Oh No! Derek Simon Beat Me

I tend to concentrate on the sport of thoroughbred horse racing, dealing with what’s going on, what’s coming up, and in general celebrating the stars of our sport. My esteemed colleague, Derek Simon, on the other hand, looks at the sport from a different point of view. An innovative and expert handicapper, Derek concentrates on the gambling aspect of the sport. Vive la difference! Because of this, we rarely write about handicapping the same races, but it happened this past Saturday when we both decided to concentrate on the Pennsylvania and Super Derbies for our Youbet.com columns. Derek is a heckuva nice guy, and I certainly never wish him anything but the best. On Saturday, however, my competitive juices began to flow. I wanted to win this impromptu handicapping challenge. Here is how the races unfolded … ***The remainder of today's column can be found on Youbet.com*** Click Here

Derby Double Dipping

As Seinfeld’s George Costanza would attest, sometimes it can be fun to double dip. To dip once, enjoy, and then dip again. Taking a page from Costanza, that is exactly what I will be doing this afternoon. I’ll be looking for bigger game than chips though, as I dip twice into the Derby pool. Today’s Pennsylvania Derby at Parx Racing (formerly Philadelphia Park) and Louisiana Downs’ Super Derby offer two competitive fields mixing it up in hopes of climbing the division ladder. It will be for many running today, the last chance to get a graded stake win against their own age, as the older horses loom. Also on the line will be one final opportunity to prove that they are good enough and belong to run five weeks from now at the Breeders’ Cup. In handicapping the duo of Derbies, I found that I have strong feelings for horses that will be somewhat ignored by the bettors, which of course is always a good thing. ***The remainder of today's column can be found on Youbet.com*** Click Here

And Her Next Race is ...

I’ve been waiting. We all have been waiting. The Alabama, The Travers, The Woodward, The Personal Ensign, or The Pennsylvania Derby all seemingly or supposedly had a chance to attract the mega-star filly. Turf writers, like myself, Rachel Alexandra’s legions of fans, and pretty much anyone connected to a horse that was considering any one of those five races were waiting. Tick-tock Jess Jackson, tick-tock. Why must you make us wait so long? Don’t you know we just want to see her run? Finally, we have an answer. Rachel could not run in the Pennsylvania Derby. Come on! Philadelphia Park or Saratoga? No offense to Philadelphia Park and it certainly would have been different if she had already raced at Saratoga. She was stabled all Summer at the Spa, she needed to race at this venerable race place. Rachel could not run in the Alabama. Her races against 3-year-old fillies have been so ridiculously easy that no one interested in competitive horse racing wanted to see that again. As it turned out, Careless Jewel would have been the most competition that she would have faced within her division, but Rachel rightly will not run in a 3-year-old filly race ever again. Rachel could not run in the Personal Ensign. The older mare division, save one, is frankly a little boring to me. If there is no Zenyatta, then there is no reason for Rachel to be running against the older females. By the way, if Zenyatta had come to Saratoga for the Personal Ensign, then it would have become my first choice. Rachel could have run in the Travers, but… there is the matter of her stablemate, Kensei. It would have been fun to see her in the Mid-Summer Derby. One mile and a quarter, and one more chance to prove that she is the best 3-year-old out there. A chance to beat a horse, Quality Road, that people are talking about in glowing terms. Prestigious and historic, the Travers would have been a nice feather in her cap. In Kensei, however, the Rachel Alexandra team has a horse that could win the Travers and vault into the front runner position for 3-year-old champion. They obviously do not want to run them against each other. Rachel will run in the Woodward. She will become the first 3-year-old filly, or for that matter, the first female of any age, ever to win this prestigious, Grade 1 race for older horses. Yes, I expect her to win. The list of Woodward winners reads like a who’s who of American racing; Sword Dancer, Kelso, Buckpasser, Damascus, Forego, Seattle Slew, Affirmed, Spectacular Bid, Slew O’ Gold, Precisionist, Alysheba, Easy Goer, Holy Bull, Cigar, Skip Away, Mineshaft, Ghostzapper, St Liam, Lawyer Ron, and Curlin have all won the Woodward. Now Rachel Alexandra. As she takes her next step towards greatness and once again does something no other 3-year-old filly has ever done.