US expert Tom Collins opts for an underrated Oaklawn sprinter to triumph

Ghostly Beauty
10.19 Gulfstream Park
2pts win

Fighting Mad
10.38 Oaklawn Park
1pt win

Edgemont Road
11.09 Oaklawn Park
1pt each-way

Gulfstream Park and Oaklawn Park provide the stateside action on Thursday, so hopes are high we can cash in on the better quality racing after a few days of mediocre fare.

Irad Ortiz has a good book of rides, as always, which is headed by Monmouth Dr in the $16,000 claimer (7.09) for non-winners of two, but he will likely go off a short price and it could be worth sticking to just the one selection later on the Gulfstream card.

That runner is one-time winner Ghostly Beauty, who runs for trainer Michael Maker in the $41,000 allowance optional claimer (10.19).

Drawn in gate one, Ghostly Beauty is set for a perfect inside trip throughout and she has the benefit of being ridden by in-form rider and turf supremo Tyler Gaffalione.

This four-year-old filly won't be missed in the market given her top connections, but she deserves to go off around the morning line price of 9-5 on the back of a fine third-placed effort over this course and distance earlier this month.

She was sent off a short-priced favourite that day too, but was forced to go four-wide around the whole of the homebend and after showing great guts and determination to get on terms, her effort petered out in the final half a furlong.

Ghostly Beauty was one place behind her main market rival this time, Yolanda's Pride, that day, but she had a dream trip and it's not hard to see the form being reversed rather comprehensively.

I'm a big fan of punting at Oaklawn Park and they host the first of three fixtures this week, which ends with an extremely competitive card on Saturday. That is the meeting-closer and the Grade 1 Arkansas Derby headlines what we will be an exciting day of racing.

But focusing on Thursday's racing first, the $62,000 allowance optional claimer (10.38) looks a good race to get involved in.

Plenty of people will be drawn to leading rider Ricardo Santana, who heads the jockey's title by three victories and rides the inside-drawn Vault for Brad Cox, but there is an abundance of early speed in this race and being on the front-end is often a huge advantage in this field.

The two that will probably fight out the early advantage will be Fighting Mad and Blamed, and I'm hoping that jockey Martin Garcia, who is in second place in the standings behind Santana, will get to the rail on the former and be able to control the pace.

Drawn in gate seven, Fighting Mad will have to be ready from the off, but she has proved on multiple occasions she has the zip to lead a field like this and has to be of serious interest on her return to the track.

The Gary and Mary West-owned filly hasn't been seen since winning the Grade 3 Torrey Pines Stakes at Del Mar last August, but her recent works have been promising and trainer Bob Baffert rarely sends them to the track needing the run.

Fighting Mad won three of five starts in her first season and only disappointed once, which was due to the fact she was bumped badly at the start and forced four-wide in the Miss Preakness Stakes.

Baffert has an incredible record of six winners from just 11 starters (55 per cent strike-rate) at Oaklawn Park this meeting and Fighting Mad is his sole runner on the card.

Another trainer with an impressive strike-rate this meet is William VanMeter, who has had nine winners and six seconds from 34 starters.

He sends out recent maiden scorer Edgemont Road, whose morning line price of 12-1 looks to massively underrate his chance in the $61,000 allowance contest (11.09).

This four-year-old gelding took nine starts to break his duck but did so in impressive fashion at the start of this month. He showed excellent gatespeed to lead every step of the way under Joseph Rocco, who retains the ride.

Edgemont Road's speed figure and the time of that race stacks up well in this field (quicker than likely favourite Marvin's latest run) and it is conceivable that his first victory will help him improve further.

Edgemont Road doesn't have to lead, but his main asset is his early pace and he also showed that on his penultimate start here, when nabbed on the wire at odds of 38-1.

He is taking a step up in class and it looks a competitive race on paper with a number of proven types in opposition, but Edgemont Road should be about half the price he is likely to open up at.

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