Question Answered - Sort Of

[Tavasco]

As I handicapped Thursday\'s Saratoga Race #4 I stopped on #4 Late Night Lu. Trainer Brad Cox had claimed this gal from a June 25 CD race for $40K. Here we are in her next race a $20K claimer? We\'re @ Saratoga so the purse is a generous $40K.

I surmised that\'s cutting things a little close. Winners share would be $24K. Plus the $20K claiming totaling $44K would result in a net 4K profit before expenses.

I may be cynical, but I have determined sometimes the intent of the connections is a mystery. Should I conclude this horse has a hole in it and I better not watch the race. Or, is Mr. Cox operating on such small margins.

Well, Late Night Lu persevered to win by a head and sure enough she was also claimed. What I hadn\'t accounted for was ... the claim got voided by the vet. So I wondered can this be planned for?

[Fairmount1]

Tavasco,

Thanks for this post as this is the type of information in the game that fascinates me since I am a trainer angle first kind of player.  And Cox trains at many tracks in the midwest and all over the country now so I\'ll pay more atention to his dropdowns in the future after a claim.  

The only part I will throw in is that there is a certain value to winning a race at Saratoga that may go beyond the monetary value of the race for an owner.