Alpha looms large in Withers
Horseracing Betting Lines
02/03/2012 -
Ozone Park, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Local stakes winner Alpha has been made the
even-money favorite in a field of seven for Saturday's $200,000 Withers Stakes
at Aqueduct. After a year's absence the Withers returns as a prep event for
three-year-olds on the road to the Kentucky Derby.
Trained by Kiaran McLaughlin for Godolphin Racing, Alpha will start from the
outside post with regular rider Ramon Dominguez in the saddle. The colt was
the 4-5 favorite when winning last month's Count Fleet Stakes at Aqueduct.
"We're excited to be running him, to be in this position," said McLaughlin. .
"Our stomachs were upset last weekend when Consortium didn't run well in the
slop at Gulfstream (sixth in the Holy Bull), so we're thankful for Alpha. But
we have to do it day by day, race by race."
Alpha, whose sire Bernardini won this race in 2006, has two wins in four
career starts with $180,000 in his bankroll. He was second to Union Rags in
the Champagne Stakes last October, but only 11th in the Breeders' Cup
Juvenile.
"The Withers is an important race because it's graded and you don't get to run
in the Derby unless you have those graded stakes earnings," said McLaughlin. .
"When you look at the schedule, you start with the first Saturday in May, and
work back from there. We are taking the Withers as an important step, and
maybe, maybe, afterward we'll talk about what we're going to do."
The 1 1/16-mile Withers is a preliminary race for Aqueduct's $1 million Wood
Memorial on April 7.
The 4-1 second selection is King Kid trained by Dale Romans. The colt has
drawn post four with Mike Luzzi getting the mount.
"He's a horse we've always thought a lot of, and we'd like him to run big
Saturday and see if he belongs," said Romans who saddled 2011 Preakness champ
Shackleford. "It would be nice to get $120,000 of graded stakes earnings and
then be selective about where he'd go next."
Owned by McKee Stables, King Kid won in his first start in November and was
third in last month's Gulfstream Park Derby behind Reveron. Reveron has drawn
into Saturday's Sam F. Davis Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs.
Here is the full Withers' field from the rail out: Hakama, Julian Pimentel,
5-1; Speightscity, David Cohen, 20-1; Swag Daddy, Junior Alvarado, 10-1; King
Kid, Mike Luzzi, 4-1; How Do I Win, Cornelio Velasquez, 10-1; Tiger Walk,
Horacio Karamanos, 6-1 and Alpha, Ramon Dominguez, 1-1.
Post-time for the Withers is slated at 4:05 p.m. (et).
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MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.
Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.
According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).
Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.
''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.
Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.
''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''
Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.
”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.
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