OZONE PARK, N.Y. – The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) will team with Oaklawn Park to host a Cross Country Pick 5 on Saturday, highlighted by the Grade 3, $250,000 Withers from Aqueduct Racetrack and the $125,000 American Beauty from Oaklawn.
The New York path to the Kentucky Derby trail continues Saturday at the Big A with the 140th renewal of the Grade 3 Withers, which offers 10-4-2-1 qualifying points to the top-four finishers.
Grade 2 Remsen winner Shotski will have to topple a talented field of eight in the Grade 3 Withers which will kick off the Cross Country Pick 5 in Race 8 with an approximate post time of 4:25 p.m. Eastern.
The Cross Country Pick 5 continues in Race 9 (4:56 p.m.) at Aqueduct, a 6 1/2-furlong claiming sprint for older horses that features a salty field of nine led by last-out winner O Shea Can U See.
Racing action switches to Oaklawn Park to complete the sequence beginning in Race 7 (5:09 p.m.), a wide open allowance optional-claiming tilt with a field of 11 hard-knocking sprinters.
Race 8 (5:38 p.m.) from Oaklawn is the American Beauty, a six-furlong sprint for fillies and mares 4-years-old and upward led by the multiple Grade 1-placed Amy’s Challenge. The field of eight also includes Grade 1-placed Special Relativity and the improving Mt. Brave.
Closing out the Cross Country Pick 5 in Race 9 (6:09 p.m.) is a full field of 12 allowance sprinters, with two also-eligible entrants waiting in the wings. Sigalert, a $420,000 purchase at the March 2018 OBS, will make his Oaklawn debut for trainer John Sadler. After finishing fourth in the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity and fifth in the Grade 1 American Pharoah as a juvenile, Sigalert missed his sophomore season but returned to action in January when fourth in an optional-claiming sprint at Santa Anita. Sigalert will look to rally his way to victory over a field likely to be led to the turn by the Steve Asmussen-trained American Mandate.
The minimum bet for the multi-track, multi-race wager is 50 cents. Wagering on the Cross Country Pick 5 is also available on track, on ADW platforms, and at simulcast facilities across the country. Every week will feature a mandatory payout of the net pool.
The Cross Country Pick 5 will continue each Saturday throughout the year. For more information, visit NYRABets.com.
