 15/1 in the morning line and 10.5 on Betfair. The Europeans appear to be piling on.