SureBet’s Onsite Derby Digest with Tom
Dawson -
brought to you by
Sunland Park Racetrack & Casino
- posted May 1, 2010
Update 1 -
I have just talked to a couple
of really top handicappers and analysts who have the same Derby selection.
Both Randy Moss of ESPN and Steve Haskin of the Blood-Horse have put long shot
Stately Victor on top.
Randy qualifies it by saying that he does not make his selection with
confidence. But he doesn’t find the poorly drawn favorites attractive over a
track that could be anything by race time. Haskin just likes the way Stately
Victor looks and trains, plus his off-track pedigree.
They just posted the Derby odds with $3.6 million in the pool. Stately Victor is
currently 17-1. Lookin at Lucky is the co-favorite at 8-1. That’s how wide open
the market is. Sidney’s Candy is 10-1. My original thought after the draw was
that playing the two morning line choices in an exacta was a poor choice in a
confusing field. But now, both have decent straight prices and the $2 exacta box
1-20 comes back $85 & 90.
But no point in jumping the gun. Many hours of rain and racing yet to come
before Derby post.
BTW, Haskin just told me that the horse that won their first race today, Sure
Bet, is likely headed for the Belmont Stakes. He says he liked the horse all
winter but he couldn’t get untracked at the Fair Grounds.
Looked good here but didn’t beat anything.
There are always a host of celebrities here in the place on Derby day.
Entertainers, actors, sports figures, the whole lot. Of course it’s not easy to
get a glimpse unless you happen to have a ticket to one of the more exclusive
areas. Or you can hang out near the red carpet entrance that has been
constructed just outside gate 10. It will be the focus for the first hour of
NBC’s show starting at 4:00 Eastern and plenty of sightings should be available,
provided everyone isn’t under an umbrella.
During the years that I produced coverage for ESPN, we had a talent location
specifically to interview celebrities. We would normally have a nice stream of
folks all day long including Donald Trump, George Steinbrenner, George Strait,
Rick Pitino, Zoe Saldana (before Avatar) just to name a few. We found a few who
were real racing fans, but for most, it was a social occasion. There are always
lavish Derby parties all over Louisville and Lexington on Friday night which is
also celebrity heavy. One well-known sports figure that can’t be here and wishes
he could is Joe Torre, manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He is a part owner of
Homeboykris, but will have to watch from Dodger stadium as his club gets ready
to play the Pirates.