The competition for qualifying points for the 2024 Kentucky Derby heats up on Saturday with the $400,000 Risen Star Stakes at Fair Grounds. This is the first prep race offering 50 qualifying points to the Winner. That should be enough to secure a spot in the field of 20 for the May 4th Run For The Roses, but coming close can be rewarding as well … Continue reading Who Wins The Risen Star
The 2024 Risen Star has drawn a deep 12-horse field with local runners squaring off against out-of-state challengers. It’s shaping up as a challenging race to handicap but a fun Stakes to bet. Looking at the past 15 years of Risen Star results, you can glean some tips and trends to guide your handicapping: Pace Advantage Typical of most U.S. dirt racing, the Risen Star is … Continue reading Risen Star Trends
Saturday is the $400,000 dollar, Grade 2 Risen Star Stakes at Fair Grounds. It will be the first race of the season to offer the Winner 50 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby. The contest will award a total of 105 points on a 50-25-15-10-5 scale. The race was first held in 1973 as the Louisiana Derby Trial Stakes. In 1989, it was renamed in honor of Louisiana-based … Continue reading The Risen Star
There have been 18 prep races so far on the 2023-2024 Road to the Kentucky Derby. Saturday’s Grade 3, $250,000 Sam F. Davis at Tampa Bay Downs marks the halfway point as the thoroughbred needle moves toward the first Saturday in May. This Edition of the Sam F. Davis brings a full field of 12, led by WEST SARATOGA, Winner of the Grade 3 Iroquois Stakes back in September. AGATE … Continue reading Who Wins The Sam F. Davis?
Saturday is the Grade 3, $250,000 dollar Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park. It is is the first of three Derby preps at the Florida venue, and 20-10-6-4-2 qualifying points are available to the top five eligible finishers. The 1 1/16-mile Stakes features the 2024 debut of FIERCENESS, last year’s 2-year-old Champion and Winner of the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. Here is a look at the lineup for the … Continue reading Who Wins The Holy Bully Stakes?
At 4 feet 11 inches tall and 98 pounds, it didn’t look like Bill Shoemaker could walk a big dog, let alone control a head-strong Thoroughbred Race Horse a dozen times his weight. Still, Shoemaker personified that mysterious bond between horse and rider. He communicated with an innate light touch on the reins, coaxing the horse into the action, gentling it with his hands. Horses would always … Continue reading Bill Shoemaker
When placing bets in horse racing, handicappers (Daily Racing Blog included) love to go after the elusive long-shot- the horse that is not-so-obvious and may be flying under the radar in regards to his/her capability and odds. Here are a couple of tips (in no particular order) that may help in nailing that big odds long-shot and put some major cabbage in your pocket. Its good to … Continue reading Looking For Live-Longshots
Pegasus World Cup day at Gulfstream Park is one of the winter horse racing season’s best days of racing and wagering. The headline race, the $3 million, Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Invitational is the first major race of the year for older horses and takes place during an otherwise quiet (mostly) month of January on the Grade 1 Stakes calendar. The Pegasus World Cup has had … Continue reading Pegasus Rich With Talent Too
The Kentucky Derby is not only the most anticipated, most watched Thoroughbred race in the world but an essential part of American sports culture. Memories are made with each Run For The Roses that over the passage of time become legend, not only to day-to-day followers of horse racing but to the general public. While the most memorable Derbys usually involve a heavily-favored horse Winning and thus … Continue reading Kentucky Derby Upsets
We’re 8 days into 2024, and anticipation is already building for what’s to come this year in the wonderful world of horse racing. There will be plenty of exciting contests, memorable moments, and great times to be had at tracks all across the country. Everyone (even horseplayers) make New Year’s resolutions; some are more successful than others. The Daily Racing Blog won’t add any undue … Continue reading A 2024 Wish List
