As boutique meets go, Oaklawn a delight

Tue Jan 06 2015Vance Hanson

Boutique meets like Saratoga, Del Mar, and Keeneland are among the most popular with spectators and horseplayers alike, and Oaklawn Park's 57-day meet, which begins Friday, will be eagerly anticipated in many quarters. Fueled by the success of the ...
Eclipse ballot baptism by fire

Tue Jan 06 2015Kellie Reilly

A baptism by fire -- that's what it feels like to submit my first-ever Eclipse Award ballot, in one of the most intractable three-year-old male divisions in memory. No matter which way I voted, I feared committing an injustice to another deserving ca ...
Dover Downs Preview (Thursday 1/8/15)

Tue Jan 06 2015Ted Black

While many Americans brace for the latest dramatic drop in temperatures often associated with an arctic vortex, standardbred racing owners and fans will venture to Dover Downs on Thursday evening for that track's best card of the week, one that offe ...
2014 racing season parallels 2002 but my Eclipse Award votes do not

Mon Jan 05 2015Ed DeRosa

Going through my first Eclipse Award vote in 2002, I promised myself that I would not become like some of my curmudgeon colleagues and lament the talent pool on particularly down years. A lot has changed in 12 years. Voters now use the internet to ...
SOUTHLAND Preview - Monday twilight, January 5

Mon Jan 05 2015MoneyMaker Mike

Welcome to MoneyMaker Monday at Southland Greyhound Park. For this twilight racing I've selected 4 races where I am giving a longshot pick. As most of you know I normally have one designated MoneyMaker pick for the program but several of you have sho ...
Cotolo’s Harness Review, News And Notes

Mon Jan 05 2015TwinSpires Staff

Profits rule again, readers, as we scored in two of our feature races, hitting 50 percent, since one choice, CR Amigo, scratched at Western Fair. But before the scratch, we opened the Jan. 2 program with a big winner in Race 1. We gave you Aro ...

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Harness preview 1/5/15

Sun Jan 04 2015Ted Black

With the Wild Card round of the National Football League playoffs having been finished the night before, standardbred racing fans will look for an ideal way to kick off the upcoming week and many of them will do so by playing the solid Monday evening ...
Player Quick Pick: Santa Anita for 1/4/2014

Sun Jan 04 2015D.S. Williamson

Yesterday’s pick, Dynamic Sky, had nowhere to go at the top of the stretch in the Grade 2 San Gabriel. It’s doubtful that jockey Corey Nakatani would have gotten Dynamic Sky up for the victory over Finnegan’s Wake, but Corey might have been able to g ...
SOUTHLAND Preview - Sunday matinee, January 4

Sun Jan 04 2015MoneyMaker Mike

For Sunday afternoon greyhound racing, Southland Park is the place to be as there are 18 exciting races on tap for the matinee. Several of these contests caught my attention as solid wagering opportunities and I've listed my choices below for you to ...
How Good Trainers Become ‘Super’

Sun Jan 04 2015Derek Simon

I was at Longacres, the scenic racetrack once located in Renton, Washington, when a horse named Hilco Scamper made his career debut on May 18, 1985. Sent off as the 7-5 favorite, the two-year-old gelding made like Secretariat that day, leaving ...
The longshot you have to use in the Jerome Stakes

Fri Jan 02 2015Ed DeRosa

Although the road to the Kentucky Derby began four months ago in September 2014 with the first points races for the 2015 Kentucky Derby, there is something about the first prep for three-year-olds that adds excitement to the Triple Crown trail. An ...
Micks Miracle's Maiden Win Nets Owner-Breeder Liviakis More Than $250,000

Fri Jan 02 2015Ed DeRosa

When Micks Miracle finally made it to the starting gate, John Liviakis was going to make sure he got paid a lot more than what the purse offered if his homebred colt got the job done in his career debut. So when Micks Miracle started on December 2 ...
Player Quick Pick: Santa Anita Park for 1/3/2015

Fri Jan 02 2015D.S. Williamson

The first Saturday of 2015 is upon us and there’s plenty of thoroughbred action for horseplayers to choose from. The best race to look for a winner might actually be the Grade 2 San Gabriel at 1 1/8 miles over the turf at Santa Anita. The morning lin ...