Racing officially moves from Keeneland to Churchill Downs on Saturday afternoon, which will also be when the Kentucky Derby draws occur. The draw along with the Kentucky Oaks comes between the third and fourth races on the Opening Day slate and to kick off the meet in Louisville, Xpresssbet and 1/ST BET are offering a one-day promotion. The “Churchill Triple Tri $2500 Hit & Split” is live just on April 25 with the goal of connecting on three $1 trifecta wagers over the course of the ten-race card. Those that register and are able to do so will share the $2500 bonus prize. I analyzed the late Pick 4 below, but will certainly take a swing at the promo as well to get my meet started in the “Ville.”Grade Descriptions: Grade A=Highest degree of confidence; Grade B=Solid Play. Grade C=Least preferred or pass; Grade X=probable winner but likely at odds too short to play.Race 7:Grade: CMain Ticket: 7 GoodbetterbestBackups: 4 Classy’n ConnectedForecast: A $40k open claimer over the grass kicks off the first late Pick 4 of the meet where I lack creativity. #4 Classy’n Connected was made the 2-1-ML favorite in her first start off a two and a half month freshening for trainer Tom Drury Jr. The Connect mare is winless over the grass in three starts, but does have a second over this course last fall against a bit tougher. Her best puts her there at the wire, but I prefer #7 Goodbetterbest. The daughter of Collected was beaten a block last time out at Turfway Park, but should relish getting back to the grass. Tyler Gaffalione should have her in a prominent spot early in her second start for trainer Brittany Vanden Berg.Race 8:Grade: B-Main Ticket: 10 Where Y’atBackups: 3 Shadow CoastForecast: The pace should be honest in this $16k non-winners of two event over the main track, but if it is softer than it appears on paper it is #3 Shadow Coast that could prove tough to get by. The son of West Coast earned his only win over this surface last fall and attracts Luis Saez. However, he is likely to take heat most of the way, which should bode well for #10 Where Y’at. The Michael Tomlinson trainee moves from turf-to-dirt and cuts back to a sprint after a speed and fade run in New Orleans in early March. The outside post should allow jockey Axel Concepcion to play the break and keep this one in the clear in case the speed begins to back up. Hopefully, he has enough late to get to the wire first.Race 9: RoxelanaGrade: BMain Ticket: 7 Vincey GirlBackups: NoneForecast: The feature is a 6-furlong dash over the main track for older fillies and mares and I like the chances quite a bit of #7 Vincey Girl. Trainer Jose D’Angelo can be streaky. The Florida-based conditioner had a tough winter, but is heating up of late evidenced by his 10 for 50- record over the last 30 days with a $2.38 ROI. This Race Day mare won off the layoff against lesser at Tampa in late March, attracts Irad Ortiz Jr, and should get a great setup for her off the pace run. A single for me and a race where I will key her on top in hopes of knocking down my last Trifecta for the Hit & Split promotion.Race 10:Grade: XMain Ticket: 3 WithoutBackups: NoneForecast: #3 Without will not be a good price, but should be tough to beat in the finale. The son of Lope De Vega steadied early and had traffic issues late in his fifth-place finish at Keeneland against similar on April 3. The Graham Motion trainee has lost all three starts in the States thus far, but has kept solid company along the way. He was bet off the board last out and attracts Irad Ortiz this time after a less-than-ideal voyage under Javier Castellano earlier this month. This feels like a “if not now when” type spot for the 4YO gelding.

There’s a long way to go to solve Keeneland’s $3 Late Pick 3 this Friday, April 24. A 1-1/2-mile Grade 3 stakes race and 1-1/8-mile six-figure allowance on the turf are part of the sequence, with a crowded Maiden Special Weight sprint in between. Here’s a closer look and a suggested $54 ticket.KEE 8th Race (4:44 p.m. EST) -- More than half the field in the featured $350,000 Bewitch Stakes (G-3) has never run in a 1-1/2-mile turf race. On the other hand, more than half have won a Grade 3 event and two others are Grade 2-placed on the lawn. I’ll try to beat the two morning-line favorites, who don’t offer enough value for Pick 3 purposes. SPEED SHOPPER ran 1-2-3 in graded grass routes, but she sat a perfect stalking trip from the rail, lacked some room on the turn and was out-kicked until late stretch in the Grade 3 Orchid at Gulfstream Park last out. LITERATE rallied to win back-to-back minor stakes on Turfway Park’s synthetic track to begin her 6-year-old season. But the $459,542 earner is winless in five starts on turf and unproven at this distance. MRS. ASTOR, the queen of turf marathons in California since 2024, won 7 of her last 10 starts, five in photo finishes and five at 1-1/4 miles and beyond. She rallied into a slow pace from post 10 to finish third in the G-3 Santa Ana as the favorite last month. She makes the ticket and so does longshot VIRGIN COLADA, whose only win since a debut maiden victory in 2024 was in an entry-level allowance at Turfway Park three months ago. However, she is reunited with jockey Flavien Prat, who was aboard for a Grade 2 turf placing as a 2-year-old, and she is trained by Mike Maker, who is 22-for-132 the last three years with an average $19.80 win mutuel on the surface switch angle. JUST BASKING earned a 93 Beyer when she sprung a 13-1 upset in the Grade 3 The Very One at Gulfstream Park in February at 1-3/8 miles. She unwound too late and got beat a half-length by SPEED SHOPPER last out.KEE 9th Race (5:16 p.m. EST) -- MUMDOGGIE gained late on a 2-to-1 debut winner and finished ahead of a next-out MSW winner in his third start overall and first this year. IMPRACTICAL, a $375,000 sales buy, awakened in his season debut, running with Lasix for the first time. He set the pace to the stretch and held third in a split division race with nearly identical fractions. NATIONAL CHARTER shows some flashy recent workouts over the track to warrant a long look in his debut. His dam, Totally Tucker, has four winners from seven foals, including Grade 3-winning turf sprint specialist Totally Boss (7-24, $802k) and G-3 dirt route winner Super Steed. Trainer George Arnold II is better than his recent 1-for-29 run with first-time starters indicates, but watch the odds here, as only 10 of those 29 starters were single-digit odds.KEE 10th race (5:48 p.m. EST) -- PRETTY PICTURE will take some beating in her 4-year-old debut for trainer Chad Brown. She rallied from far back to win her debut on turf, then placed in a pair of graded events behind the likes of three-time graded winner and millionairess Lush Lips and next-out Grade 3 victor Fast Market. STRONG DESTINY turned in a pair of freakish performances for her new barn on Turfway Park’s synthetic track. She ran away from the 3-to-5 and 7-to-5 runners up to win by a combined 24 lengths with an average 91 Beyer. She might be this good.Suggested $3 Pick 3 TicketKEE 8th Race: 2, 6, 7KEE 9th Race: 5, 6, 7KEE 10th Race: 1, 6Cost: $54

1/ST KENTUCKY DERBY WAGER GUIDEFree Access | link EXTRA INCENTIVESBet $100, Get $10 | Charles Town | tonight’s racesSCHEDULE NOTESPreakness Future Wager | opens FridayTOURNAMENT TIME$100 Keeneland feeder | detailsNOTABLE CARRYOVERSJackpot Pick 6 | $234,798 | Gulfstream Park | begins Race 3 | 1:54 pm ET--Gulfstream has a mandatory payout scheduled SaturdayLONGSHOT RACE ALERT FROM BETMIXAqueduct | Race 8 | 4:53 pm ETOaklawn | Race 7 | 5:02 pm ETKeeneland | Race 9 | 5:16 pm ETTRAINERS TO WATCHSaffie Joseph Jr. | Gulfstream | 4 of 5 entrants 7-2 or less oddsDID YOU SEE?Yesterday | Keeneland | jockey Jose Ortiz | won 4 races, including the last 3 on the cardPUT US ON YOUR HANDICAPPING TEAMFrank Carulli & Brian W. Spencer best bets today in Xpressbet.com member’s section

The Lead:Saturday’s Gulfstream Park card co-features a mandatory payout in the Rainbow 6 along with several state-bred stakes in the Florida HBPA series.​​Field Depth:Grade 2 winner CLASSIC MO TOWN has the field's signature score. TANK is a stakes winner, while ADIOS COLE is stakes-placed. A class riser in good form could certainly play a big role here.​PaceDon't expect it to be blazing. Leading candidates include TANK and BRAWN, but neither are certain to send. PRIVATE THOUGHTS should get a dynamite trip pressing. Deep closers may not get the set-up they need.Our Eyes:Here are my horse-by-horse notes.1-CLASSIC MO TOWN: Mark Casse takes the controls after a $50,000 claim and wheels back 15 days later. Inconsistent sort on synthetic hasn’t seen the grass in a couple of years but should fit well against the state-breds. Mixed vibes.2-PRIVATE THOUGHTS: January layoff came when this one was in an extended groove of 7 straight strong performances mixed between turf and synthetic. Won his debut in 2023 and won off the layoff last August, so he’s got a history of firing fresh. Big player is drawn well.3-BRAWN: Has been chasing several of these while a big price in recent starts. Lack of a defined, preferred running style isn’t doing him any factors but may be best when showing speed. Prefer others.4-TAPIT KISSIT WINIT: Tampa return bid for Mark Casse was decent behind a moderate pace, but this Tapit colt has dropped 6 straight since unveiling 2-for-2 at Woodbine in 2024. Consistent sort hasn’t indicated a big move forward in quite some time.5-TANK: Beaten favorite on the front-end in a similar stakes task at Tampa while the slightly shorter distance Saturday could help his cause. Lost starch late in 7 straight defeats for Carlos Davis, who turns to a fifth different jockey in the last 5 races (Samy Camacho) looking for the right strings to pull. Carries top weight of 126 (along with Classic Mo Town) and not sure he’s far enough ahead of his rivals to give 4-6 pounds at a well-backed price.6-ADIOS COLE: Stalked and passed Tank last out at Tampa over 9 furlongs and projects to be a bit farther off the pace in the rematch. Really gets over top-of-ground turf courses better, so warm and dry temps in the Saturday forecast help his cause. Not overmatched, but notably 0-4 in stakes and 0-4 over this course.7-JUNCTION ROAD: Rallying winner of back-to-back synthetic starts against lesser competition, trainer Rohan Critchton tries to strike while the iron is hot. But this one’s 0-6 on turf, all over this course and may find a few better on grass. Maybe he’s just in a groove now and it’s not about the surface changes, but demand some price to find out.8-SCARECROW: Jorge Delgado trainee has little to show for 4 stakes bids and has won just 1 of his last 7. Longshot prices in recent outings was no match for a few of these at Tampa 4 weeks ago. Edgard Zayas won aboard him on synthetic, but note the Neolithic colt is 0-6 on turf.Most Likely Exotics Contender:PRIVATE THOUGHTS has 9 straight trifecta finishes and fires strong when fresh.Best Longshot Contender:ADIOS COLE won't be a huge price, but should offer fair odds for a share.Sending it in ($100 bankroll):$100 win PRIVATE THOUGHTS.

1/ST KENTUCKY DERBY WAGER GUIDEFree Access | link EXTRA INCENTIVES2 Million 1/ST Rewards Points Hit & Split | Keeneland | late pick 4TOURNAMENT TIME$100 Keeneland feeder | detailsNOTABLE CARRYOVERSPick 6 | $54,038 | Keeneland | begins Race 3 | 2:04 pm ETJackpot Pick 6 | $245,677 | Turf Paradise | begins Race 3 | 5:12 pm ETKEY RACESParx | Race 8 | 3:49 pm ET | Wait For It StakesParx | Race 9 | 4:16 pm ET | Unique Bella StakesParx | Race 10 | 4:43 pm ET | Page McKenney StakesLONGSHOT RACE ALERT FROM BETMIXKeeneland | Race 4 | 2:36 pm ETTampa Bay | Race 9 | 4:30 pm ETHorseshoe Indy | Race 8 | 5:47 pm ETTRAINERS TO WATCHJonathan Wong | Evangeline Downs | all 5 entrants 5-1 or less oddsDID YOU SEE?This Week | Thistledown | favorites 7-16 first 2 days of new meetPUT US ON YOUR HANDICAPPING TEAMScott Shapiro: Keeneland $54K Pick 6 Carryover Analysis for WednesdayFrank Carulli & Brian W. Spencer best bets today in Xpressbet.com member’s section

The final three days of racing this spring at Keeneland Race Course gets started with a bang. That’s right, the 8-race Wednesday card was made even stronger after no one was able to connect the dots on Sunday’s $1 Pick 6 sequence. That leaves over $54k in free money for horseplayers to go after over the last 6 races. But wait, there is more since Wednesday also marks the last chance at 1/ST BET and Xpressbet’s 2-Million Reward Points Hit & Split. Just connect the dots on the late Pick 4 after registering for the promotion and split the points with only our customers that took part in the wager. There is lots to get excited about to kick off closing week!!Grade Descriptions: Grade A=Highest degree of confidence; Grade B=Solid Play. Grade C=Least preferred or pass; Grade X=probable winner but likely at odds too short to play.Race 3:Grade: CMain Ticket: 4 Just an Opinion; 5 CommandedBackups: 3 Don’t Say ItForecast: There is a major lack of early speed signed on in this open $25k claimer over the main track, which makes things a bit tricker to decipher. #3 Don’t Say It is a figure horse coming in off a win against lesser at Turfway Park for the white-hot Brad Cox stable, but tough to trust given her lack early zip. I will make #4 Just an Opinion my lukewarm top pick given the addition of blinkers and Luis Saez. Both could lead to enough early speed to give the 5YO mare a tactical edge at a juicy price. #5 Commanded is more logical. The daughter of Lord Nelson has been competitive over the main track and gets some class relief.Race 4:Grade: C+Main Ticket: 3 Warlander; 5 Operation OverlordBackups: NoneForecast: The first-level allowance up next also kicks of the $3 All Turf Pick 3 and goes through #5 Operation Overlord. The Todd Pletcher conditioned colt has moved forward since adding the blinkers earlier this year in Florida. He ran extremely well in defeat last out when competing against the flow and now gets Irad Ortiz, Jr. back in the saddle. He will be tough to beat if the pace is not overly contentious, but there is a good deal on paper, so I will get sucked back into a horse that has taken a good deal of my money already. #3 Warlander has had lots of excuses throughout his career, but a lot of that could be on him. He gets back to the turf after spending the winter at Turfway Park and attracts Jose Ortiz. Hopefully, I finally see his “A” game.Race 5:Grade: B-Main Ticket: 1 EditorBackups: NoneForecast: The 5-2-ML favorite #1 Editor looks tough to beat in this $30k maiden claimer that kicks off the last chance at the aforementioned Hit & Split Late Pick 4 promotion. The lightly-raced son of Good Magic moved to the dirt last time after a debut over the grass and ran second to a next out Eddie Kenneally runner that is now 2 for 2. He drops in class and draws the rail, which should allow Irad Ortiz to get him to the front and never look back.Race 6:Grade: B-Main Ticket: 4 Big TroubleBackups: 2 Me GovernorForecast: #8 Pandora’s Gift holds the class edge in this $140k allowance event at 5.5-furlongs over the grass and therefore was made the 8-5-ML favorite, but I prefer #4 Big Trouble. The Greg Foley trainee was entered in a stakes event earlier in the meet, but opts for this spot. She comes in off a pair of runner-up efforts at Fair Grounds, including one over the grass on February 27 in the Mardi Gras. She has been a little camera shy, but should be sitting on her best off a two-month freshening. #2 Me Governor is an interesting long shot alternative. The daughter of The Factor gets back to the grass in her second try off the bench. Hopefully, she can work out a favorable pocket voyage.Race 7:Grade: B-Main Ticket: 6 EvanescenceBackups: 2 RoswellForecast: Three of the six runners entered in this third-level allowance exit the Hurricane Bertie (G3) at Gulfstream Park where it was the 4-5-favorite R Disaster getting to the wire first. #3 Lynn’s Milky Way battled early and tired late in that race and was made the 9-5-ML choice by oddsmaker Nick Tammaro. She is capable obviously, but I prefer #6 Evanescence. The 4YO filly should be sitting on her best in the third start of her 4YO campaign after an awkward start but strong finish in the Matron at Oaklawn Park. With a better break, I like her chances to make it a perfect 2 for 2 over this surface. #2 Roswell was easily defeated in the aforementioned Hurricane Bertie, but showed life late in her first start off a 3-month break. The addition of blinkers has her finishing races stronger. She should provide solid value for those who include her in horizontals.Race 8:Grade: C+Main Ticket: #1 Astar; #4 Go for Rocket; #5 Master Sommelier; 7 LahainalunaBackups: NoneForecast: I am not in love with the ML favorites in the payoff leg for all horizontals, so I will use a few in hopes of catching a price, including top choice #1 Astar. The Oscar Performance colt returns to the races for the first time since last July and now appears in the Mike Maker barn. Maker adds blinkers and legs up Ben Curtis. Do not be surprised if this leads to a forward trip given the rail draw and Curtis’ ability to get longshots home in grass races. Astar has plenty of warts, but so does the entire field.

1/ST KENTUCKY DERBY WAGER GUIDEFree Access | link EXTRA INCENTIVESBet $100, Get $10 | Mountaineer | tonight’s racesNOTABLE CARRYOVERSJackpot Pick 6 | $228,320 | Turf Paradise | begins Race 3 | 5:11 pm ETKEY RACESWill Rogers Downs | Race 7 | 5:02 pm ET | More Than Even StakesLONGSHOT RACE ALERT FROM BETMIXParx | Race 5 | 2:28 pm ETThistledown | Race 8 | 4:20 pm ETHorseshoe Indy | Race 8 | 5:47 pm ETTRAINERS TO WATCHNestor Rivera | Thistledown | all 5 entrants 4-1 or less oddsDID YOU SEE?Yesterday | Parx | jockey Francisco Martinez | 2 wins, 2 seconds from 6 mountsPUT US ON YOUR HANDICAPPING TEAMJeremy Plonk: Mountaineer Bet $100, Get $10 Promo PlaysFrank Carulli & Brian W. Spencer best bets today in Xpressbet.com member’s section

The “Blooming Bankrolls” promotion this April at 1/ST BET and Xpressbet offers a $10 bonus when you bet $100 or more at select tracks each Tuesday and Thursday. Mountaineer will be the track spotlighted for this Tuesday. Here’s how I’ll approach that card with the help of the Betmix Angler database.Mountaineer: Race 5#2 Shiva (10-1 morning line odds) was a debut winner last May and proven to be able to get ready for a start strictly off of workouts. It’s his first start of the year, which makes this race condition suit him very well for horses who have yet to win in 2026. Trainer Marshall Godsey won with 2 of 3 local starters last week, including a $23 score. Win-place bet #2.Mountaineer: Race 8#1 Feels Like a Kylla (20-1 morning line odds) makes his first start at Mountaineer and first start on dirt with a chance to wake up. Fast work April 14 over the track (second-fastest of 25 despite being a maiden claimer). Trainer Julie Mathes has had some early success with her Fort Erie charges at Mountaineer, including 6-1 and 7-1 winners last week while going 6: 2-0-2. Win-place bet #1.