Matriarch Stakes Preview: Time and Motion Faces Elders

A field of 12 was entered Thursday for the $300,000 Grade 1 Matriarch on Sunday, closing day of the meeting.

Grade 1 stakes winners Miss Temple City and Time and Motion top the list for the one-mile turf event for fillies and mares which will be run for the third time at the Bing Crosby meeting after 33 editions at Hollywood Park.

UPDATE: There will be an $89,411 Pick Six carryover and a mandatory payout Sunday in the Pick Six at Del Mar after action closed out Saturday on the track’s penultimate fall meet card.

Top Choice

#11 Time and Motion – After the year this filly has had it’s hard not to fall in love with her.  She’s ready for this kind of challenge, but I am a bit concerned with the mile distance for her.  Last week I picked Connect to win the Cigar Mile even though many thought the distance would be too sharp for him, but he got the job done.  When looking at Time and Motion’s races you can see that she has had some tactical speed in each of them, which will be very important in this spot.  If she can stay within range turning for him I think she’ll have the turn of foot to run them down.  The three year olds have faired very well lately when taking on older horses so hopefully that continues.

Horses to Use in Multi Race Wagers

#12 Miss Temple City – This is probably foolish of me to not pick her on top.  She is the ultimate example of class, and her last two races have been BIG TIME efforts.  After winning the Grade 1 Shadwell Turf Mile at Keeneland she then was a very respectable fifth in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Mile where she was only beaten two lengths.  Can she make it three big races in a row today?  That factor has me a little skeptical that maybe she won’t be able to do it three times in a row…and really when you look who beat her three races back you can see she ran pretty well in that race as well.  No matter the bet, I’ll be rooting for her.

#4 Zindaya – Just like the Hollywood Derby, Chad Brown also has three entered in this spot.  I’ve selected two of them to use in multi race wagers, and one as a party crasher.  Out of the three I like Zindaya the best after her ultra impressive Grade 2 win at Santa Anita last time out.  Also, Javier Castellano has chosen Zindaya over Roca Rojo as he rode both horses in their last races.  That was the factor that pushed me over the edge when trying to separate the two of them.

#7 Roca Rojo – If not for the Javier Castellano factor I was actually leaning towards ranking this horse ahead of Zindaya.  That last race at Belmont Park, a Grade 3 win, was as impressive as it gets.  However, that race was run on soft turf so perhaps that moved her up a little bit.  As always you have to respect a Chad Brown entry, and you can’t deny the fact she’s won three out of four races since coming to the United States.

Exotic Plays

#2 Stays in Vegas – She’s been the picture of consistency this year, but if you’ve bet her to win throughout the year you probably aren’t too happy.  I’ve taken shots with her all year so you aren’t alone in that department if you’ve been betting her to win, but she never runs a race that is overly poor.  I think today she can make some noise for all the trifecta and superfecta players, and maybe help you recoup some of those win bet losses.

Party Crashers

#6 Mexican Gold – Here we go again with the “other” Chad Brown entry much like we talked about in the Hollywood Derby Preview earlier this week.  This horse certainly has the look of a wild card as she’ll be making her third start with Brown after running overseas prior to coming to the United States.  She debuted at Saratoga and won an allowance, and followed that race up with a third place finish in a Grade 3 at Belmont Park.  With Brown on her side we could see improvement today, and if we do she can win at a price.

Throw Outs

#9 Decked Out – Other than her one huge race at Del Mar in the Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks she hasn’t run good enough to win this one today.  If she can run back to that big Del Mar Oaks race she’ll have a shot, but I’m not sure she can do that.

#1 Tiz a Kiss – Pretty consistent runner at the lower levels, and last time out was second in a nice grade 2 race.  However, I think this race is a little tougher today, and she might just be a small cut below the best horses in this field.

#3 Kitcat – Came to the United States from Chile in October to prep and then run in the Breeders Cup Filly and Mare Turf, and both of those races didn’t go as planned.  Finished second in the prep race, and twelfth in the Breeders’ Cup race.  Hard to know what she’ll do today.

#5 Sobradora Inc – Has had a couple of recent shots against graded stakes company and has not had the success you’d like to see to support her in this spot.  May not be good enough to face the top horses in the division like she’ll have to today.

#8 Nancy from Nairobi – I’ve had high hopes for this horse for awhile now, and have picked her in a few races where she has disappointed.  Her recent races have me a little worried so I have to look at others for this spot today.

#10 Prize Exhibit – Definitely has some back class, but her recent races have left a lot to be desired.  She’ll have to get back to her form towards the first of the year to compete today.