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Dover Downs offers solid Thursday card
With the opening round of the National Football League playoffs just around the corner, Dover Downs offered its first Thursday card of 2019 and several pacers delivered powerful performances. In one of the early races on the card, Casino Bags Carlo ...
Racing
Keying Coliseum in the Sham Stakes
Remember 2017, when Gormley “upset” American Athem in the Sham Stakes (gr. III) at Santa Anita and paid a whopping $5.20 to win? Remarkably, that modest payoff has been the highest in the Sham since the one-mile event became a Road to the Kent ...
Racing
Features From Five Tracks Available For Win, Place, Show And Power Plays As 2019 Harness Racing Opens For Business
In our first preview blog of the New Year, we wish a Happy Birthday to all racehorses. On Jan. 1, every division of standardbred racehorse introduced new members of both sexes and gaits. In the coming months, the stakes season will ensue for all of t ...
Racing
Why I'm Betting Well Defined in the Mucho Macho Man Stakes
When six horses head to the starting gate for Saturday’s $100,000 Mucho Macho Man Stakes at Gulfstream Park , most handicappers will have their eyes on #4 Code of Honor , and understandably so.
Although the Mucho Macho Man is not an official ...
Racing
2019 Kentucky Derby Contender Profile: Mind Control
There will be plenty of additional tests for Mind Control as he continues down the Road to the Kentucky Derby . Technically he still hasn’t won around two turns, which is the next logical obstacle to tackle, and in terms of speed figures he still ne ...
Racing
Mind Control Rebounds in Jerome Stakes
"I wanted to put him in the race and make sure that I was in a good position where if someone was going crazy, I could just sit off the speed," Velazquez told the New York Racing Association after the race. "I broke well and got the position I wanted ...
Racing
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Jockey Eclipse Award belongs to Ortiz...but which one?
The Eclipse Award for jockeys is almost as tough as it was for trainers . The winner will definitely be named Ortiz but the question is, which one? Irad Jr. or Jose?
At first glance, Irad is the leader in total earnings and wins. That combinati ...
Racing
Dover Downs and Northfield Park help usher in New Year for harness racing fans
One night after harness racing fans bid of fond farewell to the legendary Foiled Again following his final start at the Meadows near Pittsburgh, standardbred fans kicked off the New Year with a bevy of good efforts from trotters and pacers at Dover D ...
Racing
Powell: A vote for Baffert and other Eclipse Award thoughts
With over two full days to spare, I submitted my 2018 Eclipse Awards ballot. That is an upset in itself. The last Grade 1 stakes race of the year was run on Saturday so there was no more reason to wait, and this year's late season stakes races did ha ...
Racing
Foiled Again fails as the favorite in career finale
While millions of Americans were making their final plans for the New Year's Eve celebrations centering around the famous ball drop in Manhattan, Foiled Again, harness racing's all-time richest horse of either gait, faded to fifth as the 6-5 favorite ...
Racing
Keeler Johnson's Kentucky Derby Top 10: The Calm Before the Storm
Just as we’re on the verge of entering 2019, we’re also on the verge of entering a new stage on the Road to the 2019 Kentucky Derby .
Things have been quiet over the last couple of weeks, but that will change when the two-year-olds of today tur ...
Racing
2019 Racing Preview: 5 Wishes for the New Year
Happy New Year, racing fans!
Maybe my greeting is a tad premature—2019 is still a few hours away—but I can’t help myself. I’m already thinking ahead to the new year and pondering an interesting question: If I could make five racing-related wishes, ...
Racing
Our Braintrust the Jerome pick for January Road to the Derby Bonus Cash
The new year brings many things, most significantly for racing fans a ratcheting up of the Road to the Kentucky Derby series.
To coincide with the four Derby preps that will be held in January, TwinSpires.com will be offering January Road to ...
Racing
Charles Town offers lucrative Pick 6 pool
While many sports fans were focused on watching the College Football Playoff semifinals and gearing up for the last day of the NFL season one day later, thoroughbred racing fans turned their attention in an unlikely direction on Saturday night as Cha ...
Racing
2019 Racing Preview: 5 Horses I Can't Wait to Watch
Which horses are you excited to see race in 2019? ...
Racing
2019 Racing Preview: 5 Races You Won’t Want to Miss
With 2019 on the horizon, I’m already looking forward to another sensational year of racing and anticipating some of the exciting showdowns and matchups that we’ll witness across the globe.
Five races in particular are already on my radar as intri ...
Racing
Why I'm Betting Mind Control in the Jerome Stakes
Judging from recent history, it takes a very specific type of horse to win the $150,000 Jerome Stakes at Aqueduct , the first of four Road to the Kentucky Derby prep races being held at the New York track this year.
Since the race was m ...
Racing
Why the Preakness is my 2018 Race of the Year
When first thinking about the “Race of the Year” topic, I couldn’t settle on just one. Enable ’s historic victory in the Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1) was on the short list, for the reasons pointed out by Vance Hanson – and I’d add for the intrigue of ...
Racing
TwinSpires 2018 Harness Players’ Horse Of The Year Leads Parade Of Profits
Each December the TwinSpires harness-racing department studies the 12-month archives of suggested contenders posted in the exclusive weekly harness blog. From that review, we categorize all of the winners that have paid at least two digits (4-1 and u ...
Racing
Laurel Park hosts stakes-filled Saturday card
During the weekend between Christmas Day and the various New Year's Eve celebrations leading up to 2019, many racing fans still have a thirst for quality action and several of them turned their attention to Laurel Park on Saturday afternoon as the Ma ...
Racing
Top 5 ‘what-ifs’ of 2018
Playing the “what-if” game is endemic to a sport featuring innumerable variables, from troubled trips and adverse conditions to ill-timed setbacks. The counterfactuals I find most compelling are the ones that revolve around deliberate choice – the fo ...
Racing
Get Ready for the Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational
The Stronach Group has decided to add a turf race to it's Pegasus World Cup program. Starting on January 26, Gulfstream Park will not only showcase the best horses in the world on dirt, it will also showcase the best horses in the world on turf. Wit ...
Racing
Trainer Profile: Edward Plesa Jr.
The name Edward Plesa Jr. isn't known to horseplayers that don't bet on races at Gulfstream or Monmouth. That's where Plesa Jr. saddles most of his runners. He rarely saddles a horse outside of Gulfstream or Monmouth, only occasionally putting the sa ...
Racing
Classy John’s my favorite backstory of 2018
Horse racing is replete with great stories on and off the track, and the tale of Louisiana-bred juvenile Classy John sticks in my mind as a favorite from the past year.
Trained by Dallas Stewart for Valene Farms, Classy John was the modestly bre ...
Racing
Top 4 Baffert Runners That Should Have Won the Crown
Bob Baffert's top 3-year-old, soon to be 4-year-old, in training dominated his competition in the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes on Santa Anita's Opening Day. McKinzie looked unbeatable when he took down a solid field of runners. He should challenge Accelerat ...
Racing
Enable's Breeders' Cup Turf a worthy 2018 Race of the Year
When you think about choosing a "Race of the Year," the default choice is often a) something historic, or b) a thrilling, spine-tingling finish. Maybe something in combination, if you're lucky to find one.
Justify 's Triple Crown-sweeping Belmo ...
Racing
Foiled Again set to make career finale on New Year's Eve
While many Americans will be looking to wring in the New Year in style late on Monday night waiting for the ball to drop on 2018 and usher in the beginning of 2019, numerous harness racing fans will be looking to bid a fond farewell to Foiled Again a ...
Racing
Variety of Distances On Tap for Saturday Stakes Races at Gulfstream
Whether you’re a fan of dirt racing or grass racing, there are plenty of quality betting options available on the final weekend of racing in 2018.
In terms of listed stakes races (of which there are many on the agenda), Laurel Park has the dirt r ...
Racing
Jockey Profile: Jersey Joe Bravo
Horseplayers on the west coast might not know the name of one of the top jockeys in the United States, Joe Bravo. Bravo owns Monmouth Park, winning 13 riding titles. He's known as having great success on front runners, but riding early types isn't Jo ...
Racing
The Great Gary Stevens Hangs Up His Tack
On Dec. 26, 2018 some of the best jockeys in the world took a leg up on some of the top horses in North America at the Great Race Place, Santa Anita Park. One jockey that didn't take a leg up was the great Gary Stevens. Stevens, George Woolf to those ...
Racing
Potential Derby Contenders Face Off on Stakes-Packed Day at Laurel Park
The last weekend of racing in 2018 offers somewhat slim pickings in terms of graded stakes races, but if you find non-graded stakes races appealing—and if they have large fields, who doesn’t?—there will be plenty of action to keep you entertained.
...
Racing
Canadian Tracks Present Profit-Motive Events; Power Plays A-Plenty; Hunting Scores In Last Efforts For 2018 Divisions
This is the final 2018 preview blog. Our final review blog for the year, on Monday, Dec. 31, is the annual opening of the books and the crowning of our TwinSpires Players’ Horse of the Year for 2018. Here, we go for selected features and Power Plays, ...
Racing
Keying a juvenile in deep maiden race on Santa Anita Opener
Race 5 on the 10-race card on opening day at “The Great Race Place” is a maiden special weight event for juveniles. A field of 11 will go postward in a race that looks loaded to me. The 6 1/2-furlong dash is among the top betting races on the card.
...
Racing
Stakes spot plays for opening day at Santa Anita
Ten races are on tap for a fine opening day at Santa Anita on Wednesday. The December 26 staple will play host to five stakes races with some marquee names among the entrants.
Here's a look at some horses of interest to me:
Malibu (G1)
Ove ...
Racing
How to Bet Santa Anita's Opening Day Late Pick 4
The traditional December 26th Opening Day card at Santa Anita is filled with stakes races and horizontal wagering opportunities, including a late Pick 4 that starts in Race 7 with the Mathis Brothers Mile (G2) and includes the San Antonio (G2) and th ...
Racing
Keeler Johnson's Kentucky Derby Top 10: Thoughts, Insights, and Fun Facts
Merry Christmas, racing fans!
Today might be Christmas Eve, with the holiday itself just a day away, but it’s also Monday, which means it’s time to share my latest Kentucky Derby Top 10 rankings. For the second straight week, I don’t have any ch ...
Racing
2018 Year in Review: In Remembrance of Racing's Departed Stars
With 2018 winding down, the following is a brief remembrance of equine and human stars who passed away during the course of the year.
Though hardly a complete list, we hope to shine a spotlight on some of these memorable figures and their unforget ...
Racing
Tough Feature And Power Plays Contenders Strike, Assist Exotic Prices, Including $23 Surprise; $19 Tops ‘Watch’ Winners
Our suggested contenders were very much in the thick of all the exotic action this week.
Here is how the week panned out:
Thursday, Dec. 20
This week’s selected features began with a Power Plays Late Daily Double (DD) at Pompano. Each race a ...
Racing
Malibu Stakes Could Produce Next Dirt Star
Like every year, Santa Anita's Opening Day is on Dec. 26. For most people, the day after Christmas is exactly that. It's nothing more and nothing less. For horsepalyers, Dec. 26 is Christmas. It's the start of a new thoroughbred racing season, one ...
Racing
Betting Exactas in the La Brea Stakes
While handicapping the $300,000 La Brea Stakes (gr. I) on opening day at Santa Anita , it’s not hard to conclude that the race runs through the barn of Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert.
Baffert will be represented by two of the nine entrants ...
Racing
Why I'm Betting Nero in the Malibu Stakes
Get ready, everyone! Racing in North America will be taking a one-day hiatus on December 25th to celebrate Christmas, but we’ll be right back in the thick of things on December 26th when the annual winter/spring meet at Santa Anita kicks off wit ...
Racing
2019 Racing Preview: Who Will Get Hot, Who Will Get Cold?
A new year of racing is on the horizon, and in preparation, it can be a useful exercise for handicappers to project which jockeys, trainers, and horses are poised for banner years or quiet years compared to 2018.
Having an idea of what to expect d ...
Racing
Thoughts on Santa Super Saturday Pick 4 at Fair Grounds
A premium will be on sharp handicapping throughout the terrific 14-race Santa Super Saturday card at Fair Grounds, where many of the races are devoted to up-and-coming two-year-old talent.
We'll try and build up the bankroll on the front half o ...
Racing
Tis the season...
With the Christmas Day and New Year's Day holidays rapidly approaching, voting members of the National Turf Writers Association and United States Harness Writers Association have been busy filling out their respective ballots for divisional champions ...
Racing
Juveniles to watch on Santa Super Saturday at Fair Grounds
A huge day of racing will take place on Saturday at Fair Grounds . Fourteen races will be contested in total, with six of those of the stakes variety. Juveniles will also have a strong presence on the card as eight of the 14 are for two-year-olds.
...
Racing
2018 Year in Review: Horse Racing's Top 5 Biggest Upsets
Country Chick Posts 123-1 Upset at Kentucky Downs
She had finished last in her lone previous start over the tricky turf course at Kentucky Downs . Her lone win had come at Belterra Park, and she was entering off a fourth-place fi ...
Racing
Why I'm Betting Aqueduct Specialists in the Gravesend Stakes
Aqueduct can be a bit of a tricky racetrack—slow, tiring, and distinctly different from the other tracks in New York—which is why I’ll lean toward proven Aqueduct specialists when handicapping Sunday’s $100,000 Gravesend Stakes .
First and fo ...
Racing
2018-19 Road to the Kentucky Derby Year-End Review
With the running of the Zen-Nippon Nisai Yushun in Japan on December 19th, the final Kentucky Derby prep race of 2018 entered the history books, giving us an opportunity to look back on the season before the calendar turns over and we continue h ...
Racing
Profit Perspective For Quartet Of Tracks With Power Plays; Across-The-Board Features Aim High In Prices
Here is the penultimate preview blog of 2018 as our winter campaign for profits ensues with selected features and Power Plays, including horses we have been pinpointing for positive trips. The options for high-paying contenders are never certain (we ...
Racing
Year in Review: Who Was the Top Jockey in 2018?
It seems like a simple question: Who was the top jockey in North America in 2018?
By basic metrics such as overall wins and earnings, the answer is similarly simple: Irad Ortiz, Jr. As of December 17th, the 26-year-old rider leads all jockeys by ...
Racing
Year in Review: My Favorite Moment (That Wasn't a Race)
For the most part, the most memorable moments in any given year of horse racing will be individual races that stand out as exciting, brilliant, or competitive. That’s understandable, right? It’s called horse racing, and the races are bound to take c ...
Racing
Keeler Johnson's Kentucky Derby Top 10: No Changes (For Now)
As the racing year winds down, the final Kentucky Derby prep races of the season are wrapping up.
On Sunday, Long Range Toddy forged to a narrow victory in the Remington Springboard Mile , earning 10 qualification points toward the 2019 Der ...
Racing
Derby, Oaks Contenders Star on Stakes-Packed Saturday at Fair Grounds
Up-and-coming two-year-olds with an eye on the 2019 Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks are among the many talented horses entered in the six stakes races scheduled for December 22nd at Fair Grounds .
It’s yet another action-packed Saturda ...
Racing
Rating the First Round of 2019 Kentucky Derby Preps
Remington Springboard Mile
The Clever Trevor Stakes winner Long Range Toddy held off the Sleepy Hollow Stakes winner Bankit to win by a head and record his third straight victory . Meanwhile, the Spendthrift Juvenile Stallion Stakes winner Dunp ...
Racing
2019 Kentucky Derby Contender Profile: Long Range Toddy
If you’re looking for a 2019 Kentucky Derby contender with the pedigree to excel running 1 ¼ miles on the first Saturday in May, then you’ll be excited to check out Long Range Toddy , who burst onto the Derby scene with a hard-fought victory in ...
Racing
Long Range Toddy Hangs On in Remington Springboard Mile
In a race packed with traffic-filled trips, big middle moves, and dramatic late rallies, Long Range Toddy managed to defy the overall race trends and emerge victorious in the $400,000 Remington Springboard Mile on December 16th at Remington P ...
Racing
Kentucky Derby Pedigree Profile: Long Range Toddy
Willis Horton's Long Range Toddy angled out at the top of the stretch and gamely held late to take the $400,000 Springboard Mile at Remington Park on Sunday evening. The two-year-old colt earned his second straight black-type tally while ear ...
Racing
Rosecroft offers solid Sunday card on closing night
While two days of steady rains may have left the racing surface "good" for Sunday's closing night card at Rosecroft Raceway on Sunday, the departure of inclement weather before post time allowed onlookers to avoid having the enthusiasm surrounding th ...
Racing
Year in Review: The Best Horse of 2018
Already I’m looking ahead to 2019, when Almond Eye is expected to take on the world in races like the Dubai Sheema Classic (UAE-I) and the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (Fr-I). In the latter race, Almond Eye could even square off against the two-time Arc ...
Racing
Power Plays’ Contenders Contribute To Exotic-Winning Tickets; Exacta Partner Pumps Up $46 Payoff
Our suggested contenders were very much in the thick of all the exotic action this week.
Here is how the week panned out:
Thursday, Dec. 13
Another extended Power Plays at Philly presented a single, low-priced winner, included in four of fiv ...
Racing
Year in Review: The Best Race of 2018
From start to finish, the Preakness was exciting, dramatic, and contested. Pre-race downpours had left the Pimlico main track sloppy and sealed, and as post time approached dense fog settled in, making it difficult to discern the horses even on telev ...
Racing
How to play the all-stakes Pick 4 Sunday at Remington Park
The closing day card of the 2018 Remington Park season is Sunday, and it concludes with a $100,000 guaranteed all-stakes Pick 4. Leg three is the $400,000 Springboard Mile , the final point-scoring opportunity of the year in the 2019 Road to the K ...
Racing
Graded stakes plays for Gulfstream Park
A big day of stakes action will be held at Gulfstream Park on Saturday. Five graded events in total will be held, and I have some opinions on each of them.
H arlan’s Holiday (G3)
AUDIBLE (#1) (2-5) is obvious for Todd Pletcher in the 1 1/1 ...
Racing
Playing Saturday’s All-Stakes Pick 4 at Gulfstream Park
An extremely competitive edition of the Ft. Lauderdale (G2) anchors Saturday’s All-Stakes Pick 4 at Gulfstream Park. Here are my thoughts on the sequence:
Rampart (G3)
Electric Forest (#1) will take some beating for Chad Brown but I’m not kee ...
Racing
2018 Horse of the Year Vote Could Shape Racing's Future
When crossed the wire first in the Belmont Stakes (gr. I) to complete a rare sweep of the coveted Triple Crown , most racing fans assumed that the battle for 2018 Horse of the Year honors had already been won.
In the years since form ...
Racing
Galilean Looms Large in King Glorious Stakes
There’s no such thing as a “can’t lose” proposition in the sport of horse racing, though if we’re being honest, #2 Galilean looks to be pretty close to a certain winner of Sunday’s $100,000 King Glorious Stakes at Los Alamitos .
This one-mil ...
Racing
Three-year-olds pose serious threat in Carlos Pellegrini
South America's most important race, the Gran Premio Carlos Pellegrini (G1), will be run Saturday at San Isidro Racecourse outside Buenos Aires, Argentina, and this year's renewal will have some added significance.
For the first time, the Pellegri ...
Racing
Dover Downs offers solid Thursday card
Amid the hustle and bustle of holiday shopping throughout the land, harness racing fans perhaps took a respite from encountering the mall drama by taking a glimpse at the solid program that Dover Downs had to offer on Thursday. In the penultimate ra ...
Racing
Award Winner Looks Prize-Worthy in Gulfstream Maiden Race
It’s well known that Todd Pletcher is tough to beat at Gulfstream Park , where he has been the leading trainer at the winter/spring Championship Meet on fifteen occasions.
Pletcher is particularly tough with his two-year-olds and three-year-old ...
Racing
Triple Crown winner Justify and trainer Bob Baffert (NYRA/Alysse Jacobs/Adam Coglianese Photography)
Eclipse Award: Trainers
The race for the Eclipse Award for trainers looks like a two-person duel – four-time winner Bob Baffert against Chad Brown , who has won it the past two years.
It’s a lot closer than you think.
Training a Triple Crown winner would seem l ...
Racing
Hi Happy winning the Pan American Stakes (gr. II) - Photo by Lauren King/Adam Coglianese Photography
Handicapping the Gulfstream Park All-Stakes Pick 4
With 43 horses spread across four races, the all-stakes Pick 4 on Saturday at Gulfstream Park is shaping up to be a great sequence with lots of options for handicappers to consider.
One of the challenges of playing sequences like this is keepi ...
Racing
Selected Features From Both Coasts; Exotic Escapades; Pacing For Profits With Power Plays
Continuing with our winter campaign for profits we offer more selected features and Power Plays with many options for play and plenty of promising high-paying contenders.
TwinSpires harness blog’s exclusive horses-to-watch (H2W) list is again at y ...
Racing
Keying Audible in the Harlan's Holiday Stakes
On a stakes-packed day of racing at Gulfstream Park , one of the highlights is the $100,000 Harlan’s Holiday Stakes (gr. III) , a 1 1/16-mile event that serves as a logical steppingstone toward the $9 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (gr. I) ...
Racing
Betting Out-of-State Shippers in the Remington Springboard Mile
Since its inaugural running in 2009, the $400,000 Remington Springboard Mile Stakes at Remington Park has been rising steadily in prestige, attracting better horses and stronger fields to the extent that it was added to the Road to the Kentu ...
Racing
Talented 2yos Take Center Stage at Tampa Bay Downs
With the 2019 Kentucky Derby (gr. I) and Kentucky Oaks (gr. I) looming on the distant horizon, Tampa Bay Downs will kick off their annual schedule of stakes races for young Derby and Oaks contenders with the Inaugural Stakes and Sandp ...
Racing
Eclipse Award: Jockeys
Some years, the Eclipse Awards do not require a lot of research as some horse or person is far ahead of everyone else. We know the Horse of the Year vote will be closer than normal between Triple Crown winner Justify versus Breeders’ Cup Cla ...
Racing
Tips and Trends for Handicapping Marathons
Marathon horse races held over 1 ¾ miles or farther aren’t all that common in North America, and when they are on the agenda, some handicappers find themselves puzzled by the unusual challenge of handicapping such long-distance races.
What do you ...
Education
Sundays offer plenty of harness action
While many sports enthusiasts remained glued to the television sets on Sunday afternoon and evening watching the numerous NFL games available, harness racing fans were eager to catch the action at a trio of five-eighths mile ovals in three different ...
Racing
Mendelssohn poised to be a good thing in the breeding shed
If any horse this year has earned his retirement and a subsequent lifetime of "work" in the breeding shed, it's MENDELSSOHN . He made six cross-Atlantic trips to America this year and one to Dubai, which is as long as his trips to America. And t ...
Racing
Santa Anita Park Preview
Like I wrote in an earlier blog, Frank's a people person. He engages with fellow horseplayers because like us, he has a passion for the sport. He loves horse racing, which is why from his first day on the job he should be an instant success. Don't ...
Racing
Keeler Johnson's Kentucky Derby Top 10: Game Winner Challenged By His Stablemate?
For the first time this season, a horse has emerged to challenge Game Winner for the top spot in my Kentucky Derby Top 10, a position that the son of Candy Ride has tenaciously held since September.
Ultimately, Game Winner narrowly retained ...
Racing
Baffert's Got Another Strong Derby Hand
It's almost become a foregone conclusion that the great Bob Baffert heads into the New Year with the top 3-year-olds on the planet. No exception to 2019. Bob's stable has at least 4 Derby contenders already with more on the way. Just as a reminder t ...
Racing
Kentucky Derby Pedigree Profile: Improbable
Improbable moved his sterling mark to three wins from as many outings with an impressive, five-length score in the Los Alamitos Futurity (G1) on Saturday.
Racing
2019 Kentucky Derby Contender Profile: Improbable
That tremendous move, coupled with a final sixteenth in :06.39, carried Improbable to a five-length victory and elicited praise from Baffert and WinStar Farm representative Elliot Walden. “Improbable has a long stride like Justify,” Baffert told Los ...
Racing
Watch Out, Game Winner: Improbable Impresses in Los Alamitos Futurity
Mucho Gusto, himself a promising colt with a victory in the Bob Hope Stakes (gr. III) under his belt, stayed on well to finish clearly second best, three lengths clear of the late-running Extra Hope . Coming home fourth was the Bob Hope runner-up S ...
Racing
Yonkers and Meadowlands hosts solid Saturday night cards
While much of the northeast and Mid-Atlantic region was spared the premature winter storm that made its presence known throughout the midwest before trekking east, Yonkers and the Meadowlands both hosted solid programs that were filled with overnight ...
Racing
Yonkers $83 Winner Best Of Year To Date; $25 Cold Exacta Strike; Favorites Sour Features
In the final days of 2018 our horses-to-watch list (H2W) came up with another huge winner. The huge priced winner came on a slow-wagering weekend otherwise, with the best of our results, including a cold exacta, partner-exactas with crowd favorites a ...
Racing
Grass Championships Wide-Open at the 2018 Eclipse Awards
Aside from Stormy Liberal, Oscar Performance won the Woodbine Mile (gr. I) and the Poker Stakes (gr. III) but was soundly beaten in the Breeders’ Cup Mile; Robert Bruce won the Fort Marcy (gr. III) and the Arlington Million (gr. I) but finished m ...
Racing
Savagery an intriguing prospect in Los Alamitos Futurity
The American Graded Stakes Committee announced recently that the Los Alamitos Futurity (G1) would be downgraded next year to Grade 2 status. Trainer Bob Baffert has won the 1 1/16-mile event 10 times and has two of the strong choices in Saturday’s ...
Racing
Dover Downs offers another solid Thursday card
One week after it hosted the last major stakes race for three-year-iold colt pacers on the calendar, Dover Downs offered a solid card filled with over night races and presented while many local racegoers were watching with a heavy heart. Longtime Do ...
Racing
Betting a Cold Exacta in the Louisiana Champions Day Sprint Stakes
While some handicappers understandably shy away from betting heavy favorites, under the right circumstances, I’m more than happy to back a short-priced contender if I think I can make a nice score in the exotic wagers.
Such is the case in Saturday ...
Racing
How to Bet the Valedictory Stakes
Want to take on a difficult handicapping challenge this weekend? Then come join me in analyzing Sunday’s $125,000 Valedictory Stakes (gr. III) at Woodbine .
The uncommon (and very testing) 1 ¾-mile distance would make this race tricky to hand ...
Racing
Exotic Philly Power Plays; Money-Makers At Meadowlands; Pushing Northfield’s ‘Button’
So goes the 2018 stakes season on all levels. Still, harness racing through the holiday season is chock full of opportunities, some that contribute greatly to bankrolls on the brink of red ink. So our campaign for profits continues through the New Ye ...
Racing
Betting a Baffert Exacta in the Los Alamitos Futurity
Just how many times has the Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert won the $300,000 Los Alamitos Futurity (gr. I) , which will be renewed for the 38th time on December 8th?
Well, technically, Baffert has never lost the Los Alamitos Futurity. Since th ...
Racing
Keying Mother Mother in the Starlet Stakes
At first glance, the December 8th $300,000 Starlet Stakes (gr. I) at Los Alamitos isn’t the most appealing race from a betting perspective—with just six starters, payoffs could be on the small side.
But then again, the 1 1/16-mile Road to th ...
Racing
Six Juvenile Stakes Races Scheduled for December 8th at Gulfstream Park
As part of an action-packed afternoon of racing on December 8th, Gulfstream Park will host not only the Clasico Internacional del Caribe series (showcasing some of the best horses from Latin America and the Caribbean), but also a half-dozen st ...
Racing
Hong Kong does it right
Recently, I was added to the media mailing list of the Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC). With their four big international races coming up this weekend, my mailbox is being filled up each day. Keep them coming!
What is striking about their media missi ...
Racing
Betting Regional Class Advantages, Part 2
In a recent article here on TwinSpires, we discussed how regional class advantages can exist throughout the sport of horse racing and produce to profitable wagering opportunities.
Education