The Bottom Line
- Murdock (6:10pm CT, 7/5) — Larry Rivelli ship-in sets the standard in the turf sprint allowance.
- Go K J Go (7:10pm CT, 5/2) — course-and-distance winner last time and boasts two wins over this exact trip.
- Bizzee Channel (8:10pm CT, 8/5) — impressive Hawthorne winner who anchors the finale for the Rivelli barn.
- Allison Road (5:40pm CT, 9/5) — drops from maiden special weight company for the red-hot McLean Robertson stable.
Meeting Context
Canterbury Park in Shakopee, Minnesota serves up a tidy seven-race Saturday card, with first post at 5:10pm Central and the finale going to gate at 8:10pm CT. It is a classic summer evening program: four dirt races and three on the turf course, which has been playing beautifully through the Minnesota meet.
The big handicapping angle of the night is the Chicago invasion. Leading Hawthorne trainer Larry Rivelli sends two ship-ins — Murdock and Bizzee Channel — and Walter Rodriguez makes the trip to ride both. When that barn targets a Canterbury spot, the money usually follows.
The local powerhouses are well represented too: McLean Robertson, Joel Berndt and the Jose Silva Jr. barn all fire multiple bullets, while the meet’s leading riders Alonso Quinonez, Manuel Americano and Kelsi Harr are busy throughout. Odds quoted are the morning line, correct at time of writing.
If you are building a full Saturday of American action, our Del Mar picks cover the seaside action from California, with more evening racing in our Emerald Downs preview.
Race 1 (5:10pm CT): $15,000 Claiming, 1 Mile, Dirt
| No | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | Form | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Keen To Go | Manuel Americano | Jose Silva Jr. | 251225 | 7/5 |
| 2 | Facenda | Sachin Parris | Ruben Fuentes | 018324 | 8/1 |
| 3 | Spun Not Stirred | Constantino Roman | Michael Biehler | 632851 | 8/5 |
| 4 | Ratleff | Luis Fuentes | Ruben Fuentes | 213662 | 3/1 |
| 5 | Score McCoy | Kelsi Harr | Nancy Sheehan | 16-3733 | 12/1 |
The Favorites: Morning-line choice Keen To Go is honest and consistent at this trip, but his last win came over two years ago and he keeps finding one or two too good. Spun Not Stirred won impressively last time out and is clearly in form despite the step up in class.
The Value: Ratleff at 3/1 gives the Fuentes barn a live second string and rarely runs a bad race.
The Verdict: Spun Not Stirred to carry that last-out momentum straight through the opener.
Race 2 (5:40pm CT): $7,500 Maiden Claiming (F&M), 5 Furlongs, Dirt
| No | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | Form | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rectify | Constantino Roman | Stacey Rushton | 3-67743 | 12/1 |
| 2 | She’s Savvy Ally | Alonso Quinonez | McLean Robertson | 35 | 7/2 |
| 3 | Bye Bye Blind | Jose Riquelme | Martin Escobar | — | 8/1 |
| 4 | Allison Road | Eduardo Gallardo | McLean Robertson | 545-24 | 9/5 |
| 5 | Alltail | Kelsi Harr | Edgar Espinoza | 545-242 | 4/1 |
| 6 | Starship Intrepid | Manuel Americano | Joel Berndt | 34 | 5/2 |
The Favorites: The Robertson barn saddles both ends of the market. Allison Road drops sharply in class after a respectable fourth in maiden special weight company — a classic winning move — while stablemate She’s Savvy Ally has shown enough in two starts to figure.
The Value: Starship Intrepid at 5/2 for Joel Berndt has hit the board in both career starts and gets Americano.
The Verdict: Allison Road — the class dropper is the play, with Alltail the exacta saver underneath.
Race 3 (6:10pm CT): Allowance, 5 Furlongs, Turf
| No | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | Form | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Philo Beddoe | Kelsi Harr | Martin Escobar | 1656-52 | 3/1 |
| 2 | Sonic Speed | Luis Fuentes | Ruben Fuentes | 216466 | 8/1 |
| 3 | Max Vegas | Eduardo Gallardo | McLean Robertson | 12-21 | 10/1 |
| 4 | Athens Moon | Manuel Americano | Jose Silva Jr. | 361125 | 2/1 |
| 5 | Murdock | Walter Rodriguez | Larry Rivelli | 1/21553 | 7/5 |
| 6 | Irish Dawn | Calvin Wolff | Perry Wolff | 329 | 15/1 |
The Favorites: Here comes the first of the Chicago raiders. Murdock ships in from Hawthorne for Larry Rivelli with Walter Rodriguez retaining the mount, and his best turf-sprint form is a cut above this. Athens Moon is the progressive local who won two back and holds the fitness edge.
The Value: Max Vegas at 10/1 is fascinating — three wins and a second from four career starts for Robertson, and that price badly underrates his record.
The Verdict: Murdock is the most likely winner on the card, with Max Vegas the value alternative for exotics.
Race 4 (6:40pm CT): $10,000 Starter Optional Claiming, 7 Furlongs, Dirt
| No | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | Form | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Socal Red | Luis Fuentes | Jose Silva Jr. | 153143 | 4/1 |
| 2 | Got Ghosted | Jose Riquelme | Martin Escobar | 3-95511 | 9/2 |
| 3 | Words Of Wisdom | Eduardo Gallardo | Tony Rengstorf | 2116-56 | 12/1 |
| 4 | Happy Dancer | Leslie Mawing | Valorie Lund | 54-3646 | 8/1 |
| 5 | Little Trouble | Manuel Americano | Jose Silva Jr. | 122126 | 8/5 |
| 6 | Aero Star | Constantino Roman | Tony Rengstorf | 636344 | 5/2 |
The Favorites: Little Trouble is rock-solid form-wise — five top-two finishes in his last six bar a below-par effort latest — and the Silva barn also fields Socal Red as backup. Aero Star keeps knocking on the door without winning.
The Value: Got Ghosted at 9/2 arrives on a two-race winning streak and a bold front-running third here would surprise nobody.
The Verdict: Little Trouble to bounce back, with Got Ghosted the danger in the money.
Race 5 (7:10pm CT): Allowance (F&M), 1 Mile, Turf
| No | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | Form | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beautiful Judge | Olivia Bethke | Troy Bethke | 443643 | 15/1 |
| 2 | Ez Tree Ates | Kelsi Harr | Lynn Rarick | 323-416 | 12/1 |
| 3 | Go K J Go | Fausto Da Silva | Nik Goodwin | 652131 | 5/2 |
| 4 | Stratia | Leslie Mawing | Valorie Lund | 433445 | 8/1 |
| 5 | Martynas’ Joy | Eduardo Gallardo | Valorie Lund | 3515/67- | 6/1 |
| 6 | Carly’s Shance | Manuel Americano | Alejandro Baldillez Jr. | 456476 | 5/1 |
| 7 | Tamarack | Jermaine Bridgmohan | Ty Garrett | 1-6822 | 3/1 |
| 8 | Cachinnation | Constantino Roman | Tony Rengstorf | 245224 | 9/2 |
The Favorites: Go K J Go won over this course and distance last time and now owns two wins over the exact trip — proven form that is hard to knock at 5/2. Tamarack has run back-to-back seconds and Jermaine Bridgmohan taking the call is a positive sign.
The Value: Cachinnation at 9/2 is the perennial bridesmaid with four top-two finishes in her last six; she is bred for this turf mile.
The Verdict: Go K J Go to double up over her favorite course and distance.
Race 6 (7:40pm CT): Allowance (F&M), 6 Furlongs, Dirt
| No | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | Form | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taptogo | Manuel Americano | Edgar Espinoza | 261-656 | 12/1 |
| 2 | Rhythm Ready | Jose Riquelme | Gary Scherer | 9-68517 | 8/1 |
| 3 | Kind Kismet | Carlos Ulloa | Joel Berndt | 215-342 | 5/2 |
| 4 | Annaline | Kelsi Harr | Coty Rosin | 231-42 | 6/1 |
| 5 | Mitole Princess | Constantino Roman | Edgar Espinoza | 25-1 | 4/1 |
| 6 | Kaia’s Choice | Eduardo Gallardo | Joel Berndt | 218-643 | 9/2 |
| 7 | Nancy’s Shawl | Alonso Quinonez | Tim Padilla | 05-3553 | 3/1 |
The Favorites: The richest race on the card at $29,000. Kind Kismet was a strong runner-up over course and distance last time for the Berndt barn, which also saddles Kaia’s Choice. Nancy’s Shawl brings Quinonez but needs to find a little more.
The Value: Mitole Princess at 4/1 is the interesting one — lightly raced, won her latest start, and the daughter of Mitole angle screams dirt-sprint improvement.
The Verdict: Kind Kismet narrowly, but Mitole Princess is the upset play for a vertical exotic.
Race 7 (8:10pm CT): $10,000 Claiming, 1 Mile, Turf
| No | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | Form | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Angel’s Magic | Fausto Da Silva | Troy Bethke | 6-61345 | 12/1 |
| 2 | Crew Dragon | Manuel Americano | Jose Silva Jr. | 843213 | 7/2 |
| 3 | Found Jordan | Jose Riquelme | Virginia Peters | 364-352 | 12/1 |
| 4 | Stradivarian | Alonso Quinonez | Edgar Espinoza | 123241 | 9/2 |
| 5 | Arrest | Luis Fuentes | Edgar Espinoza | 58-7615 | 4/1 |
| 6 | Loring Park | Olivia Bethke | Troy Bethke | 71-7633 | 15/1 |
| 7 | Mansoura | Kelsi Harr | Robert Cline | 817144 | 12/1 |
| 8 | Bizzee Channel | Walter Rodriguez | Larry Rivelli | 143341 | 8/5 |
The Favorites: The second Rivelli runner, Bizzee Channel, won impressively at Hawthorne last time and this turf-mile claimer looks a soft landing spot despite a break since. Crew Dragon has been rounding into form for Silva and Americano.
The Value: Stradivarian at 9/2 won his latest start and has hit the board in five of his last six — the Quinonez booking makes him the each-way angle in US terms: use him in your exactas.
The Verdict: Bizzee Channel to send the Chicago shippers home two-for-two.
Accumulator
Our four-leg parlay for Shakopee: Allison Road (5:40pm, 9/5), Murdock (6:10pm, 7/5), Go K J Go (7:10pm, 5/2) and Bizzee Channel (8:10pm, 8/5) — a combined price in the region of 60/1 at morning-line odds.
Prefer something saver-sized? The Rivelli double, Murdock into Bizzee Channel, pays around 5/1. For more Saturday night value, check out our Ellis Park picks.
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