Best Bets for Joe Hirsch Turf Classic day at Aqueduct, 9/27/2025

Key takeaways:

• Thanks to renovations by the New York Racing Association, the Belmont at the Big A meet is being held at Aqueduct instead of Belmont Park and features five graded stakes on Saturday, headlined by the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic (G1).
• Though only the Vosburgh (G3) offers a Win and You’re In berth, several races serve as key Breeders’ Cup preps.
• Alogon stretches back to six furlongs, loves the Aqueduct turf, and can sit the right trip behind the speed.
• Post Time adds tactical speed to his late kick, gets more ground, and can strike off a lively Woodward pace.
• All Class thrives at 6½ furlongs, reunites with Carmouche, and gets a setup that plays to her stalking strength.

The New York circuit has had a chance to catch its breath after the end of the Saratoga Race Course summer meet, and now attention has fully shifted downstate for some late-season Breeders’ Cup prep races. Racing would usually be going on at Belmont Park this time of year, but with another year on the New York Racing Association’s big renovation project, there is a Belmont at the Big A fall meeting one more time.

The card on Saturday, September 27, is one of the features of the Aqueduct fall meet. It features twelve races, including five at the graded-stakes level. The Vosburgh (G3) offers a bid to the Breeders’ Cup Sprint to its winner. Though that’s the only automatic qualifier of the day, the rest also should have Breeders’ Cup implications.

The Joe Hirsch Turf Classic (G1) drew a small but top-class field, including Rebel’s Romance, a two-time Breeders’ Cup Turf winner and reigning champion. Other graded races on the card include the Woodward Stakes (G2), the Gallant Bloom (G2), and the Belmont Turf Sprint (G3). The 12-race card has exciting fields all day long, and it gets underway at 12:35 p.m. EDT. You can watch and wager all day, as well as stay on top of the latest news about the horses, through FanDuel TV and FanDuel Racing.

Remember to check the scratches before placing your bets. There are a lot of main-track only entrants, and although the chance of rain on Saturday does not look as strong later in the week as it did on entry day last weekend, there is always a chance weather will change. Especially since scratches can happen for any reason, it’s always smart to make sure the race you handicapped is the race you’re betting, and make adjustments accordingly.

These are the best bets for Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Day on Saturday at Aqueduct:

Best Bets for Joe Hirsch Day at Aqueduct

Race 4 - Belmont Turf Sprint Stakes (G3), six furlongs on the turf - Alogon, HORSE

FanDuel odds: 3-1 and 7-2

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The Belmont Turf Sprint is an interesting race because the six-furlong distance leads to a beatable favorite. Twenty Six Black does come into the race off of a couple of good efforts at Saratoga: a credible second in the Troy (G2) and then a win in the restricted Disco Partner. However, these are 5 ½-furlong races, but the Belmont Turf Sprint goes six. Though he has some wins at six, they have come against less classy foes, and he repeatedly fell short going six furlongs against stakes company last fall and earlier this year. So, beating him presents a good opportunity for value.

Alogon (3-1) just missed by a neck in the 5 ½-furlong Da Hoss last out at Colonial Downs, a good move forward second off the lay, and has further upside third-up. His last three starts have come at 5 ½ furlongs on the grass—though he is versatile enough to run well or even win going as short as five furlongs, he should appreciate the stretch out. His last win came last fall over this course and distance in the Aqueduct Turf Sprint Championship. He is versatile enough to win from a close-stalking spot or midfield, a useful dimension to bring into the chaos of a turf sprint, and he has never missed the board at either six furlongs or the Aqueduct lawn in general. In short, he’s a dependable type and an appealing alternative to the chalk.

Senbei (7-2) won this race last year, rallying from midpack to cross the wire 1 ¼ lengths clear. He has won once since: two back in a New York-bred stakes, also at six furlongs on the Aqueduct course. He did that on the front end, proving he has multiple pace dimensions. His regular rider, Manny Franco, sticks with him; he was in the irons for both of those victories. It’s a bit of a concern that trainer Miguel Clement has had a slower start to the Aqueduct meet after such a sharp summer at Saratoga, but with stakes races resuming in earnest and his better horses getting back into action, the tide can turn—and if he comes back sharp from a brief freshening just like he did in this race last year, Senbei could be part of that turned tide.

Race 6 - Woodward Stakes (G2), 1 ⅛ miles on the dirt - Post Time, Film Star

FanDuel odds: 7-2 and 20-1

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Six are expected to run in the Woodward, with the cross-entered Willy D’s set to go in the Lukas Classic (G2) at Churchill Downs instead. Even with his defection, there should still be a decent amount of speed in the field: Phileas Fogg is going to go, and Awesome Aaron is going to be right up there, too, if he’s on song. Gould’s Gold and Film Star will be breathing down their necks, too.

That should set up well for Post Time (7-2) to fire his best shot. Though he has built a reputation as being a deep closer, he showed an interesting new dimension last out in the Polynesian at Laurel, where he tracked in range of the pace and drew off at will, going only a mile! These are better horses, of course, but the more tactical trip he got last out was like turning over a new leaf: the pace he stalked was modest, but not the dawdling fractions one would expect to see Post Time get up to stalk. This suggests he is turning over a new leaf of versatility just in time for the Woodward. The switch back to a two-turn configuration should be good for him, as should the extra furlong, and he should be in a good spot to lie in wait and flash his sharp late pace down the lane at a perfectly square price, given how much action both frontrunning Phileas Fogg as well as Locked—a good horse with questionable recent form—will take.

Film Star (20-1) stands to be the longest shot on the board, but there are reasons to be optimistic. Newly claimed—for $100,000—to the barn of Rob Atras, Atras is hit-or-miss in graded races, but he is very sharp at placing horses newly claimed to his barn, and doesn’t make a habit of jumping straight from the claim box to the big time. Film Star is in the right form to try: has won two straight, both at a mile and an eighth. Those were at Saratoga, but he has been on the board in four of seven at Aqueduct as well, including a close second over the distance back in May, in his last start over the course. He has tactical speed, and though gunning it to go with Phileas Fogg and Awesome Aaron may not be the right call, he should be just behind them and be able to get first run under high-percentage rider Manny Franco.

Race 8 - Gallant Bloom Stakes (G2), 6 ½ furlongs on the dirt - All Class, Scalable

FanDuel odds: 10-1 and 6-1

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All Class (10-1) was second to R Disaster last out, and has to face that foe again, but there is every reason to think she can turn the tables. First off, that last race was six furlongs, and though All Class is a good horse at six furlongs, she is even better at six and a half: she has been in the exacta in three of four starts over that distance, including a second-level allowance win two back. She also gets Kendrick Carmouche back in the irons, who rode her to that two-back victory. R Disaster, the morning-line favorite, won’t get as straightforward of a trip this time as last, either: she’s hemmed in on the rail, it’s a bigger field, and Senza Parole and Sunday Girl in the outer two posts will make sure the clip will be sharp. That all sets up well for All Class to pick them off in the lane at a price.

Scalable (6-1) is another who can get a good trip at a price. The Todd Pletcher trainee is versatile enough to run winning races from a stalking spot or even back in midfield, giving Hall of Fame rider John Velazquez options for where to place her. She has a win over the course, and though this is the first time she has tried 6 ½ furlongs, her wins at seven furlongs and the one-turn mile bode well for her to handle this trip. There is the layoff to contend with—she hasn’t raced since winning the Interborough over the local course in January—but Pletcher is excellent with layoff horses, she has been working regularly, and she has fired fresh before.

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