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Albuquerque Picks & Predictions — September 13, 2026
Sunday at Albuquerque and the weather couldn't be more cooperative — clear skies, 87°F, and a fast dirt strip that should reward early speed all afternoon. Nine races are on the board, mixing short-format quarter-horse sprints in the early going with a pair of classic distance routes to close out the card.
What makes today's card worth your full attention? The mix of surfaces and distances is wider than your typical Albuquerque Sunday. You've got lightning-fast 350- and 400-yard dashes for the quarter horses, a 870-yard marathon opener, and then the card shifts gears into 5½-, 6-, and 7-furlong Thoroughbred-style races. It keeps the handicapping interesting and creates some real exotic-wager opportunities across the afternoon.
The headline act is Race 8, a Stakes at 7 furlongs where our top pick Bertani comes in at 8/1 on the morning line — a price that immediately catches the eye. Stakes races with a potential overlay at the top of our rankings don't come around every day. We'll get into it below.
Best Bets
Race 1
Maiden Claiming · 870 yd · Dirt
A wide-open maiden claimer at 870 yards where first-out runners dominate the top of the board — TrackWiz ratings separate a clear top three from the rest of a thin field.
Silver Spurs Ar (#4) tops the TrackWiz ratings at 84.9, a significant gap over the majority of this field. Erick Medellin gets the call, and the 9/2 morning line feels like fair value for a horse projecting this strongly on our model. In a race full of unknowns, Silver Spurs Ar's profile stands out as the most complete package at this distance.
M S D Greatkingmidas (#5) slots in right behind at a 79.69 TrackWiz rating, and Edgar S. Martinez — who also pilots Lucky Lara in this race — picks up the mount at 7/2 on the morning line. That's a strong rider booking for a first-out runner, suggesting connections have confidence. Look for this one to be competitive throughout the stretch run.
Escape the Farm (#8) brings an average speed figure of 54 to go along with a 67.64 rating — the only top-three pick with a published speed number, which adds a layer of confidence. Jockey Aldo Arboleda has shown he can get horses home, and at 3/1 this one could easily be overbet, so key it in exotics rather than just for show.
Race 2
Maiden Claiming · 400 yd · Dirt
A sprawling 12-horse maiden claimer at 400 yards — the pure sprint format compresses the field into a single explosive burst, and the top three on the TrackWiz board are separated from the pack by a meaningful margin.
Rm Lota Kicken (#3) leads the entire field with an 84.9 TrackWiz rating and draws a favorable inside post at 400 yards where gate speed is everything. Brian Cobos Barraza gets the mount at 9/2, which is solid value for the top-rated horse. Trainer Heber Deyta-Melendez puts this runner in prime position, and the rating edge here is hard to dismiss.
Indis Cartel (#10) is just a fraction behind at 82.91 and gets the services of Edgar S. Martinez, one of the busiest and most effective riders on this card. The 7/2 morning line makes this a near-co-favorite on paper, and the combination of a top-tier rating and an experienced jockey is exactly the kind of profile you want underneath in exotics.
Diamond Crown (#5) checks in at a 76.39 rating with Francisco Zamora aboard, and the 6/1 morning line gives this one some legitimate value in the show slot. While the gap between Diamond Crown and the top two is real, she rates as clearly the best of the rest in a field where ratings fall off sharply after the top three.
Race 3
Maiden · 400 yd · Dirt
A 12-horse maiden special weight at 400 yards with a clear standout at the top — Cartels Girl's rating towers over this field, but there's a live second tier worth noting for exacta and trifecta plays.
Cartels Girl (#1) carries the highest TrackWiz rating in the field at 87.08 — a commanding figure in a maiden sprint where raw ability is the primary separator. Gabriel Medrano gets the call from trainer Jesus Rondan Jr., and the 3/1 morning line reflects well-deserved market confidence. At 400 yards, gate speed and raw talent rule, and Cartels Girl projects as the class of this field.
Don Good Lookin (#11) rates second-best in the field at 68.32 and is trained by Karina Aldavaz, who also runs Elmers Streak in this race — meaning the barn has live ammunition throughout. Christian Cardenas is aboard at 7/2, a confident booking that suggests connections view this horse as a genuine contender. The gap between Don Good Lookin and the rest of the second tier is meaningful.
Zoomin Thru Juarez (#4) slots third on our ratings at 54.17 with James A. Flores up for Martin Orona Sr. at 9/2 on the morning line. In a wide-open race below the top two, this runner's rating edge over the bulk of the field makes it a logical inclusion in trifecta construction. The Flores-Orona combination is worth noting as a working team at this meet.
The first three races on the card are fully unlocked for every TrackWiz reader, and they offer a solid foundation for the day. Silver Spurs Ar (Race 1, 9/2 ML) headlines a Maiden Claiming sprint over 870 yards — the longest of the quarter-horse distances on today's card — where our rating of 84.9 puts the horse clear of the field. In Race 2, Rm Lota Kicken shares that same 84.9 TrackWiz rating in another Maiden Claiming dash at 400 yards, a true 50-50 coin-flip distance where gate speed and reaction time are everything. Race 3 steps up to open Maiden company and Cartels Girl jumps out as our top-rated runner at 87.08 with a morning line of 3/1 — a price that actually represents some value given how cleanly she grades out against this field.
One angle worth noting across all three free races: the clear, dry conditions and warm temperatures should keep the Albuquerque dirt playing fast and true all day. In short-format sprints, a consistent track surface tends to favor horses with clean gate manners and early foot — exactly the profile our free-race picks share. Use Races 1–3 to get a feel for how the track is playing before the premium card kicks off in Race 4.
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Albuquerque is serving up a genuinely varied nine-race card today under ideal conditions, and the value is hiding in plain sight — especially Bertani in the Stakes at 8/1. Silver Spurs Ar, Rm Lota Kicken, and Cartels Girl give free readers three strong starting points. For pace breakdowns, exotic tickets, and the full card from Race 4 through the finale, subscribers have everything they need waiting in the premium analysis. Good luck out there — race smart.