Thankfully, in this year of Our Lord two thousand and twenty, or whatever else you want to call what we’ve experienced since Jan. 1 (expletives permitted), some things remain relatively undisturbed. It’s mid-October, trees have turned or are completely undressed and Breeders’ Cup is on the horizon. Two of racing’s biggest days are scheduled for […]
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The Southern California racing community received a one-two punch of bad news in recent days when learning that retired trainers Gary Jones and Barry Abrams had died. Jones was 76. Abrams was 66. In recent years, Jones’ failing health included the onset of dementia. He died Sunday at his home in Del Mar, where he […]
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The coronavirus pandemic has wreaked considerable havoc throughout the world this year. But in a year in which it seems there have been so many more lowlights than highlights, a ferocious equine tussle all the way down the stretch in the 145th Preakness Stakes became a welcome diversion for Thoroughbred racing fans during these troubled […]
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It’s nice to know that throughout this pandemic-infested, dumpster fire of a year one thing remains constant: Bob Baffert has the horse to beat in the Preakness. It’s been that way often over the last two and one-half decades and it’s that way again as he saddles Kentucky Derby winner and Preakness favorite Authentic and […]
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Trends or angles sometimes can grab one’s attention when it comes to sports in general or horse racing in particular. How about this trend? Prior to last Saturday’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggetts, whenever the Lakers had the lead going into the fourth quarter in a playoff game, their win-loss record […]
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Smoke has cleared, literally, and racing at The Great Race Place returns this weekend with gusto. The 11-race Saturday card features 7 stakes races--4 graded and 5 that carry ‘Win and You’re In’ Breeders’ Cup fees-paid berths to respective championship races at Keeneland Nov. 6 & 7. Saturday afternoon’s gem figures to be the Grade […]
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The sun will come up tomorrow morning. I’m guessing this does not come as a surprise to you. Nearly just as predictably, Tiz the Law is not running in the Grade I Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course on Oct. 3. Consequently, Tiz the Law has exited my Preakness Top 10 this week. He ranked […]
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As Santa Anita connections await clear skies and the cessation of damaging fires in the nearby areas, Belmont and Churchill carry the late-September banners as the most popular tracks operating in the US this weekend. However, Saturday, north of the border in Toronto, Canada, Woodbine has an outstanding card highlighted by the Grade 1, $1 […]
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Is Belmont Stakes winner Tiz the Law going to run in the Grade I, $1 million Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course on Oct. 3? Or will he bypass the final leg of this year’s coronavirus-related revamped Triple Crown series and start next in the Grade I, $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Keeneland on […]
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Tiz the Law’s luck finally ran out. Rabbit’s foot rubbed raw. Held the wrong end of the wishbone. Drew the short straw. Too bad, Tiz the Law was on quite a roll. Held the dice all year; pass after pass, point after point. Finally, Saturday, in the Kentucky Derby ‘Tiz rolled a seven. During an […]
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“He’s the real deal.” That’s what Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert wrote in response to my text congratulating him for his record-tying sixth Kentucky Derby victory last Saturday with Authentic. Come to think of it, how could a horse with the name Authentic be anything but the “real” deal, right? Baffert has now won […]
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KENTUCKY DERBY SELECTIONS AND ANALYSIS Xpressbet.com Column It’s Post Time by Jon White (Sept. 2, 2020) The 156th running of the $3 million Kentucky Derby will be contested Saturday at Churchill Downs. Tiz the Law no doubt will be an odds-on favorite in the field of 18 entered in the 1 1/4-mile classic. This is […]
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It figures. As soon as the package from Amazon hits the doorstep you realize you don’t need the product after all. At least not right now. That’s sort of how the folks at Churchill Downs feel. They ordered a brand-spanking new 20-stall starting gate, custom made especially for them, only to find out that this […]
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Saturday Saratoga Late Pick 4 Analysis The final four Saturday Spa races provide a challenging sequence. Two Grade 1 stakes races—a loaded 7-furlong sprint and a collection of familiar faces going a mile and one-half—offer plenty of options to horseplayers. A maiden 2-year-old heat and a first level, state-bred allowance race, with 9 and 12 […]
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The $3 million Kentucky Derby looms. Delayed from its traditional date on the first Saturday in May due to the coronavirus nightmare, this year’s 146th running of the 1 1/4-mile classic is scheduled to be held at Churchill Downs a week from Saturday on Sept. 5. This will be the first time in the storied […]
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