Tag: Horseplayers

Fans of Tom Petty and of America's most recent Triple Crown winner will be attracted to an undefeated filly, when Rosehill Racecourse hosts the world's richest race for 2-year-olds this Friday night in Sydney, Australia. Learning To Fly, a daughter of Justify, is second wagering choice for the US$3.25 million Golden Slipper Stakes. Among four other Group 1 races on a stellar card, the spotlight will shine on record-breaking Horse of the Year Anamoe. The card will broadcast live on FanDuel TV and is available to stream on the Sky Racing World App (First Post 9:10 p.m. ET/6:10 p.m. PT).

The Golden Slipper, at six furlongs, is for juveniles whose southern hemisphere racing season began last August. As a winner of three from three, Learning To Fly quickly learned to race – ironic, given that her sire became the first Kentucky Derby winner since 1882 to have not run as a 2-year-old. Justify, in fact, has surpassed all expectations with the precocity of his offspring worldwide. The giant chestnut was purchased for stud duty by global powerhouse Coolmore and twice “shuttled” to Australia, but was then given a break from the most recent southern hemisphere breeding season.

I was privileged to call half of Justify's six-race career – although not the most famous half! His first three starts culminated in the 2018 Santa Anita Derby, propelling him toward a history-making run as the sport's first undefeated Triple Crown winner since Seattle Slew.

Learning To Fly (who could also have been named for a Pink Floyd hit song four years before the Petty namesake) is 9-2 second wagering choice for the Golden Slipper behind Cylinder (3-1). Both horses won important traditional prep races on the same Rosehill card two weeks ago, with Cylinder clocking .29 seconds faster in the race for colts and geldings.

Coolmore owns Learning To Fly while Cylinder represents Godolphin, thus the world's most famous sets of all-blue silks (Coolmore's “navy” and  Godolphin's “royal”) may well be battling out the finish of the 67th Golden Slipper. Godolphin, which memorably provided the longshot trifecta in 2019 (at odds of 25-1, 7-1 and 13-1), has two other entrants this year: Barber (20-1) and Exploring (80-1).

Conversely, Coolmore awaits its first victory while ranking the Golden Slipper alongside the Kentucky Derby as its two most coveted global prizes. Coolmore's other runner is Shinzo (16-1), whose sire and dam were both beaten favorites in the Golden Slipper. Shinzo will be ridden by champion English jockey, Ryan Moore.

Moore is in Sydney chiefly to partner Dubai Honour in the G1 Ranvet Stakes, Race 6. The multiple G2-winner and G1-placed gelding makes his Australian debut for leading British trainer William Haggas. Dubai Honour is 4-1 for the Ranvet, at 1 1/4 miles. Wagering is headed by last November's Melbourne Cup winner, Gold Trip (3-1), who produced a slashing second in his recent return from a layoff. The Ranvet Stakes also features the Aussie debut of Joseph O'Brien's G3 winner Raise You. At 16-1, he is likely tuning up for longer assignments in the coming month.

The Ranvet was the more likely of two races under consideration for reigning Australian Horse of the Year, Anamoe. Surprisingly, the superstar son of Street Boss (and an Australian dam who placed in the 2007 American Oaks at Hollywood Park) was pointed to the shorter George Ryder Stakes (G1) at 7 1/2 furlongs. After wins this campaign at seven furlongs and a mile, Anamoe will cut back (albeit slightly) in distance – a somewhat unusual approach for Australia's top racehorses. Regardless, he dominates wagering at 3-5 while seeking a ninth victory at the elite level.

In a world that seems Godolphin's oyster, it is a high honor for Anamoe to now hold the record for most Group/Grade 1 wins by a Godolphin horse anywhere on the planet. The George Ryder Stakes (Race 7) immediately precedes the Golden Slipper, so if Anamoe wins and the Slipper fits Cylinder, the Godolphin juggernaut will have captured a massive G1 double within 45 minutes.

The Rosehill card will be broadcast live on FanDuel TV this Friday night (First Post: 9:10 p.m. ET/6:10 p.m. PT) alongside cards from Kembla Grange, Doomben and Ascot. All races will be live-streamed in HD on the new Sky Racing World App, skyracingworld.com and major ADW platforms such as TVG, TwinSpires, Xpressbet, NYRABets, WatchandWager, HPIbet, and AmWager. Wagering is also available via these ADW platforms. Fans can get free access to live-streaming, past performances, and expert picks on all races at skyracingworld.com.

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A native of Brisbane, Australia, Michael Wrona has called races in six countries. Michael's vast U.S. experience includes race calling at Los Alamitos, Hollywood Park, Arlington and Santa Anita; calling the 2000 Preakness on a national radio network; and the 2016 Breeders' Cup on the international simulcast network. Michael also performed a race call voiceover for a Seinfeld episode called The Subway.

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By industry standards, 2022 was a solid year at The Meadowlands as far as business goes. Average nightly handle was $2.75 million and betting surpassed the “magic” $3-million mark 23 times during a year that saw 85 race cards contested at the mile oval.

But 2023 – by any standard – has been a season that's seen business boom.

Last Saturday (March 11) was just another night at the salt mine for Big M management and fans, as all-source betting totaled $3,638,285 on the 14-race card, keeping The Big M's streak of surpassing the $3-million plateau intact.

There have been 19 Friday and Saturday night programs conducted during 2023 and every one has seen wagering exceed $3 million.

March has been especially marvelous, with the average nightly handle currently standing at $3.85 million.

“There's no question, we are in a good groove,” said Big M Chief Operating Officer and General Manager Jason Settlemoir. “We are extremely appreciative of our fan base. They like what our racing office has done, creating the type of competitive racing with full 10-horse fields that makes for outcomes that are harder to predict, so payoffs have a great deal of appeal to our players.”

Some of the more attractive payoffs from last week include Friday's (March 10) 20-cent Pick-6 ($9,911), 20-cent Survivor Pick-7 ($8,323) and 20-cent Pick-5 ($7,895).

Smiles on Saturday were worn by those who cashed in on the new “Prime Time” 10-cent Pentafecta ($12,955) as well as the two popular 50-cent Pick-4s, that came back $4,414 (Early P4) and $2,170 (Late P4), respectively.

The Pentafecta, or, if you prefer, Hi-5, was recently added to the betting menu in the seventh race. It is in addition to the Pentafecta that has always been offered on the 14th – and final – dash of the night.

The handle projections for 2023 are big, to say the least.

The Friday and Saturday programs have seen a total of $65,457,871 pushed through the windows, for an average nightly handle of $3,445,151. If you include the two Sunday afternoon programs that were contested in January, that number dips to $3,273,283, which is still far higher than the average handle per card during a superb 2021, when betting was at $3.0 million per program.

PICK-6 CARRYOVER: Carryovers are something Meadowlands' fans take to like a moth to a flame, and Friday (March 17), they'll be something extra in the 20-cent Pick-6 pot of gold on St. Patrick's Day.

There were no winning tickets sold on the wager last Saturday, creating a carryover of $10,174. The last time there was a P6 carryover, $59,027 in “new money” was put in the hat for a pool that soared to $66,654.

It just so happens that on that March 3rd, the P6 went unhit again, which created a double carryover that attracted $118,217 in new money the next night for a grand total of $163,471. Those with winning tickets that evening cashed in for a handsome $6,411, despite a sequence that saw five of the winners go off at odds of 5-1 or less.

“Our players love the opportunity to hit big,” said Settlemoir. “So, whenever there are carryovers on our multi-leg wagers, there is always a lot of excitement in the building. The carryovers create great opportunities. Take this Friday, for instance. In the event there is $66,000 or less in new money bet in the Pick-6, those with winning tickets will cash in for more money than what was bet into the pool. That's a negative takeout, which is something any player can get excited about.”

The post ‘We Are In A Good Groove’: Meadowlands’ Streak Of $3 Million Nightly Handles Stands At 19 appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) will host a Cross Country Pick 5 on Saturday, featuring racing from Aqueduct Racetrack, Oaklawn Park, and Rillito Park.

The Cross Country Pick 5 requires bettors to pick the winner of five select races from tracks across the country. The minimum bet for the multi-track, multi-race wager is 50 cents. Wagering on the Cross Country Pick 5 is available on ADW platforms and at simulcast facilities across the country with each week featuring a mandatory payout of the net pool. The Cross Country Pick 5, boasting a low 15 percent takeout, offers sequences with races from Aqueduct Racetrack and partner tracks across the country.

The sequence begins at 5:00 p.m. Eastern in Race 8 from Aqueduct Racetrack. The allowance optional claimer will see a field of nine older New York-bred horses square off around a one-turn mile. Sundaeswithsandy will look to build upon an impressive 13 3/4-length romp for a $25,000 tag last out. The son of Keen Ice, who makes his first start for trainer James Bentley Begg after being haltered out of his last effort, is in search of his fifth lifetime victory. Steep opposition will be provided by the Mark Hennig-trained Ouster, who has finished no worse than fourth in eight career starts, and Whittington Park, who has finished first or third in his last four starts for conditioner Jeremiah Englehart.

The action heads south to Oaklawn Park for Race 8 [5:22 p.m.], the Grade 3, $200,000 Whitmore at six furlongs for older horses.

The in-form Tejano Twist is in search of his first graded victory for trainer Chris Hartman on the heels of a runner-up effort to multiple graded stakes-winner Gunite in the King Cotton on January 28 at Oaklawn. The Practical Joke gelding has finished on-the-board in each of his last five outings, including a three-race win streak from October to January. Hartman will also saddle the stakes-placed Edge to Edge for his graded debut after posting triple-digit Beyer Speed Figures for back-to-back scores at the Hot Springs oval. Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen also sends out two formidable contenders in Grade 3-placed Cogburn and graded stakes-winner Morello.

The third leg will see sophomore fillies sprinting six furlongs at the Big A in the $100,000 Cicada [Race 9, 5:32 p.m.], headlined by the returning Hot Little Thing as she makes her first start in over five months for trainer Rodolphe Brisset. The Indiana-bred daughter of Army Mule was a 14 1/2-length winner of the six-furlong Back Home Again in September at Horseshoe Indianapolis and will cut back in distance after finishing a distant third in the Miss Indiana in October traveling one mile and 70 yards over the same oval. The streaking Tappin Josie will look to score her fourth consecutive victory for trainer Horacio De Paz while Downtown Mischief will vie to remain perfect after winning her first two lifetime starts for trainer Linda Rice.

The penultimate leg heads back to Oaklawn for Race 9 [5:54 p.m.], the Grade 3, $500,000 Essex Handicap for older horses traveling 1 1/16 miles.

Grade 1-winner Classic Causeway scratched from Saturday's Grade 3 Challenger at Tampa Bay Downs in favor of this spot as he makes his first start over the main track since June for trainer Kenny McPeek. The son of Giant's Causeway, who captured the Grade 1 Belmont Derby Invitational on turf in July at Belmont Park, returns from a five-month respite that came after a close sixth-place finish in the Grade 3 Bryan Station at Keeneland. The talented field includes Last Samurai, winner of the last-out Grade 3 Razorback over the same course and distance for Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, multiple graded stakes-winner Tawny Port for conditioner Brad Cox, and the evergreen multiple graded stakes-winning Rated R Superstar for trainer Martin Villafranco.

The sequence concludes at Rillito Park in Race 5 [6:14 p.m.], the $20,000 Liz Bracken Memorial for sophomore fillies sprinting 5 1/2 furlongs. Last out maiden-winner Tecate Gold is in search of her first victory facing winners after graduating for an $8,500 tag on February 20 for conditioner Jeff Metz. The Juan Pablo Silva-trained Tootufftoswallow ships in by way of California after finishing fifth in an optional claimer on March 3 at Santa Anita. She was a winner on debut in a January 2 maiden claimer over the same course.

The race is named in memory Liz Bracken, who graduated from the University of Arizona and worked at NYRA for 16 years. In 2021, NYRA launched a scholarship in her honor for students in the Racetrack Industry Program, which supports students who aspire to work in the sport of thoroughbred horse racing. The scholarship will award a total of $10,000 – $5,000 for the fall semester and $5,000 for the spring. For more information, please visit https://rtip.arizona.edu/student-support/scholarships/elizabeth-bracken-memorial-scholarship.

Free Equibase past performances for the Cross Country Pick 5 sequence will be available for download at https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/cross-country-wagers.

America's Day at the Races will present live coverage and analysis of the Aqueduct winter meet on the networks of FOX Sports. For the broadcast schedule and channel finder, visit https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/tv-schedule.

NYRA Bets is the best way to bet every race of the Aqueduct Racetrack winter meet. Available to horse players nationwide, the NYRA Bets app is available for download today on iOS and Android at www.NYRABets.com.

Cross Country Pick 5 – Saturday, March 18

Leg A: Aqueduct Racetrack, Race 8 – AOC (5:00 p.m. Eastern)

Leg B: Oaklawn, Race 8 – G3 Essex H. (5:22 p.m.)

Leg C: Aqueduct Racetrack, Race 9 – $100K Cicada (5:32 p.m.)

Leg D: Oaklawn, Race 9 – G3 Whitmore (5:54 p.m.)

Leg E: Rillito Park, Race 5 – $20K Liz Bracken Memorial (6:14 p.m.)

The post Saturday’s Cross Country Pick 5 Features Races From Aqueduct, Oaklawn, Rillito appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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This Saturday's $500,000 Grade 3 Essex Handicap at Oaklawn Park brings together a field of 10 sprinters with nine million dollars in career earnings between them.

Leading the field in that category is 2022 Essex winner Rated R Superstar at $1.8 million, entering the race off a fourth place finish in the Grade 3 Razorback Handicap last month. The Razorback was won by Last Samurai, which boosted his earnings to $1.6 million. Next is Silver Prospector, no slouch with $1.1 million in career earnings including the 2020 G3 Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn. Classic Causeway has banked $1.1 million, the bulk of that when winning the G1 Belmont Derby on the grass last summer.

Call Me Fast enters a stakes for the first time and while trying for his third straight win at the meeting. Also entering graded stakes competition for the first time is Vittorio, who finished second in his most recent race which followed eight months off. Forza Di Oro led from the start in the G3 Louisiana Stakes at Fair Grounds in late January before fading to third and attempts to improve off that effort in his third race off a layoff.

The remaining three entrants appear a bit overmatched. They are Keystone Field (seventh in the Razorback in his most recent race), Necker Island (third in an allowance race last month) and Tawny Port, whose last win came in the G3 Ohio Derby last June.

Main win contenders:

Silver Prospector has won more than one-quarter of the main track races he's entered, six of 23 to be exact, including two at Oaklawn. Those two wins are the reason he may be the one to beat in this year's Essex Handicap. The first of the pair of wins over the track came in the 2020 Southwest Stakes at the distance of the Essex when he earned a then career-best 107 Equibase® Speed Figure. Following poor efforts in the Rebel Stakes and Arkansas Derby, Silver Prospector skipped the Kentucky Derby and took five months off. Winning his first start back, it appeared the horse was ready for the big time but then he went on a nine race losing streak. That ended in the Steve Sexton Mile Stakes last May where Silver Prospector earned a career-best 113 figure. He then lost three straight to end his 2022 campaign and took three and one-half months off.

Trainer Steve Asmussen added blinkers for the Fifth Season Stakes in January of this year but coming back from that time off, Silver Prospector wasn't ready to run his best. However, in his most recent start on February 11, Silver Prospector bounced back with a fine effort to win by nearly four lengths under Ricardo Santana, Jr., who rides again. Making his third start off a layoff and having improved to a 103 figure last month, it appears Silver Prospector is in line to repeat his big 113 figure from last year's Steve Sexton Mile effort and that could be good enough to win the 2023 Essex Handicap.

Last Samurai won the Razorback Handicap last month and did so authoritatively with a career-best 119 figure. As a 5-year-old it is quite a feat to run faster than at any previous point in his career, so we might not expect that fast a race to be repeated. However, considering Last Samurai won the Oaklawn Handicap last April with a 108 figure and just missed in the Tinsel Stakes this past December, with a 106 figure, either of those efforts repeated here would give him a strong chance to win a stakes race for the second time at the meeting.

Rated R Superstar enters this year's Essex on a very similar pattern to when winning the race last year. In 2022, he finished fifth of eight in the Razorback Handicap one month earlier with a 104 figure before earning a career-best 115 figure winning this race. This year Rated R Superstar finished fourth of eight in the Razorback last month with a 100 figure. If he shows the same improvement as last year we can expect him to run fast enough to earn a 111 figure. That would be very competitive with both Silver Prospector and with Last Samurai if both run as expected, leading to a very close, and very exciting finish in this year's Essex.

The rest of the field, with their best representative Equibase® Speed Figures, is Call Me Fast (103), Classic Causeway (112 – on turf), Forza Di Oro (105), Keystone Field (103), Necker Island (108), Tawny Port (105) and Vittorio (107).

Win Contenders:

Silver Prospector
Last Samurai
Rated R Superstar
Note: For any exacta tickets played, consider Vittorio for the second (runner-up) position.

Essex Handicap – Grade 3
Race 9 at Oaklawn Park
Saturday, March 18 – Post Time 5:54 PM E.T.
One Mile and One Sixteenth
Four Year Olds and Upward
Purse: $500,000

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