Welcome to Noel Michaels’ Weekend Winners, the place to go for weekend best bets and spot plays from veteran handicapper and tournament-play pioneer Noel Michaels. Check back every week for a couple of highlighted selections designed to help you cash a few bets and make some money.
Tag: Gambling
Betting a Flashy Maiden Winner in the Hopeful Stakes
Eight talented 2-year-old Thoroughbreds will face off in Sunday’s $300,000 Spendthrift Farm Hopeful Stakes at Saratoga, a historic Grade 1 race with an impressive roster of recent winners.
Elevating Prior Course Success When Betting the Kentucky Downs Turf Sprint
The brief Kentucky Downs all-turf meet is underway, and the fourth card of seven total for 2026 stands as the high point with five graded stakes scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 5. Two of the stakes are “Win and You’re In” qualifying races for the Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Keeneland, including the focus of this column.
ABR Sunday Selections: Full-Card Picks for August 30 at Saratoga
Every Sunday Noel Michaels will provide free full-card picks for a one racecard in North America. A veteran handicapper and tournament-play pioneer, Michaels also writes a weekly “Weekend Winners” blog for America’s Best Racing with a focus on key stakes races at marquee tracks. This feature will be straight-forward: full-card picks for one Sunday slate of races of his choosing.
