Pardon me. I Have some catching up to do. Yours truly missed live racing action Saturday because he was busy at Lincoln Financial Field rooting hard for the hometown 11. The Philadelphia Eagles—a team I have spent a lifetime supporting through thick and thin (BTW, it’s been way more ‘thin’ than ‘thick’)—met the Atlanta Falcons […]
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Hall of Famer Bob Baffert has become such a force these days that sometimes he manages to win a Grade I race even when he loses. For instance, in the Grade I, $1 million Pacific Classic at Del Mar on Aug. 19, Baffert sent out Arrogate, the 3-5 favorite. Arrogate lost. He finished second. But […]
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Even though Bolt d’Oro’s perfect record was spoiled when he finished third in the Grade I Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Del Mar on Nov. 4, he ended up being the 7-1 individual favorite when Pool One of the 2018 Kentucky Derby Future Wager (KDFW) closed last Sunday. Listed at 11-1 among the 23 individual horses […]
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It’s never too early to talk Triple Crown. Here’s our preseason top-25 rankings plus 10 additional prospects that are “under consideration.” The rankings are based on performance, pedigree, running style, connections, and projections. Let’s see how many can make an impact in next spring’s American classics. Jeff Siegel’s Preseason 2018 Triple Crown Top-25 Rankings […]
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“Look at Mrs. Tweedy! She is having the time of her life!” Chic Anderson said that to a vast CBS television audience as viewers watched an exuberant Penny Tweedy waving her arms wildly in celebration moments after Secretariat’s 31-length victory in the 1973 Belmont Stakes, a spectacular triumph that brought an end to a 25-year […]
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The third and final leg of the 2017 Triple Crown is on the horizon next Saturday, June 10 at Belmont Park and no Triple Crown will be on the line. That’s OK with this guy. Racing’s most coveted title is one of the few professional sports honors not presented annually. It’s bestowed purely on a […]
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I was not a believer in Always Dreaming before the Kentucky Derby. But I am now. After what I saw in the Run for the Roses, I am expecting Always Dreaming to win the Preakness Stakes this Saturday. Here are my selections for the Preakness: Always Dreaming Classic Empire Lookin At Lee Conquest Mo Money […]
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Hitting the lottery is hard. We all know that. But picking the winner of the Kentucky Derby? Heck, that’s easy. All one has to do these days is go with the favorite. It does not take hours and hours and hours of studying or work. Nope. Just go with the favorite. It’s as simple as […]
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Saturday, at the conclusion of the 143rd Kentucky Derby (aka ‘The Old Man in the Slop’), the winner was as obvious as the mud on your face. Always Dreaming and jockey John Velazquez emerged from a soupy 20-horse scrum as fresh as the ‘after’ shot in a detergent commercial. They were spotless. Clean as a […]
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Below is one man’s opinion regarding this year’s wide-open Kentucky Derby, including trainers, jockeys, post positions and morning line odds. A $102 Kentucky Derby wagering strategy is suggested. The fella sometimes gets it right; sometimes, not so much. There are no guarantees except to declare that these opinions are FREE and worth twice the price. […]
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Classic Empire, the Eclipse Award-winning 2-year-old male champion of 2016 and recent winner of the Arkansas Derby in a statement of redemption after being upset in his 2017 debut, heads a competitive field assembled for this Saturday’s 143rd running of the Kentucky Derby. Also regarded as contenders in the 1 1/4-mile classic are Always Dreaming, […]
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I, like many others, was saddened by the news that trainer Lynn Whiting had died a week ago at his home in Louisville following a long illness and a recent stroke. He was 77. I first met Whiting in 1980 when I was working as a columnist and reporter for the Daily Racing Form at […]
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The Kentucky Derby will be contested on the first Saturday in May. The date is May 6. Unfortunately, that’s the only surefire, ‘can’t lose’ Derby prediction we got this year. Everything else is up for grabs. It usually is. In the hands of the racing gods. The fabulous fickle finger of fate. ‘The chance of […]
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It all began when Not This Time won the Iroquois Stakes at Churchill Downs last Sept. 17 to earn 10 points. That was the first of the 35 races in which horses could accumulate points on the 2016-17 Road to the Kentucky Derby. The final two races were decided last Saturday, the Arkansas Derby at […]
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Classic Empire’s path to potential favoritism in the 2017 Kentucky Derby has been anything but ‘Classic.’ To review: He promptly broke maiden first out going four and one-half furlongs at Churchill Downs over a ‘sloppy’ surface. The Equibase chart footnote reports that he “…finished with a surge and kicked away.” Next out, he “rolled by […]
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