Longshot of the Day: Race 1 at Horseshoe Indy

Track: Horseshoe Indianapolis

Race 1: $36K MSW going 5 furlongs for 2YO Indiana-bred fillies

Post Time: 2:10 PM ET

Horse: #5 Scripted Love (8/1 morning line) use as a win bet at 6/1 or higher.

It’s a big week at Horseshoe Indianapolis as they host the Indiana Derby (G3) and Indiana Oaks (G3) this Saturday, but before we get to that, let’s dive into some Indiana-bred juvenile fillies running five furlongs. I love young horses who show speed in debut, which is why I landed on Scripted Love as my longshot. The Paul McEntee trainee debuted in May with jockey Sophie Doyle aboard and flashed some early speed, but did not have the easiest trip. Despite the filly breaking on top, others started to get ahead of her and Doyle eased her back to the second flight due to her position on the rail. Around the turn she got steadied as she got in a tight spot on the rail when a couple of other horses started crowding her. By that point she was forced to drop nearly 10 lengths back from the lead group in a strung-out field and while she re-engaged, she was never able to make a serious run. I like that McEntee did not rush her right back and she has gotten in three official works to continue to work on her foundation as she clearly showed plenty of early speed in debut. There is not a lot of speed in this race, so if Doyle is aggressive out of the gate, then she should be in a good position early in the race. She also draws a bit further outside and should not be in tight like her debut effort. The daughter of Unified is out of a mare that produced one other raced foal who was a two-time winner and, most notably for today’s race, won second time out. The other horse that could be a little interesting in this race is #2 Timeless Justice (10/1) who showed zero speed in debut, but then really did some running down the stretch to get up for fourth at the wire. Jockey Fernando De La Cruz hardly asked the horse in debut as she was so far out of it early but he gave her a couple of taps in the stretch and the filly responded. It is promising to see De La Cruz stay aboard and if the filly can show just a touch more early speed, then I would expect a big improvement from her debut as she will not be so hopelessly out of it in the early stages. Both horses should be an honest price and even if you think the favorite, #7 Dream Bonita (7/5) looks tough, they are smart horses to include in your exactas and trifectas at a good price.