Daily Racing Form expert handicapper and analyst Patrick Moquin handicaps the Friday, March 13 racing card at Colonial Downs, including his projected 1-2-3 finishers. His best bet of the day comes from Race 6.
Also, view FREE DRF Past Performances for today’s Race of the Day.
BEST BET: Lonesome Road (6th race)
Sixth Race
1. Lonesome Road
2. Chipotle
3. Illuminare
LONESOME ROAD has been sitting on his first stakes start for months, but it was apparent after his maiden victory in December that he was ready for this level of competition; the gelding has looked like a special one in two starts on dirt at Laurel, and Trombetta has not looked back since transitioning him away from the turf; no reason to think he can’t handle this group. CHIPOTLE has been white-hot for Gorham and seems prepared to try another handicap; the gelding finished just behind Point Dume at Laurel last time out, and that rival came back to soundly defeat Quint’s Brew, Blue Kingdom, and Slam Notion in a $200,000 stakes; versatile gelding deserves respect. ILLUMINARE is purely a bounce-back candidate in this spot, as Pletcher’s confidence is buoying a runner that has not shown much since a commanding allowance win in November 2024; impossible to figure what he will do with only two starts under his belt since, but his trainer has picked this stakes over many other spots off a long layoff.
Here are Patrick’s thoughts on the other seven races on Friday’s Colonial Downs card.
First Race
1. Chance to Party
2. Anita Glassofwine
3. Ithadtobeblu
CHANCE TO PARTY will make her 3-year-old debut for Lightner, who frequently ships from Florida to Virginia with live runners; this one has had her chances at a maiden victory in the past, which could be seen as a knock, but the brass tax here is that she simply seems overwhelming against these; her form on dirt has been mixed, but there’s enough to make a winning argument in this particular spot. ANITA GLASSOFWINE has not run since Colonial closed last year, but her juvenile form on both surfaces left something to be desired; Ashby is bringing her back at the maiden-claiming level at which she left off, and improvement as a 3-year-old is the main draw for her off the bench. ITHADTOBEBLU was nowhere close for McMahon last time out, but the filly improved to earn a 33 Beyer cutting back; this field doesn’t seem quite as tough, paving the way for an improved finish.
Second Race
1. Making Daisys
2. Tahlequah
3. Chanceofalifetime
MAKING DAISYS ran on dirt in her second start for Ward but has not run since December; her effort that day was far better than the turf debut at Kentucky Downs, as she finished a distant third in a tough Aqueduct maiden race with a 53 Beyer; Ward is removing blinkers, often a positive move for his lightly raced runners, and her training has been exceptional recently. TAHLEQUAH will make her second start off a short layoff for Joseph after improving to earn a 63 Beyer in defeat at Tampa Bay Downs; yes, she was the beaten favorite that day, but bettors clearly missed something about the runaway winner there; it’s encouraging to see her trending in the right direction for top connections. CHANCEOFALIFETIME will also ship from Florida off an encouraging debut for Lightner, where the filly finished second in a deep field at 29-2 odds; she has every chance to take a step forward while adding distance.
Third Race
1. Crossingthechannel
2. G Q Worthy
3. Ihaveanappforthat
CROSSINGTHECHANNEL twice ran lights-out in defeat for Trombetta as a juvenile, and it only took four days for him to break through as a 3-year-old; after locking up that maiden victory, the colt took some time off and will return as a daunting presence in this field; not much to dislike about the front-runner. G Q WORTHY has thrown in his fair share of duds for a colt who always seems to have a say in high-level company; it’s hard to make a case for him to beat the favorite after a 27 1/4-length defeat last time, but he has bounced back for minor prizes in tough spots before. IHAVEANAPPFORTHAT just missed in two straight races in December and January, and as soon as bettors gave him some respect on the tote at Laurel last time, he threw in a dud to lose by five lengths; hard to figure why he can’t run back to the 71 Beyer he earned in December, but he’s a contender here if he can figure things out.
Fourth Race
1. Keewaydin
2. Surgical Precision
3. Shadow Surge
KEEWAYDIN has always seemed right on the cusp of a major breakthrough, even after switching from Brown to Walden as a 3-year-old; the colt has not run since a disappointing seventh at Saratoga last summer, but this spot isn’t quite as challenging and seems to present a great chance for him to demonstrate improvement as a 4-year-old; dangerous improvement candidate. SURGICAL PRECISION is an obscure contender returning from a layoff of nearly 13 months for Russell; the gelding has made just one start, winning a maiden special weight at Laurel in February last year; the psychology here is that Russell has targeted this Colonial meet as his return spot, suggesting he might have even more to offer for a trainer who excels with horses off long breaks. SHADOW SURGE is a runaway winner if he gets the early lead at Parx, but all other formulas have failed for Ness since December; he’s hard to ignore, but when he’s challenged, he often folds badly, making him profoundly difficult to consider one way or the other.
Fifth Race
1. Multiverse
2. Dr. Park
3. Creed’s Vision
MULTIVERSE clipped heels and fell last time out, but Riley Mott is bringing him right back with seemingly confident intentions; the gelding has run some big races without much success recently, finishing second in his last three before the fall; he was favored in two of those races, making them difficult to excuse, but a breakthrough also feels inevitable for this sort. DR. PARK has not run since last April, when he fired fresh off a short break to win his second career start with an 86 Beyer; it’s not perfect logic to compare his first layoff to his much longer second, but it’s still encouraging that he managed so well the last time he was asked off the bench; Eurton almost never appears in these parts, making this an intriguing move. CREED’S VISION needed seven tries to break his maiden, though the gelding clearly wasn’t the same horse back when he was with Morley; Delacour unlocked something in him during a long break in 2025, and his two starts since returning have been highly encouraging; firmly prepared for his first start against winners.
Seventh Race
1. Carmelina
2. Sporting Lady
3. Conquerthosewecan
CARMELINA is the winner here if she fires fresh off a long break, but that question does create value in a race that might not offer as much otherwise; the mare was clearly spent at the end of a short but strenuous 2025 campaign, convincing Reid to pump the brakes over the winter; little reason to doubt her now, as her form off similar layoff in the past was strong. SPORTING LADY remains winless in five starts on dirt, but Brion might have made an interesting discovery when she was taken off the turf in a stakes at Fair Grounds last time out; the filly finished third in a short field that day with an 83 Beyer, no joke for me who had not tried the surface at such a high level; she’s a rough fit in this field. CONQUERTHOSEWECAN has appeared due for a stakes victory of this sort for some time, but she simply has not shown quite as much in recent starts between breaks; her last performance at Colonial is the best of her career, even though it was deep in her 3-year-old campaign; there’s upside to consider.
Eighth Race
1. Cool Customer
2. Pont Aven
3. Hard Stance
COOL CUSTOMER is an intriguing contender breaking from the far outside for Stidham, as the gelding will return to dirt at Colonial; his only previous tries on the surface were also at Colonial and seemed strong enough to warrant consideration in the maiden ranks at the time; the waters got deeper when he returned this year to try the turf at Fair Grounds, but his trainer is bringing him back to a comfortable spot this time. PONT AVEN has been on the cusp of a breakthrough for the better part of six months and should be a contender regardless of whether he runs at Laurel or Colonial this week; this field appears to be softer but deeper, which could sway Trombetta either way; the trainer obviously thought highly of him when he claimed him two back and immediately step up, so it’s on him now to buck the disappointing stint to this point. HARD STANCE will make his debut for Farrior, who doesn’t ship quite as many horses to Colonial as he does to Laurel; sire Hard Spun demands respect, and the trainer often sends his best out with intent; his recent works suggest he’s ready.
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