Good card for today’s Pegasus at Gulfstream.

In the title feature, Knicks Go is the clear leader on paper, likely to be on the lead, and Mike McCarthy pulled this move a couple years ago with City of Light. Needs to be respected and included.

While there are a lot of horses with graded stakes wins and flashy figures, if you look at the collective bunch they’ve beaten you have to wonder about the overall quality of the race. The two with the most proven form are Tax and Code of Honor. Code of Honor comes in off of back to back 100 beyers and a pair of close misses, but those misses were to Bodexpress and Complexity . The one I am most interested in is Tax, who appeared to take a step forward in his prep in the Harlan’s Holiday at gulfstream in December, running a 105 beyer while running away from the field. His seasoning on the derby trail a couple of years ago makes me think he may have the class to hang around, stalking the pace if Knicks Go comes up a half furlong short – small play on Tax as an upsetter.

The Pegasus turf is a pretty good puzzle. The first question is who will be favored?

Colonel Liam is the morning line favorite at 7 to 2, but he’s a little light in the figures, though has reason to improve here at four. Anothertwistafate comes in off of flashy 103 buyer in the San Gabriel and a 2 1/2 length win, but you know the adage about West Coast turf horses coming east. Phil D’Amato ships in Say the Word from the West Coast, with Woodbine pedigree. He ran back to back 100 beyers in his last two starts, and is one of the few horses that Sam Son farm has held onto a share of. He wants to run late which is not always a good thing at Gulfstream, and draws the 11 post as well. Next Shares has won nearly $2 million in his career, but he has not been at his best form of late, and probably does his best running on slightly less than firm turf. Social Paranoia comes in off of a win and has earned nearly $1 million in his career, has affinity for Gulfstream as well, but I’ve always figured him better around one turn at Belmont, and not sure about keeping a route of ground. On the plus side has a string of bullet works. Cross Border is a hard knocking New York bread, but he seems to fade in these bigger spots. Where am I going? It’s a tough call but I’m going to buck the trend and lean with Anothertwistafate… I’ve had him pegged as one of the top ones in his class since his three-year old season, and he proved it a bit in the San Gabriel. Rosario sticks around and in a somewhat murky case scenario I think he will draw a decent trip probably just behind the first flight and get first run, and we know Joel can finish.

Good luck today!