Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes Handicapping Picks
Horse racing gamblers are you looking for 2023 Hollywood Gold Cup Free Pick & Handicapping Odds…plus some predictions? Need some advice on who to take? The 2023 Hollywood Gold Cup is set for May 29 at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. Here’s a preview of our top contenders.
Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes Preview
- Race: Hollywood Gold Cup
- Purse: $400,000
- Track: Santa Anita Park
- Date: May 29
- Post Time: 7:44 PM (ET)
- Live: Hollywood Gold Cup Odds: Click Here
2023 Hollywood Gold Cup Racebooks / Betting Apps We Like!
Before we can give you our expert 2023 Hollywood Gold Cup free pick, we have to break down the entries! In fact, we’d love to hear from you after you’ve given this post a read to see if you see an angle that we don’t!
2023 Hollywood Gold Cup Handicapping
Holiday Monday in the United States offers up an excellent card of racing at Santa Anita with three Grade 1 races, including the historic Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes. The race was first run on opening day of the old Hollywood Park, and the first winner was the legendary Seabiscuit.
Open to horses age three and older, the Hollywood Gold Cup is run at the classic distance of 1 1/4 miles on the Santa Anita dirt course. The race has drawn a competitive field of six, that includes a past champion and last year’s runner up.
Odds listed here are provided by the Santa Anita track oddsmaker.
2023 Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes Free Pick & Handicapping: Defunded Race Odds: 4-5
After doing all the dirty work and setting the race pace in 2022, Defunded was caught late and had to settle for the second-place money, snapping a two-race winning streak.
He has made three starts so far in 2023 and hot the board nine each of them, last out winning the (G2) California Stakes going 1 1/8 miles on the Santa Anita dirt, despite coming out of the gate last in the six-horse field.
For his career he has six wins in 16 career starts.
He’s one of two in the field for eight-time race winning trainer Bob Baffert. Juan Hernandez will ride.
2023 Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes Free Pick & Handicapping: Country Grammer Race Odds: 8-5
The misspelled Country Grammer won this race back in 2021 but then suffered some injury problems and was away from the races for the next nine months.
He came back with a vengeance in March of last year and then ran six consecutive races where he finished first or second, including winning the (G1) Dubai World Cup and the (G2) San Antonio Stakes at Santa Anita. Last out he tried unsuccessfully to defend his Dubai title, and looks for his first win in 2023.
The second of the Bob Baffert entries, he’ll have jockey Flavien Prat in the saddle, the winning rider two years ago.
Senor Buscador Race Odds: 5-1
Relatively lightly raced as a five year old horse, Senor Buscador has won exactly half of his 10 lifetime starts, which includes the (G3) Ack Ack Stakes last year at Churchill Downs.
He was a non-factor in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile last fall at Keeneland, came back to win a minor stake at Sunland Park, and was last seen finishing fourth in the (G2) Oaklawn Handicap just over one month ago.
Trainer Brad Cox won the 2021 Derby through disqualification of the winner. Jockey Flavien Prat won in 2019, also due to a DQ.
Piroli Race Odds: 15-1
It took Piroli nine starts to get his maiden win, which he did this past January at Santa Anita, but he has been very good since then. He’s won three of four starts so far in 2023, although last out he ran third as the favourite in a one-mile allowance race on the SA dirt.
He’s taking a big step up in class here in making his stakes racing debut, but he is one that should benefit form the added distance and could be charging lateen the stretch.
Trainer Michael McCarthy won the race last year with 9-1 long shot There Goes Harvard. Veteran jockey Kent Desormeaux will ride.
Here’s My 2023 Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes Free Pick.
Early on I wasn’t a big fan of Country Grammer – maybe it was just the spelling that bothered me – but he all he did was keep winning, or come very close to it, and he slowly won me over.
Typically horse that come back from racing in the Middle East need a start or two to re-adjust to North America racing, and so he has that working against him. However, I have some doubts about the favourite Defunded getting the 1 1/4 miles distance, and think the race could just fall into Country Grammer’s lap.
I’ll play him for the win, and try to get some added value with Piroli in the exacta.
Full Field: 2023 Hollywood Gold Cup Odds
By post position
- #1 – Country Grammer 8-5
- #2 – Senor Buscador 5-1
- #3 – Yes This Time 15-1
- #4 – Defunded 4-5
- #5 – Piroli 15-1
- #6 – Kiss Today Goodbye 12-1
Santa Anita Tweet Of The Day
“Good horses just make you look good. He overcame a lot of things in his younger age and in giving him some time off he really developed. Look at what he did out there today that was pretty nice. Around the turn he’s breathing, he’s going comfortably. You can’t disrespect the… pic.twitter.com/xlCBx5qoRB
— Santa Anita Park (@santaanitapark) May 28, 2023
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