Is Turbulent Descent a Rising Star?
- Who: Thoroughbreds – May Day Rose, Turbulent Descent, Tell a Kelly
- What: Horse Racing Betting Tips – The Hollywood Starlet
- Where: Hollywood Park
- When: Saturday, December 11th
Turbulent Descent has won her first two starts with the greatest of ease. On Saturday, she’ll make her 2-turn debut in the Grade 1 Hollywood Starlet at 1 1/16th miles. She’ll be facing Grade 1 winner Tell a Kelly and the highly-regarded May Day Rose, a recent daylight winner of the Sharp Cat Stakes at 1 1/16th miles. Will Turbulent Descent’s fortunes continue to rise? Let’s take a look at each of the contestants.
#1-True Way of Grace: This filly made a nice run from 18 lengths back last out to grab the runner-up spot behind May Day Rose. Trainer Alexis Barba adds blinkers, so perhaps ‘Grace will be a bit closer to the action this time. With a hot pace expected, she may close for a minor share…worth using to round out the exotics.
#2-Nina Fever: Wesley Ward trainee tries two turns for the first time after winning 5-of-8 sprinting. The presence of jockey Garrett Gomez lends credibility to her prospects. Still, it’s tough to see her dealing with May Day Rose early and having enough left to hold off Turbulent Descent and possibly Tell a Kelly. Looking elsewhere.
#3-May Day Rose: Her Beyer Speed Figures don’t stand out, but she looked good last time going two turns vs. stakes company, winning with something left. The interim works have been exceptional, so a move forward would come as no surprise. It will be interesting to see if she can relax off probable pacesetter Nina Fever. If not, her task will be even more daunting. The switch to jockey Bejarano sure can’t hurt. The final 70 yards will tell the tale.
#4-Luna Grande: Interesting shipper got good recently at Calder. The switch to poly and step up in class make her a bit of a mystery at long odds.
#5-Turbulent Descent: You can’t appreciate how impressively this filly won last time unless you watch the replay. She was totally relaxed between horses and won with her ears pricked without ever being asked. The chart comment “handily” is an understatement. She should get a nice pace setup and pass her 2-turn test with flying colors. Perhaps her modest victory margins will keep her price from being ridiculously low. I’ll bet her to win, and key her on top in the exotics with May Day Rose, Tell a Kelly and a few bombs.
#6-Big Tiz: Glatt trainee appears to be stuck in the low 70’s on the Beyer scale. Toss.
#7-Zazu: She tried hard vs. Turbulent Descent last time, but couldn’t make a dent. I’m leaning toward the other Sadler runner.
#8-Tell a Kelly: Sadler warns us not to overlook this filly…I tend to agree. She’s already a Grade 1 winner, and has trained well here since her mid-pack finish in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies. ‘Kelly should be a factor in the stretch…I‘ll use her in 2nd and 3rd position in tri’s and super’s.
Those are my horse racing betting tips for the weekend. Best of luck and happy gambling!
