Ill Have Another a 20,000-1 shot?
Ill Have Another is a very good, talented and consistent colt and has chased away Bodemeister, the only horse that seems capable of giving him a fight. On the surface, he should be a heavy favorite to win the Belmont Stakes and break the Triple Crown drought that has been ongoing since 1978.Monmouth Park: Surviving in a casino world
Monmouth Park is a wonderful racetrack with a rich history and tradition, but those things don't matter nearly as much as they should in the modern gaming world. Surrounded by tracks with slot machines in other states, Monmouth Park couldn't keep up with the competition and became a money-loser. The state of New Jersey, the one-time owner, didn't want it anymore, and neither did Morris Bailey, who ran it in 2011 but eventually backed out. Kentucky Derby: Dumb money a plus for handicappers
Kentucky Derby preview by Bill Finley. A list of what I believe the odds on each horse should be followed by my prediction of what their post time odds will be:Why is just making the Kentucky Derby a goal?
Kentucky Derby - Bodemeister unlikely to buck history
Bodemeister very well may be the best 3-year-old around, but that doesn't mean he's going to win the Kentucky Derby. This is the one race where it's about more than talent. Preparation and foundation are major factors, and in those two areas Bodemeister has shortcomings he may not be able to overcome.Unlikeliest Kentucky Derby Jockey
Instead, he will be at Churchill Downs riding the Santa Anita Derby winner, I'll Have Another, in the Kentucky Derby. Gutierrez never thought such a thing was possible. No one did. Kentucky Derby - Union Rags will be fine
At 2-5 and with legions of supporters, Union Rags was supposed to win the Florida Derby, and anything less than a decisive victory has to be considered a disappointment. But nothing that happened Saturday at Gulfstream Park should give anyone any reason to jump off his bandwagon. Considering the horror trip he had, considering that the real objective is the Kentucky Derby, he was good enough.At Delta Downs, racing matters
Plenty of people were quick to tell Steve Kuypers that some five years ago when he went to work at Delta Downs, which is owned by Boyd Gaming.Horse Racing - The weekend's winners and losers
These past few years have been dark ones for New Jersey racing, where Monmouth Park was clinging to life while the State of New Jersey and its pro-casino governor decided it wanted nothing more to do with the money-losing track. Fortunately, the New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association and its leader, Dennis Drazin, came to the rescue, stepped in and assumed control of the track. The reason why this is particularly good news is that Drazin is a visionary and he understands that the status quo in horse racing is no longer acceptable.Gary Contessa does it his way
When Gary Contessa entered a $14,000 claimer in last Saturday's Grade 3 Cicada Stakes at Aqueduct a lot of people probably snickered at him. As often happens, Contessa got the last laugh.Racetrack slots: A cautionary tale
It appears that the Kentucky thoroughbred industry will soon start reaping the benefits of racetrack slot machines. On Wednesday, a Senate subcommittee in the Bluegrass State approved a bill that will allow voters to approve as many as seven casinos in the state. There are several more hurdles that have to be cleared before racetrack slots come to be in Kentucky, but it seems likely that racetrack gaming is going to happen there.Castellano made the right call
It was no doubt difficult for Javier Castellano to inform trainer Michael Matz that he would not ride Union Rags in the Fountain of Youth at Gulfstream, but he made the right pick when selecting the Todd Pletcher-trained Algorithms.What is Walter Smith thinking?
What was just scuttlebutt was confirmed when Hall of Fame trainer Walter Smith told the Daily Racing Form's Brad Free that he intends to give the talented but troubled Ronnie Jenkins the bulk of the mounts coming out of his stable when Jenkins returns from his umpteenth suspension later this month.Kentucky Derby Prep: The weekend's winners and losers
Todd Pletcher (Winner): He always has an arsenal of 3-year-old talent, but this group, for quantity and quality, is outrageous. Pletcher defeated 2-year-old champion Hansen in the Holy Bull Sunday at Gulfstream with Algorithms, who looks like a very nice horse. Three races earlier he won a two-turn allowance test at Gulfstream with El Padrino. Oh, and he also won the Forward Gal for fillies with...An American hero battles in NHC
Sometimes the difference between being a good horseplayer and a bad one is mental toughness and discipline. Which might explain why Gordon "Swede" Larson will be making his fifth appearance this weekend in the National Handicapping Championship, a competition that pits the finest handicapping minds in the country against one another. Life without Aqueduct
Aqueduct's days as a racetrack are numbered. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is pushing a proposal that calls for a massive expansion of the current gaming facility at the Big A. He wants there to be something called the New York International Convention and Exhibition Center, a 3.8 million square foot facility at Aqueduct that will include a full-fledged casino, a hotel and a convention center. A case for match races
Smith and Sutherland ride against each other every day, and no one cares. It took the match race aspect to turn their fractured relationship into an entertaining spectacle.3-year-old report card
It was a pivotal weekend for the 3-year-old colt division, a class that no horse seems to want to take control of. But big efforts by Stay Thirsty and Coil have thrust them into a jumbled Eclipse Award picture.NYRA needs to bring fillies together
But then Porter came up with an interesting Plan B. He said he would run in the Personal Ensign if NYRA raised the purse to $600,000. Under the conditions of the race, Blind Luck would carry 122, two pounds more than Havre de Grace. That represents a four-pound shift in the weights from the Delaware Handicap.Breeders Cup Bans Drugs
The organization announced last week that starting in 2012 Lasix would not be permitted in its races for 2-year-olds and all Breeders Cup races will go drug free starting in 2013.Girl Power - Horse Racing
The American racing industry has long clung to the notion that fillies aren't as fast, good or as strong as colts and should compete primarily against their own kind. Sorry, but it's time for a serious reevaluation of that line of thinking. See You at Peelers - Keeping pace with racings true star
The best horse in the country is not Animal Kingdom, Shackleford or Twirling Candy but a 3-year-old filly pacer named See You At Peelers. Unbeaten in 18 career starts, she is drawing comparisons to the best female standardbreds of all time and even Zenyatta.Lasix Ban: Just do it
Lasix Ban: The reasons to ban Lasix are obvious. Its use is out of hand and goes against the grain of what is done everywhere else in the world. If anything, there is anecdotal evidence that Lasix has created the most unhealthy, least durable collection of horses ever seen in modern times. Belmont Stakes Rubber matches: Advantage Preakness
Saturday's showdown between Animal Kingdom and Shackleford in the Belmont will mark the 22nd time the Kentucky Derby and Preakness winners have squared off in the final leg of the Triple Crown.Better days ahead for Monmouth?
These might seem like tough times for Monmouth Park. The glow of last year's "Elite Meet," which was a smashing success, is long gone.Preakness Lessons: It's a tough game
The Preakness was just another reminder of why there are a lot more broken-down horseplayers out there than rich ones. If you know anything about horse racing you knew Shackleford had no chance to win the Preakness. Why Nehro should run in the Preakness
By his admission, the horse he owns "couldn't look any better," but Ahmed Zayat won't be running Kentucky Derby runner-up Nehro in the Preakness Saturday.The fresh face of horse racing
the last thing the sport needed was for someone with a checkered past or tainted image to win the Kentucky Derby. Rosie Napravnik on pace for Krone's records
Rosie Napravnik, just 23, will be aboard Pants On Fire when the horses charge out of the gate Saturday at Churchill Downs. In the process, she will become just the sixth woman to ride in America's most important horse race. Why Borel has twice the appeal
It's unlikely that Borel's star power has dimmed, at least when it comes to the Kentucky Derby and Churchill Downs.Why Gulfstream worked
Gulfstream has yet to provide the media with 2011 all-sources handle figures, but all indications are that they are up substantially over 2010. Kentucky Derby - The most inscrutable 2 minutes in sports
You have to bet on the Kentucky Derby and you have to try to pick the winner. To do anything else is un-American. But confident? How could anyone possibly be? A true-life fairytale
It won't be easy, not when Inherit the Gold will have to face horses like Tackleberry, Rule and Game on Dude. But it can be done. He's good, he's hot and you have to wonder if he doesn't have fate on his side.Be Like Mike
But in Uncle Mo and his owner Mike Repole, we may actually have something that is "good for the game," something that could help lift horse racing out of its ongoing malaise. That's what makes them so easy to root for.The end of racing's drug addiction?
Since 2006, every horse that has raced in the Derby has had a needle stuck in them before the race and been treated with Lasix, not to mention what other sort of legal and illegal chemical cocktails their veterinarians might have loaded them up with. That's 99 Derby horses, 99 drugged Derby horses.Who will save the horses?
Today, four days after Drape wrote a story in the New York Times that leveled serious charges against the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation and the TRF responded with accusations that Drape is a lousy reporter who badly misrepresented the facts, the industry is no closer to solving a problem that has existed for as long as the sport has. At Hastings, The Player Is King
Life At Ten: Blame Veitch
Can Avioli Just Say No?
Why Greg Gilchrist walked away
Constructive, realistic fixes
Life after OTB
Say goodbye to slots gravy train?
An embarrassment of riches Triple Crown
The Zodiac horseplayer
HOY: A look ahead to 2011
Breeders' Cup: Why Zenyatta will win the Classic