Horses Betting

Yet another blow was suffered at the Breeder’s Cup Sprint, as Discreetly Mine will miss the race because of an injury to his left stifle. Horse racing bets will be affected because of Discreetly Mine’s absence.

Majesticperfection, division leader was the first major defection from the race when retired because of injury late this summer.

To diagnose the exact nature of Discreetly Mine’s problem, trainer Todd Pletcher said it took several days but received the bad news from Dr. Larry Bramlage on Wednesday.

Pletcher said, “It’s nothing too serious, but he’ll have to be given 60 days off, which naturally eliminates the Sprint from consideration. If all goes well we hope to have him back in training again this winter at Palm Meadows. This is terribly disappointing to us because obviously this horse found his niche sprinting during the second half of the season.”

At distances ranging from six to seven furlongs including the Grade 1 King’s Bishop and Grade 2 Amsterdam, Discreetly Mine won his last three starts this summer at Saratoga.

Girolamo and Riley Tucker are the two horses who do appear headed for the Sprint after finishing first and second respectively on Saturday in Belmont’s Grade 1 Vosburgh Invitational.

Friday’s Grade 3 Phoenix at Keeneland featuring Warrior’s Reward and Saturday’s Grade 1 Ancient Title at Hollywood Park are the final two major Sprint preps are on tap this week.

The 2009 Horse of the Year in thoroughbred racing, Rachel Alexandra has been retired from racing, her owners announced Tuesday.

With a win in the 2009 Kentucky Oaks, Rachel started turning heads and went on to win all eight of her starts as a 3-year-old filly in 2009. But in 2010, Rachel Alexandra won only two of five starts.

In the Grade 1 Personal Ensign at Saratoga on Aug. 29 was her last loss, when she was bested by a length. To run in Saturday’s Grade 1 Beldame Invitational at Belmont Park, she had been working out, but owner Jess Jackson decided to retire the filly on Tuesday.

Jackson said in a news release, “As you know, despite top training and a patient campaign, Rachel Alexandra did not return to her 2009 form. I believe it’s time to retire our champion and reward her with a less stressful life. We are delighted that she will retire healthy and happy to our beautiful farm in Kentucky.”

Jackson said, next year he would breed Rachel Alexandra to his two-time Horse of the Year Curlin.

Following her 20 1/4-length victory in the 2009 Kentucky Oaks, business partner Harold McCormick and Jackson had purchased Rachel Alexandra privately from owner/breeder Dolphus Morrison, his partner Mike Lauffer, and trainer Hal Wiggins.

Rachel Alexandra won the Preakness Stakes, Fifteen days later, holding off Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird by one length.

On Monday, the National Thoroughbred Racing Association released its weekly poll of the top racehorses in the country and there were few changes from last week.

Still on top of the list at first place and second place are Zenyatta, the undefeated mare, and four-year-old colt Blame, respectively, according to the latest NTRA National Thoroughbred Poll. Horse betting online fans too have Zenyatta and Blame on the top of the list.

In fact, from last week, the first seven horses remain unchanged, and there are no new names among the top 10.

Zenyatta, a two-time champion was the one of the only changes of note and lost a first-place vote from last week’s 14. The horse now has 170 points in total.

For Zenyatta, the next scheduled race was owned by Jerry and Ann Moss and trained by John Shirreffs, is in the Lady’s Secret Stakes at Hollywood Park on Saturday, October 2.

Winner of the Stephen Foster and Whitney Handicaps, Blame stayed in second place but and picked up five first-place votes. Blame will also make his next start on October 2, in Belmont Park’s Jockey Club Gold Cup and it now has 158 points.

With 139 points, Woodward Stakes champ Quality Road is third followed by Lookin At Lucky (120), Blind Luck (97), Paddy O’Prado (47) and Rachel Alexandra (41).

Five-year-old mare Proviso is moving up from ninth to eighth. to move ahead of Eclipse Award winner Gio Ponti, the turf runner received 33 points and posted 24 points.

In 10th with 21 points remains Pacific Classic winner Richard’s Kid.

To run in a race named after Zenyatta, she won’t get a chance.

In tribute to the 6-year-old mare’s popular 2008 and 2009 wins at the race, the Lady’s Secret Stakes, which had briefly been renamed the Zenyatta Stakes, has reverted back to its original name, due largely to the fact that Zenyatta will be appearing in the race.

Zenyatta had been retired, at the time of the renaming; however, with the news that Zenyatta would continue to race and not be bred, her owners and trainer preferred that the race name be switched back.

The Oak Tree Racing Association will be holding their meeting at Hollywood Park for the first time since the race’s inception. The Oak Tree Racing Association operates the Lady’s Secret Stakes. This year features 22 days of racing, the meeting had previously been held at Santa Anita, who had hosted it since 1969, which.

However, about Santa Anita’s degrading synthetic track, both the Thoroughbred Owners of California and the California Thoroughbred Trainers expressed worries, concerns that are causing Santa Anita to install a dirt track in time for next year’s meeting. Race officials are considering holding the 2011 meeting at Del Mar, it still might not be enough to return the meeting to Santa Anita though.

Sweet August Moon won her first race of 2010 in the Del Mar Grade 3 $147,000 Rancho Bernardo Handicap this Sunday. Sweet August Moon has struggled to get on track in the win department in 2010, going winless in her first four races.

The five year-old filly, Sweet August Moon, horse racing betting favorite, engaged the leader and favorite Alpha Kitten when the two reached the clubhouse turn for the stretch. The two put on a neck and neck race to the finish, with Sweet August Moon finally finding another gear to finish the job, winning by 3/4 of a length. Silver Swallow made a lightning fast late run from far off the pace and was closing fast as the 6 1/2 furlong race finished. Silver Swallow could have laid the field to waste if she had kicked for home just a few moments earlier.

The race was a short field of only four horses for the Rancho Bernardo Handicap. Missing was the filly, Free Flying Soul, who was injured with a chip in her ankle. Free Flying Soul is now scheduled for surgery to rectify the problem and will miss a minimum of three months.

Alpha Kitten was the even money favorite and broke fast out of the gate on the back stretch. Alpha Kitten had the field covered as they entered the turn but by the time they rounded the turn and headed down the stretch, Sweet August Moon had engaged her in an all out battle headed towards the finish line.

Rampant talks running about a possible matchup between filly Rachel Alexander and Zenyatta. From Rachel Alexander trucking up to Saratoga, the talk stems from and it could be possible start in the Personal Ensign, which would be August 29. Jess Jackson, Owner, said of racing August 29th, “I do think there is a chance she can run here.”

Owner Jerry Moss has never been a fan of the Del Mar poly track, although Zenyatta is working towards racing August 7th for Del Mar’s Clement Hirsch. Morning workouts were stopped, in the first day after the start of the Del Mar meet because of separation of the poly track surface.

The Woodward could be another possibility on September 4. For the Woodward, both owners could hold out and show up. With the Woodward, a race both horses training schedules coincide well too.

The filly Rachel Alexandra is the current Horse of the Year preparing for her fifth start of the year and Zenyatta, West coast phenom, is a perfect 17-0 in his career. For over a year, several tracks have been attempting to entice the two camps to enter their horses in the same race and for the two to meet, this may be the best opportunity.

Saturday July 24, 2010 marks the 49th running of the annual King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot Racecourse. A Group 1 flat horse race, the feature race on the day’s card offers the track’s largest purse annually at £1,000,000. Contested over a distance of a mile and four furlongs, entry is available to all horses of racing age.

The 2009 running of the race was won by four-year old Conduit trained by Sir Michael Stoute as an entry of the Ballymacoll Stud, and 2010 will crown a new champion with horse racing betting favorite, Conduit having been retired to stud in Japan following a successful 2009 campaign.

A dynamic field of 19 has been pointed at Saturday’s race with an impressive list of finishes to-date among top contenders including the winner and runner-up entries from the 2010 Epsom Derby along with the respective winners of the Irish Derby and Dante Stakes.

Trainer Sir Michael Stoute will look to return to the winner’s circle this time with 2010 Epsom Derby winner Workforce, an entry of Juddmonte Farms. Workforce is joined by favorites Midday, Mawatheeq, Dar Re Mi, Spanish Moon, Fencing Master, Cavalryman, Sariska and Youmzain as a partial list of contenders for Saturday’s race.

The King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes holds the distinction of being Ascot’s largest purse of the season. With premier admission tickets to race day sold out, and a prime field of contenders, spectators will be treated to one of the country’s premier racing events of the season.

I don’t think all that many people know that George Steinbrenner, the New York Yankees owner who died at age 80 Tuesday, dabbled in horse racing. Well he actually more than dabbled, he was a big player in thoroughbred horse racing, even entering horses in the Kentucky Derby. The funny thing was, as brash and outspoken as he was in baseball, he was quiet and reserved with the horse racing crowd.

The most famous horses he owned were Majestic Warrior, a beautiful horse who won the Hopeful Stakes in 2007, and Bellamy Road, who was the favorite in the 2005 Kentucky Derby. Bellamy Road ended up finishing 7th.

Steinbrenner loved his horses and he loved the Kentucky Derby. He had six horses in all who ran the Derby. Noted horse trainer Nick Zito trained horses for Steinbrenner for 15 years. Those who knew Steinbrenner around the horse track couldn’t say enough good things about him. Zito chimed in with, “I had a good relationship with him. He took me to a playoff game in 1995 and sat me next to Joe DiMaggio.”

Steinbrenner’s 750-acre Kinsman Stud in Florida was a major breeding ground for horses. About 50 horses are at Kinsman breeding and training. In his life Steinbrenner also owned shares of Florida Downs race track as well as Balmoral and Maywood in Illinois.

In a series of three races, the Queen’s Plate is the first race: The Queen’s Plate, The Prince of Whale’s Stakes, and the Breeders’ Stakes. These three races, together, make up the Triple Crown. Queen Elizabeth was present for the 151st running of the Queen’s Plate race, which was held in Toronto, Canada.

Big Red Mike took the lead in this year’s Queen’s Plate race, from the beginning of the race. before the race, Eurico Rosa da Silva was Big Red Mike’s jockey, and said he joked with the horse about the Queen Elizabeth being there, but that there was “no pressure”. After winning the race, Big Red Mike became the third horse that has won the Queen’s Plate after also coming in first at the trial. Also, to win this race two years in a row, his jockey holds the honor of being the first jockey ever. Big Red Mike was trained by Nicholas Gonzalez.

A horse named Hotep was considered the favorite to win the Queen’s Plate, contrary to the outcome. By mere one and a half lengths, Hotep was beaten, and he is a brother to Eye of the Leopard who won the Queen’s Plate last year.

Colonial Downs in New Kent, Virginia will once again play host to the Colonial Turf Cup, on Saturday, 19th June. Like the Kentucky Derby, this event does not have the allure of a race; it is quickly becoming an important race. The purse is at $750,000 for this year’s race. It is the first race in the “Grand Slam of Grass,” which encompasses four races; it is also unique in a way. Any horse that is able to win all four races wins a bonus of $5 million.

In 2005, the first Colonial Turf Cup was held. The race was upgraded from a Grade III race to a Grade II, last year. The race distance is 9.5 furlongs, which is equal to 1 and 3/16 of a mile.

There are several notable entries, while there are only seven horses in the Colonial Turf Cup this year. horse racing favorites, Dean’s Kitten and Paddy O’Prado are entered for the race Saturday and both ran in the Kentucky Derby. While these two horses have the name recognition, one of the biggest sleepers in the field is Kindergarten Kid, who has a record of 3-2 but has recently impressed

Anyone who enjoys horse racing should tune in to the Colonial Turf Cup this weekend, despite the lack of name recognition. The “Grand Slam of Grass” is still important and a $5 million bonus is a huge incentive for every jockey and owner entered, although it may not have the same allure that the Triple Crown does.