Ricky’s Rockets ?: Belmont Park Picks for July 5, 2020

Saturday’s action really brought to light what the sport is all about. Frank’s Rockette, Social Paranoia, Vekoma, Instilled Regard, and Tacitus all took care of business. Overall, it was a spectacular day and a great way to end the holiday!

Sunday’s early Pick 5 will be tough to take down, but one single toward the end of the sequence could help unlock a nice ROI.

Best of luck!

Race 1: $16k Claiming for fillies and mares 3-year-olds and upward going 6 1/2 furlongs on the dirt

#7 Mosienko faced tougher in the past and drops to the lowest level of her career. Her last effort came after a long layoff, so expect an improved performance here.

Race 2: Maiden Special Weight for fillies and mares 3-year-olds and upward going 7 furlongs on the outer turf

#2 Sing Me Home comes from a Chad Brown barn that wins 22% with first-time starters and 25% with runners making their initial turf appearances. She gets Javier Castellano aboard, who has won 28% with Brown since the start of 2019. #5 Too Sexy had a brutal trip last time out in her 2020 debut but still managed to finish within 1 1/4 lengths of the winner. Drawing closer to the rail should help and has her best past efforts could be enough to win. I am also using the other Brown entry, #6 Risk Model, who showed some speed in her two dirt efforts but might be better on turf. She is by my favorite sire Into Mischief, whose foals win 14% of their first grass starts.

Race 3: $30k Maiden Claiming for 3-year-olds and upward going 6 1/2 furlongs on the dirt

#1 Fed Funds returns for the first time since debuting over a sloppy Laurel Park track last December. Horacio DePaz adds blinkers (a 36% move) while dropping him down for a tag (67%). #3 Tri Saint Lorenzo put his best foot forward when he dropped to the claiming ranks last time out. He hasn’t shown much speed in the past, but do not be surprised to see Dylan Davis be more aggressive this time. #5 Height lost to solid dirt runners last year and his lone 2020 start can be crossed out because it was on turf. Dropping in class and turning back to dirt should help. #10 Warfront Fighter ran better than the form says last time out when he dropped to the claiming ranks for the first time. Had he not been so wide, he could have finished in the money, and he adds blinkers here.

Race 4: $40k Claiming for 3-year-olds and upward going 1 1/16 miles (8 1/2 furlongs) on the inner turf

While this is a competitive race, #7 Bray is an easy single. His most recent effort was a good-looking third at the starter allowance level while returning from a six-month layoff. He drops in for a tag since his maiden debut, when he won at this same distance.

Race 5: $40k Maiden Claiming for New York-bred 3-year-olds and upward going 7 furlongs on the widener turf

Any runner with a chance made my ticket. I could not make sense of this field, so I bought as much coverage as possible. #12 Breed’s Hill is my top choice due to the speed that he showed on Woodbine’s synthetic surface last year. He makes his first start for Jeremiah Englehart, who wins 14% with barn debuters, and is worth including at a price in this wide-open race.

THE TICKET

50¢ PICK 5 (Races 1-5) 2,7 / 2,5,6 / 1,3,5,10 / 7 / 3-7,9,11,12- $96