Blame Preview: Deep Field Presents Tremendous Betting Opportunity

LOUISVILLE, KY – A deep, well-rounded field of 14 male horses – 13 of them stakes winners – present a tremendous betting opportunity in Saturday’s first installment of the $100,000 Blame Stakes Presented by Norton Healthcare at Churchill Downs.

The Blame is a 1-mile dirt event for horses ages 4 and up and is part of an 11-race card that includes four other stakes:

• $150,000 Matt Winn (G3): 1 1/16 miles on dirt; open to all 3-year-olds
• $100,000 Shawnee: 1 1/16 miles on dirt; open to fillies and mares 4 and up
• $100,000 Tepin: 1 mile on turf; open to 3-year-old fillies
• $100,000 War Chant: 1 mile on turf; open to all 3-year-olds

1. Long Range Toddy (20/1) – After upsetting the 2019 Rebel Stakes (G2) at Oaklawn Park, he only hit the board once more – in the Indiana Derby (G3) – in seven subsequent starts. He transferred to the Dallas Stewart barn for 2020 and was most recently fourth, beaten 1 length, in an allowance/optional claiming event.

2. Bourbon Resolution (30/1) – He makes his second start of the year after finishing a late-running fourth in the 7-furlong Sir Shackleton Stakes at Gulfstream Park. His biggest win to date was the 2019 Ben Ali Stakes (G3), a 1 1/8-mile dirt event at Keeneland that he took home at 18/1.

3. Global Campaign (9/2) – After winning three of his first four career starts, he struggled to stay healthy for much of 2019, making only one start in the second half of the year. His 2020 debut was a strong 7-furlong victory at Gulfstream Park and he should be able to take another step forward off of that effort.

4. Alwaysmining (20/1) – No rival in this field can match his 9 trips to the winner’s circle, all of which came at his home base of Laurel Park. Though he hast yet to win away from that track, he is perfect in 3 starts at this one-mile distance.

5. Everfast (30/1) – He makes his second start of the year and for trainer Jack Sisterson after getting caught late in a 1-mile allowance at Oaklawn Park. His best effort in 2019 came when Joel Rosario – who has the mount for the second time – rode him to a late-running second in last year’s Preakness Stakes (G1).

6. Backyard Heaven (6/1) – His 2020 debut coincides with his first start from the Mike Maker barn after spending his prior years competing for Chad Brown. His biggest win to date came in the 2018 Alysheba Stakes (G2), a 1 1/16-mile event over the Churchill Downs main track.

7. Silver Dust (8/1) – He has a 1-mile distance record of 4-2-0-1, though each of his 3 stakes victories have come going slightly longer (1 1/16 miles). He has earned at least a 91 Beyer speed figure in each of his past 12 starts, spreading across four different tracks.

Check out the Inside Track to the Matt Winn Stakes Wagering Guide to see who we are playing this and every race on Saturday’s Churchill Downs card!

8. Owendale (3/1) – Three wins against fellow sophomores in Grade 3 events last year led trainer Brad Cox to send him to the Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1), where he had a rough trip and never factored into the real running. He makes his 2020 debut here after running a much-improved second in the 1 1/8-mile Clark Stakes (G1) over this course last November.

9. Extrordinary Jerry (12/1) – He appeared to turn the corner as a 4-year-old, compiling a record of 8-3-1-2 that concluded with a 10 1/4-length romp in a Florida-bred stakes while going 1 mile at Gulfstream Park. Absent since that race on September 28, 2019, he will make his first start for new trainer Dermot Magner.

10. Snapper Sinclair (15/1) – The Steve Asmussen trainee has proven to be a multi-surface threat, winning two stakes over the Kentucky Downs turf but also compiling a 19-2-5-3 record on dirt. He may ultimately want to see a wet track on Saturday; his best 2020 efforts were second-place finishes in the Essex Handicap and the Fifth Season Stakes, each contested over a wet Oaklawn Park track.

11. American Anthem (15/1) – Don Tiger purchased him from breeder WinStar Farm last November and sent him to trainer Danny Gargan, who saddled him to a second in the Stymie Stakes and a narrow fourth in the Toboggan Stakes (G3). He has a career record of 15-6-2-3 in one-turn events, including three against graded stakes foes.

12. Discreet Lover (30/1) – A major upset score in the 2018 Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) led to trying the Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) over this course. He has only made one start since then, finishing last of 10 in the Charles Town Classic (G2) 11 months ago.

13. Mr. Money (5/1) – He put together a four-race win streak – all at the Grade 3 level – last summer before ending the year with a well-beaten seventh in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1). His 2020 debut in April’s Oaklawn Mile was no better, but whether it was the layoff or the wet track that day, he should improve here.

14. Diamond King (10/1) – His Stymie Stakes victory kicked off his 2020 season in fine style and represented his first W in 12 months. Though he had a long drought between scores, he has shown a consisten ability to compete, compiling a record of 18-6-4-3 that includes a 4-2-2-0 mark at 1-mile distances.