Saratoga Picks for July 17:
HORSING AROUND WITH MR. ED: There were three big deals on Thursday at Saratoga: (1) Popular NY jockey Manny Franco booted home a trio; (2) The Kantarmaci Bros Stable had three winners, and (3) the $2 million+ Pick 6 carryover payout was $10,270. Elsewhere around the windows, the average $2 Win ticket returned $11.33.
STAKES FOR THE LADIES: Race 9 $150K DEL LA ROSA Stakes for the ladies headlines today’s 10-race card at Saratoga. Post time for the program is 1:15 p.m. ET/10:15 a.m. PT. Partly cloudy skies are expected with a high in the low 80s, with an air quality warning due to brush fires in Canada. FAST & FIRM, friends.
Mr. Ed’s Saratoga Selections for Friday, July 17
Race 1 (1:10 p.m. ET/10:10 a.m. PT) — $115 MAIDEN SPECIAL WEIGHT for 3YOs & up going 5 1/2-furlongs on the turf
Mr. Ed couldn’t decide between a pair of reds: #2 RED SQUARE (8-5 morning line), gelded son of American Pharoah, for Wesley Ward and Irad Ortiz, Jr., and #3 BEIJING (4-1) for trainer Will Walden and leading rider Flavien Prat.
SARATOGA SELECTION: $5 Daily Double of 2,3/1,6. ($20)
Race 2 (1:44 p.m.ET/10:44 a.m. PT) — $75K MAIDEN CLAIMING for 3YOS & up 7 furlongs
Mr. Ed’s picks are #1 SIR DUKE (4-1 morning line) for trainer Carlos Martin with rider upgrade to Tyler Gaffalione, and #6 THE STANDARD (4-1) for Steve Asmussen and rider switch to Jose Ortiz.
Race 3 (2:18 p.m. ET/11:18 a.m. PT) — $84K CLAIMING for 4YOs & up going 7 furlongs
Mr. Ed’s betting on #1 RIDGEWOOD RUNNER (7-2 morning line), cutting back for trainer Michelle Nevin and top rider Flavien Prat. Gelding ready to run in return visit to Spa.
SARTOGA SELECTION: $10 to Win & Place. ($20)
Race 5 (3:28 p.m. ET/12:28 p.m. PT) — $110K ALLOWANCE OPTIONAL CLAIMING for NY-bred 3YOs & up going 5 ½ furlongs on the grass
Mr. Ed’s choice is #6 VACATION DANCE (5-2 morning line) for Brad Cox barn with Irad Ortiz returning to saddle. He needs to break alertly to beat this fast bunch.
SARATOGA SELECTION: $10 to Win. ($10)
Race 6 (4:04 p.m. ET/1:04 p.m. PT) — $125K ALLOWANCE OPTIONAL CLAIMING for 3YOs & up going 1⅜-mile on the turf
Mr. Ed likes three for the money: #2 RIGHT TO VOTE (5-1 morning line) for Chad Brown barn; regular rider Manny Franco returns; #3 ARKHIPOV (7-2) also for Chad Brown; Flavien Prat returns, and #4 EMERGENCE (9-2) with huge rider upgrade to Irad Ortiz, Jr. Any two cashes ticket.
SARATOGA SELECTION; $5 Exacta Box of 2,3,4. ($30)
Race 7 (4:37 p.m. ET/1:37 p.m. PT) — $42K CLAIMING FOR 3YOs & up going 1 ⅛-mile
Mr. Ed likes #7 GEOSTOBLAME (3-1 morning line) on drop for trainer Todd Pletcher with popular NY rider Kendrick Carmouche, who will be flying in the lane.
SARATOGA SELECTION: $20 to Win. ($20)
Race 8 (5:11 p.m. ET/2:11 p.m. PT) — $1 Pick 3
R8: 2,4,6,10,12
R9: 3,4,12,13
R10: 2,4 ($40)
Race 9 (5:45 p.m. ET/2:45 p.m. PT) — $150K DE LA ROSE for fillies & mares, 4YOs & up going a mile on the turf
Mr. Ed is betting on a trio: #3 AND MORE ONE TIME (4-1 morning line) for trainer Mark Casse, picking up Johnny V. to ride; #4 SAND TRAP (3-1) for high-profile duo of Chad Brown and Flavien Prat, and #12 BERNIE TAKES CHARGE (4-1) for Domenick Schettino and Manny Franco.
SARATOGA SELECTION: $5 Exacta Box of 3,4,12. ($30)
TOTAL WAGERS: $170
SATURDAY AT THE SPA: A pair of excellent stakes for the gals, the (Race 5) $500K G1 DUNKIN’ DIANA for fillies and mares going a 1⅛-mile on the turf and (Race 8) $225 G3 CORONATION CUP for fillies headline an excellent 12-race program. First post goes at 12:45 p.m. ET/9:45 a.m. PT. High will be in the low 80s with a slight chance of precipitation and cloudy skies due to wildfires in Canada.
SPONSORED
DOC’S SPORTS AI-v2 has climbed to another ALL-TIME HIGH of +23,020 units since inception with ZERO losing months.
The AI-v2 system is already up +18,460 units in 2026 and has produced 80% winners over the last 11 days.
Doc’s Sports AI-v2 combines the work of professional bettors, data scientists and expert coders into a continuously evolving betting model.
