Dan’s Double: Weekend Winners for March 5-6

When it comes to making money when handicapping races and betting on horse racing, it’s all about picking winners. Dan Tordjman, America’s Best Racing’s New York correspondent, is one of the brightest young minds in the game.
Each week, Tordjman – DanonymousMan to those who follow him on Twitter – will provide readers with his two best bets of the weekend and strategies for how to bet them. Tordjman will keep track of his return on investment (ROI) throughout the year and, as a bonus, he will also provide picks for a selection of the key races on the Triple Crown trail and the road to the Breeders’ Cup.
Come back every week and be sure to follow Tordjman on Twitter.
Saturday, March 5, Race 9, Aqueduct, Gotham Stakes, 4:50 p.m. ET
#5 Mo Power* (6-1): The Gotham Stakes is the featured race on Saturday’s card at Aqueduct, and it appears to be a good betting race. Though Withers Stakes winner Sunny Ridge probably will take most of the action, we’re going to go ahead and play against him in this spot. Without taking too much away from Sunny Ridge, he sat on a pretty soft pace last out. If he’s going to repeat in the Gotham, he’ll have to either spar with new pace factors Laoban, Shagaf and possibly Mo Power. The latter is the horse I like best here. Not only is he a son of one of the hottest current sires in racing, Uncle Mo, he’s also one of the most lightly raced. He took a major step forward when breaking his maiden at second asking in his most recent start. Of the four Gulfstream Park shippers, he posted the fastest final quarter-mile time in that race, after going pretty fast early, too. It’s also a good sign that jockey John Velazquez, who rides at Gulfstream this time of year, is flying up to take the mount on Mo Power. It’s also Velazquez’s only ride of the day at Aqueduct, so he clearly came in just to ride Mo Power.
*Note that Mo Power is cross-entered in a race on Aqueduct’s Sunday card. If he scratches out of this race, our top selection would be #2 Shagaf.
Strategy on $10 Budget
$5 win and place on #5 Mo Power ($10)
Strategy on $25 Budget
$5 win and place on #5 Mo Power ($10)
$1 trifecta 2,5 with 2,3,5,7 with 2,3 5,7 ($12)
Strategy on $50 Budget
$1 exacta 2,5 with ALL ($14)
$25 to win and $10 to place on #5 Mo Power ($35)
Sunday, March 6, Race 11, Gulfstream Park, 5:35 p.m. ET
#4 One Liz (Odds TBD): This a pretty intriguing race going 1 3/16 miles on the turf. One Liz has the looks of a horse who might be overlooked in the betting but who could steal this race on the front end. She goes out for the first time for trainer Michael Petro (who hits 41% first out), and she’s stretching out from 5 furlongs. She was forced to chase last out but will assume as easy lead right from the gate here, especially under jockey Paco Lopez, who’s known as a gate rider who loves sending his horses early. I don’t see too many others in the race with speed, so it ultimately boils down to whether this filly has the stamina to last the distance. She has beaten similar going a mile on the turf and at 1 1/16 miles on the dirt — an extra furlong doesn’t seem like it would be a deal breaker. She’s 3-for-5 on the turf, and that includes that awkward sprint last out.
Strategy on $10 Budget
$5 win and place on #4 One Liz ($10)
Strategy on $25 Budget
$15 to win, $5 to place and $5 to show on #4 One Liz ($25)
Strategy on $50 Budget
$1 exacta key box 4 with all ($20)
$10 win, place, show on #4 One Liz ($30)                                
ROI Year to date: $1,241.60 wagered/$562.30 returned