Handicapping Aqueduct’s Pick 4 for Thursday

An eight-race card is on tap Thursday, February 7 at Aqueduct in New York. The weather forecast calls for early showers and cool temperatures with no threat of snow as of Monday night. The pick 4 will begin with race 5 and runs through race 8. First post is 12:50pm Eastern time; race 5 post time is 2:57pm.

Race 5 kicks off the sequence; blinkers on #1 Southern King. The Todd Pletcher-trainee is exting a stakes race where he ran fourth and drops into this one-mile nonwinners of one other than condition. His lone victory in four starts came over this trip in November. #5 Woodbury and #7 Hushion are exiting maiden victories over the course; Woodbury has faced two other horses already in this race and has a lot of speed. #4 Stone Breaker also broke his maiden last out for a $50,000 tag; he stretches out from six furlongs in this.

Race 6 is a $25,000 claimer at 6 ½ furlongs. #1 Swiping Dan drops from the $40,000 level to this; he won twice in 2018. #4 Binkster was last seen winning over a mile at Belmont in July. #8 Competitiveness has been top three in three of four Aqueduct starts; he has not run in a year, however. #10 Domain is by a Kentucky Derby winner and out of a Breeders’ Cup Distaff winner, and has won two of his last three starts.

Race 7 is a mile-long optional claimer where only the #5 Exulting is in for the $100,000 tag. These are classy older males who have all run in stakes races; #4 Solid Wager is coming off a win in the grade 3 Toboggan and will be making his 50^thlifetime start. #6 Stan the Man has won three of his last four, with the lone loss being the grade 1 Cigar Mile. #1 Holiday Bonus, #2 Backsideofthemoon, and #7 Hit It Once More all exit the same New Year’s Day allowance where they ran 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^threspectively.

Race 8 completes the quartet with a nine-horse field going one mile for an $8,000 tag. This group is tough to sort out; #3 Nobody Move was second here December 30 and the winner went on to win next out as well. He has been on the board in five of his 10 Aqueduct starts. #6 Fifty has been vanned off in two of his last four starts, but in the middle of that went gate to wire to win by 4 ½ lengths over this trip. On the outside is #9 Its All Relevant won two in a row at the end of last year but was fifth here January 4 in his first start off the claim for Linda Rice.