No Luck Needed for Lookin At Lucky

Horseracing Betting Lines

05/17/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 2010 Preakness was extremely reminiscent to the 1997 edition when three horses, including Kentucky Derby winner Silver Charm, finished a quarter-of-a-length apart. In fact, Touch Gold was only 1 1/2-lengths behind in fourth after stumbling at the start.

This Saturday's race saw four horses within one length of each other with less than a sixteenth of a mile to run. Lookin At Lucky, the 2-1 second choice, battled with three double-digit longshots - First Dude, Jackson Bend and Yawanna Twist.

Lookin At Lucky, who led for most of the stretch run, finally prevailed by three-quarters of a length over First Dude handing those that bet the 7-11 exacta a $188.60 reward for every $2 wagered.

Jackson Bend finished a head back in third and a full length in front of Yawanna Twist, who rounded out a $2 superfecta worth $34,252.

There were many exceptional performances in the race, but the one major disappointment came from the Kentucky Derby winner.

Super Saver finished a lackluster eighth (beaten almost a dozen lengths) just two weeks after his triumphant victory in the Derby. Before the Preakness, his trainer Todd Pletcher was extremely worried about the quick two-week turnaround and he was dead on as Super Saver looked like a badly conditioned three-year-old.

The son of Maria's Mon faltered badly after chasing front-runner First Dude for the first six furlongs. One can argue that jockey Calvin Borel placed him too close to the quick pace. but that claim holds zero water as the front running First Dude wound up running second, beaten less than a length.

Despite the failure of the Derby winner, the main storyline of the Preakness was Lookin At Lucky and his rider, Martin Garcia.

The 25-year-old jockey, who replaced future hall-of-famer Garrett Gomez, rode a flawless race keeping Lookin At Lucky on the outside, free from trouble, for the entire run down the backstretch. It was the antithesis of the colt's three previous races under Gomez.

Lookin At Lucky and Garcia then took the lead at the head of the stretch and held off all challengers to win by three-quarters of a length and give trainer Bob Baffert his fifth Preakness victory.

AN EARLY LOOK AT THE BELMONT

Unfortunately, those expecting Lookin At Lucky to move forward to the Belmont Stakes will be sadly disappointed. Baffert stated early Sunday morning that the Preakness winner will head back home to California and not attempt to win the final leg of the Triple Crown. Kentucky Derby champion Super Saver will also not race in the Belmont leaving the race without the Derby and Preakness winners for the first time since 2006.

That means Derby runner-up Ice Box will be the early favorite in the Test of Champions. His trainer Nick Zito will also have the probable second choice in Fly Down, the recent winner of the Dwyer Stakes at Belmont Park. Furthermore, there's a chance Zito could send Jackson Bend as well since the gritty colt ran huge at Pimlico.

The 12th-place Derby finisher rebounded with a bang-up third in the Preakness, failing to nail down the second spot by a diminishing head. It might be asking lot for him to go the 12 furlongs of the Belmont after a grueling spring campaign but there won't be much speed in the race and his presence could help Zito's two closers even more.

Speaking of the expected lack of pace in the Belmont, First Dude has a great chance of going gate-to-wire, especially if Jackson Bend stays in his barn on the first Saturday in June.

First Dude ran his heart out in the Preakness, battling back on the inside to finish second after setting a quick pace on the front end. Trainer Dale Romans had the son of Stephen Got Even in great shape all week long and was extremely confident in the colt's chances despite the high odds.

Yawanna Twist will not be moving forward to the Belmont Stakes, but the Rick Dutrow-trained three-year-old almost pulled off the upset with a bold rally through the stretch. In the end, he failed to pick up any ground inside the final 10 jumps, settling for fourth-place money.

The only other Preakness runner that might go in the Belmont Stakes is Dublin.

Ridden for the first time by Garrett Gomez, the son of 2005 Belmont winner Afleet Alex, got off to a miserable beginning breaking from post 12.

In last place for most of the race, Dublin closed well to finish fifth, beaten only six lengths. Trainer D. Wayne Lukas has a history of racing his three- year-olds through tough campaigns so it wouldn't come as a shock to see Dublin in the Belmont Stakes.

Other possible starters include stout closers such as Setsuko, Stay Put, Stately Victor and Make Music for Me, as well as a pair of stalkers in Uptowncharlybrown, Game On Dude and Drosselmeyer.

Wwbet365 Horseracing Betting News

<< New dad Ginobili welcomes twin sons
SAN ANTONIO (AP) -San Antonio Spurs guard Manu Ginobili and his wife, Many, are parents to twin boys.Ginobili, on his Twitter page, announced Sunday's births of Dante and Nicola.Ginobili says mother and boys are doing great, and he later added ``I j

<< Surging Phillies complete three-game sweep in Milwaukee
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Wilson Valdez's run-scoring double in the third proved to be the difference, as the Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Milwaukee Brewers, 4-2, to complete a three-game series sweep at Miller Park. Placi

<< Report: Caps re-sign Backstrom
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Capitals have reportedly re- signed forward Nicklas Backstrom to a long-term deal and are expected to announce the transaction at a press conference on Monday. The Caps previously ann

<< Red-hot Flyers destroy Canadiens in Game 1
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michael Leighton made 28 saves to earn his first career playoff shutout, and the Philadelphia Flyers continued their torrid play with a 6-0 rout of the Montreal Canadiens in Game 1 of the Eastern Confere

<< Canadiens-Flyers Sum
Montreal 0 0 0-0Philadelphia 1 3 2-6First Period-1, Philadelphia, Coburn 1 (Hartnell, Leino), 3:55 (pp).Second Period-2, Philadelphia, van Riemsdyk 2 (Giroux), :30. 3, Philadelphia, Briere 8 (M.Carle), 4:23. 4, Philadelphia, Gagne 5 (Cobur

Welcome back, Adam Scott >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Adam Scott was a staple in the world top-10 before a balky putting stroke corrupted his game and knocked the talented Australian from his perch as perhaps the best player under 30 years old. What, you thought it was Kate H

Canadian MLB report: Francis impresses in big league return >>
Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Colorado Rockies lefty Jeff Francis made his first major league start since Sept. 12, 2008 on Sunday, lasting seven innings in the Rockies' 2-1 victory over the Washington Nationals. Francis did not factor

Rested Lakers, Suns begin West finals at Staples Center >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Both the Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Lakers must have thought they were getting paid by the hour in the second round of the NBA playoffs. The result was a pair of sweeps with the Suns besting their long-time nemesis, the

Tigers send Porcello to the mound against White Sox >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rick Porcello tries to follow up his best start of the season this evening when the Detroit Tigers open a brief two-game home set with the Chicago White Sox at Comerica Park. Porcello won for the second time in his last th

In the FCS Huddle: Top 10 FCS Running Backs >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It was all so familiar: Chase Reynolds got out ahead of the opposition and crossed over the goal line untouched. Only this wasn't Reynolds running with the ball during another victory for the University of

Pro Football Odds : NFC SOUTH BETTING ODDS

NFL Sports Betting

NFL betting action is back! At MySportsbook, all of the pro football odds are posted for the NFC North. Check out how we see the four teams in this cloudy division stacking up this year in the chase for the playoffs! Green Bay Packers (+125) - With QB Aaron Rodgers leading the offense and DC Dom Capers working his magic on defense, the Packers are a real force to be reckoned with.

Virtually nothing changed on this offense for Green Bay from last year to this year, save for the addition of rookie OT Brian Bulaga to the bunch. Expect more huge numbers from the Pack, and a relatively favorable schedule should get them over the hump and into the playoffs once again this season. My NFL Betting Predictions: 11-5, 1st place in NFC North Minnesota Vikings (+130) - There are still too many unknowns about the Vikes this year. There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not.

There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.

Chicago Bears (+350) - The Bears are probably a bit of an overhyped team once again this year.No, we don't think it is plausible for QB Jay Cutler to have as bad of a season as he did last year, and we do think the additions of RB Chester Taylor and DE Julius Peppers are going to help immensely, but there's still something in the water in the Windy City that we aren't so sure about. Maybe Chicago finds its way to .500... but then again, maybe it doesn't. If Favre comes back, Cutler might be the worst quarterback in this division this year.

Detroit Lions (+1500) - The Lions are probably once again going to be the whipping boys for the rest of the teams in the NFC North, but they aren't just going to roll over and die once again. There is some real talent amassing on this team offensively, as the combination of QB Matt Stafford, RB Jahvid Best, WR Calvin Johnson, and TE Brandon Pettigrew should put a bunch of points on the board if the offensive line can even remotely hold up. The questions really lie on defense, where it feels like DT Ndamukong Suh is going to be trying to stop opposing teams all by himself. This year should show some marked improvement in the Motor City.

The Patriots will make NFL betting fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash.

NFL Betting

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.