Bernardini Braces for Breeders Cup
Saturday is -- as one Las Vegas bookmaker observed -- Thoroughbred racing's Super Bowl and World Series rolled into one. "It's racing's crowning day," said New Frontier bet shop boss Tony Nevil. This year's $20 million, eight-race Breeders' Cup card will be contested at Churchill Downs, horse racing's Mecca and site of the Kentucky Derby. Spring's Run for the Roses remains the Sport of Kings' single most popular event and brings out bettors and non-bettors alike, while the Breeders' Cup appeals to true Thoroughbred buffs who have followed the various classes all year. The Breeders' Cup gradually has been gaining prestige over the past two decades and now is horse racing biggest wagering day. "It will be this year, anyway," predicted Wynn Las Vegas Race and Sports Director John Avello, who fashions futures on the full menu. "It's a sign of the quality of the field." While the Derby focuses on 3-year-old colts and a rare filly, the Breeders' Cup showcases racing's best of both sexes competing on surfaces and at distances with which they are most comfortable, from turf to grass and the six-furlong Sprint to the 1 1/4th-mile Classic. The 2006 cast widely is regarded, from top to bottom, as one of the best ever. Focus of the day, of course, will be the $5 million Classic, where Bernardini will try to establish himself as a superstar ala Secretariat, Seattle Slew and Affirmed, en route to being proclaimed Horse of the Year. Bernardini skipped the Derby, won the Preakness, bypassed the one-and-three-quarters mile Belmont and then went on a spree that produced five more victories, including the Jim Dandy, Travers and Jockey Gold Cup. He's expected to be day's shortest-priced entrant -- perhaps 1/5 or lower -- and everybody and their brother, including mine, will seek to knock the Dubai wonder off his pedastal. Bernardini is ridden by Javier Castellano and trained by Tom Albertrani. Even players who detest chalk are conceding the race to Bernardini and instead attempting to find horses with which to pair him in exotics, though some still insist the horse can be upset. Lou D'Amico, who heads Plaza race and sports operations and also oversees table games, looks to 7-year-old Perfect Drift, a true veteran of racing wars, including the 2002 Triple Crown. "He's a good long shot at 20/1, he's seven and if he's ever going to do it, this is the year," D'Amico, who formerly ran race books at Caesars Palace and the Hilton, said. He'll hook Perfect Drift up with Bernardini and Sun King, who was 15/1 on the morning line and is trained by Nick Zito. Avello believes Bernardini, who will break from the No. 3 spot, is in a class by himself, but notes the fact he's moving up to face older horses for the first time could be an impediment. "I don't think so, though," said Avello, whose second and third picks are Argentinian invader Invasor, the 5/1 second choice, and Sun King. The New Frontier's Nevil is tabbing a familiar face, 2005 Kentucky Derby winner Giacomo, who is 30/1 after hitting the comeback trail following an injury. "Let's see," he said. "Bernardini has won his last six races by more than 40 lengths, but I'm going with good ol' (jockey) Mike Smith and Giacomo. "He's got speed and we'll see if he tires out." Many horse racing enthusiasts have raised eyebrows while checking out the bio of Irish-bred George Washington, who crossed the Pond specifically to run in the Classic. "I'm not so sure, I don't know much about him, but he's shipping from overseas, so you have to give him respect," D'Amico said. Nevil noted George Washington has a 132 Time Form Rating, which can be equated with a Beyer speed figure. "That's very good," Nevil said. "A lot of people like George Washington. "He won his last race convincingly." Avello agrees the horse will draw action, but points out, "He's unproven on dirt." Another horse expected to get his fair share of support is 5-year-old West Coaster Lava Man, who swept this year's Santa Anita Handicap, the Hollywood Gold Cup and the Pacific Classic. Lava Man was the morning line's 6/1 third selection. "He runs very well in California, but we don't know how he'll handle this track," D'Amico said. Others anticipated at the post include Brother Derek, 30/1; Premium Tap, 30/1; Lawyer Ron, 20/1; David Junior, 10/1; Flower Alley, 30/1; and Suave, 30/1.
Other Horse Racing Articles
The Secrets of Cold Tables The CrapshooterThe Secrets of Cold TablesPssst...! Wanna know a secret?How about the secret of profiting from cold tables?It's not hard to find a cold table. Just look for quiet tables with lots of empty spaces and somber looking people with just a few chips in front of them. You can also look for a lot of don't bets ...History of Snowboarding-What do You Know? The history of snowboarding is short, but actually quite interesting. It is a relative newcomer to the world of winter sports, but it is rapidly gaining popularity among all ages. However, even with such a recent beginning, there are still questions about the sport originated in the history of snowboarding. The most amazing part of this whole ...Christian Gladiators? Athletics as a Metaphor for the Christian Lifestyle When Paul first arrived in Corinth in the middle of his second missionary journey, Acts 18:2-3 reports that he joined Aquila and Priscilla in the occupation of making tents. This fits in well with what Paul himself wrote at about that same time. For example, in 1 Thess. 1:9, he says: "Surely you remember, brothers, our toil and hardship; we work ...Yankees Midseason Report Card At the halfway point of the 2006 regular season, the New York Yankees stand at 46-35, four games behind the first-place Boston Red Sox. The Yankees are on pace for a 92-70 season, which probably won’t be enough for a Wild Card birth or a divisional title. Things have not panned out exactly as they may have liked, but with all things considered, ...Gambling History of United States Against the popular belief, gambling did not originate in the US. Most of the popular gambling games played in the American casinos have their origin in various foreign locales.Heritage of gambling is somehow related to the Chinese culture. Chinese culture has been the home of numerous gambling games. Keno, a popular Chinese game is one o ...Gambling Abroad 101 The risk takers see no bounds. And so does gambling. The origin of gambling cannot be traced to one country or region in particular. Gambling is an age old practice. Though its concentration in the United States is higher, but its popularity is as evenly distributed as the water level. Betting in sports and the advent of international and nation ...Oriental Gambling The tree of gambling is growing and its roots expanding day by day. While few decades before the tree was deemed as a weed and left unattended, in recent years it has received immense attention and nourishment from different countries of the world. This is mainly because of two interrelated reasons- the alarming rate at which the gambling tree i ...A Trip to San Diego, California If you are considering heading to San Diego for a vacation, you are probably planning on sitting on the beach all day long. Well, there are a few other things you should know about.A Trip to San Diego, CaliforniaWhen most people think of San Diego, they think of beaches and sitting out in the sun. Obviously, that is what our city i ...Archery Throughout the Centuries In the notorious armies of the early civilizations, good archers were great assets and were usually used as the first offense. Their arrows caused mass destruction on the battlefields and could topple large numbers. Civilizations that held archers in high regard in their armies were the Greeks, the Persians, the Parthian, the Chinese and the I ...Travel To Macau And The Cotai Strip, China Macau is a small peninsula region in China, southwest of Hong Kong. There are scheduled boat charters to and from Macau and Hong Kong throughout the day. It is an easy day trip from one place to the other. If you are planning a trip to Hong Kong, you should strongly consider spending a little time in Macau as well.The total population of ...Country House Hotels North Yorkshire England We have visited several luxury Country House Hotels in North Yorkshire in the North of England and trust that the following will help in your search for suitable exclusive Country House Hotels in this beautiful rural part of England. This area of the country has numerous old English market towns and villages located within the National Parks of ...Horses - Sir Barton There have been many great triple crown winners in horse racing history. But none faded farther into obscurity than the triple crown winner Sir Barton.He wasn't the last but he was the first. This was an amazing achievement for this horse when you consider the following facts. As a two year old he lost his first six races. This horse ...Will the World Really End on December 12, 2012? I was recently asked how I interpreted the Mayan and Hopi predictions that the world, as we know it, will end on the 21st of December 2012. Would there be global war — possibly triggering a nuclear holocaust? Would the planet’s life forms finally succumb to the ecological quagmire that’s been building in our soils, oceans and atmosphere? Would t ...Gambling in USA If there’s one country which could give the fullest life to gambling it has to be the United States of America. They say gambling flourishes there. The industry has crossed the figure table and has reached among the top spots. The multifold growth of gambling is probably because of the fun loving attitude of the people and a decent amount of inc ...Rope Halters Does a rope halter make a great gift? It might for someone who uses them exclusively. For someone whose preference in halters is nylon or leather the gift of a rope halter might rank right up there with the gift of a bad necktie.But if you offer a 20' length of rope and a set of instructions on how to fashion a halter from that piece o ...How to Keep Peaceful Relationships Jesus said in the last days many will be offended as the love of the church will grow cold (Matthew 24:10).So many people are majoring on minor issues today such as whether or not we should speak in tongues, whether or not we should baptize babies, whether or not we should prophesy, and a bunch of other stuff that shouldn't be causing us ...Psychic Theory - Part II In this second of a three part series we're going to cover a brief history of psychic phenomena. It should probably come as no surprise to anyone that people have been reporting psychic phenomenon since the very beginning of time all the way up to the present. What may surprise you is that these reports were widely accepted by many people inc ...Internet Gambling Under Attack Again The Las Vegas Review-Journal, Nevada's largest daily newspaper, on Saturday published an editorial that strongly repudiates efforts to ban Internet gambling.Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and 112 co-sponsors on Thursday reintroduced a bill in the House of Representatives that would outlaw the activity, currently a $12 billion a year industry. ...Be Observant - A Poker Player's Foundation The number one important thing in poker besides skill boils down to how focused you as a player are at the table and the level of your concentration. You could have superior psychological skills then anyone else at the table and yet they are rendered useless if you are not paying attention.Top reasons you will be distracted at a poker ga ...Steve Hawking, Carl Sagan, Einstein, Neils Bohr, Newton; Enlightened? Recently in a Think Tank Forum Online, one, which can get a little way out there sometimes, a gentleman added to the excitement when he asked the group to entertain a very abstract around the concept of enlightenment. Indeed there is a lot of talk these days about the subject but this gentleman preceded to really rock reality when he stated: ...Breeders Cup The Sam's Town horse handicapping crew is playing it close to the vest this Breeders' Cup.Gordon Jones, Patrick McQuiggan and Tony Vega believe they can bring home a winning Pick 6 or Classic superfecta for folks who participate in their betting pools.Thus, they're uncharacteristically keeping many picks cloaked and saving them for ...Best Snorkeling Destinations Snorkeling is a universal sport and is enjoyed wherever there is clear still water abundant in marine flora and fauna. Some maritime tourist spots have become fan favorites, such as the beaches of the Hawaii Islands, the Caribbean, Florida and California.The entire Great Barrier Reef in Australia is a snorkeler’s heaven. Even the coasts o ...Alabama Casinos Alabama is a southern state located in “the Heart of Dixie”, with a rich history dating back to the Civil War. It is known for its Magnolia trees, lush gardens, grand old historic homes, and southern hospitality. Alabama, with a population of over 4,500,000, is adjacent to Georgia, Mississippi, and Florida. The capital of Alabama is Montgomery, ...2006-07 NFL Fantasy Quarterback Ratings The NY Sports Headquarters will be offering a full-week feature of Fantasy Football rankings. We will be going over the top quarterbacks, running-backs, wide receivers, tight ends, kickers, and defenses, featuring a different section on each day of the week. We will also be including our “sleeper”, “busts” , “break-out”, and our “best overall ...How to Play Online Casino Safely There is nothing more exciting than betting on the World Cup online, melting gambling odds with soccer passion, and feeling like being on the football field. The 2006 World Cup betting is already up in most gambling sites with sportsbook betting, however, many people have a safety concerns when it comes to placing a bet on the Internet.No ...City of Des Moines: An Interesting Place City of Des Moines is rich in all sorts of tourist attractions. It is the capital of Iowa. Living History Farms, Zoo, parks, theatres and anything you name you will find that here. Something for everyone seems to be the hallmark of this place. Start your day at the elegant Living History Farms and head for the Blank Park zoo in the afternoon to ...Horse Racing Basics Horse racing is perhaps one of the most common and attractive wagering game. Every country that permits horse racing earns huge revenue through it. However, not every one is aware that a horse race has more to it than four legged animals and bets. For example, how many if us know about the evolution of horse racing, or where the first race was r ...Types of Online Bets People who place bets online enjoy picking their team, reading the stats, and learning about new coaches. There are several types of bets a person can make online. Betting the spread is the most popular type of bet. The spread is the amount of points scored on the actual ending score of the game. Teams are usually between ten or fifteen points f ...Win by Losing - Laying bets on a Horse Racing System Betting exchanges are a recent introduction into the betting world that have taken the UK gambling community by storm. In the past, bets had to be placed with bookies, where the punter would back a team or entity and the bookie would lay the bet. In this system, the bookie would lay the bet backed by the punter and offer the odds. Betting ...Breaking Down Tennesse Vs. Florida On Florida:Florida had two easy victories to begin the year. Beat an underrated Wyoming team to begin the year, 32-14. Then blew out overmatch La Tech 41-3.QB Chrik Leak looks as though he can run Urban Meyer's offense, but he will be tested in this game more than the last two put together. But, on offense the big question will be ...
|
