Kentucky Derby

Kentucky Derby

Triple Crown

Horseracing is a sport that attracts a large following in the United States. The races are typically characterized by long rich history, fanfare and large corporate sponsorships. Exceptional winners receive superstar status and remain on the lips of horseracing fans many days after the events. By far the most popular series of horseracing events in the United States is the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing or quite simply referred in racing circles as the Triple Crown. It is interesting to note though that the Triple Crown is not a concept that is unique to the US. Many countries around the world that have a significant horseracing industry also have their own Triple Crown of horseracing. Back to the United States, a horse is crowned the winner of the Triple Crown if it wins the Belmont Stakes, the Preakness Stakes and the Kentucky Derby. These races are only open to three-year old thoroughbreds meaning that any thoroughbred horse will only race in these races once in its lifetime.

Among the three races, the Kentucky Derby held in Louisville Kentucky, is considered the most popular of the three. It is equivalent to Australia’s Melbourne Cup. However, both the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes are large races in their own rights. The Preakness Stakes at the Primlico Racecourse in Baltimore, Maryland while the Belmont Stakes is held in held at the Elmont Park in the state of New York. The purse of the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes is about one million US dollars but here is where the supremacy of the Kentucky Derby starts to become clear as the purse is two million US dollars. With such a large amount at stake, it is no wonder that the Kentucky Derby is often termed as ‘the most exciting two minutes in sports’ which is the approximate time it takes for the horses to complete the race.

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Television and sports betting

The Derby dates back to the end of the 19th Century. Actually, the Kentucky Derby is one of the oldest horse races in the United States. Among the most significant milestones was in the 1950s when the race began to be televised. This had the impact of increasing the level of interest and the race’s stature grew in prominence from thereon. With this increased viewership came a parallel increase in the interest and the number of punters that it attracted. Though sports betting in the United States has often oscillated between being legal and illegal with only two states officially allowing it, punters from other countries such as Australia can still bet on the Kentucky Derby.

Characteristics of previous champions

What are considered as some of the greatest horses to have ever run in the United States have had memorable performances at Churchill Downs (the venue of the Kentucky Derby). Among these is Secretariat, which many fans of horseracing deem one of the greatest horses of the 20th Century. Secretariat, a Triple Crown winner in 1973, set a number of course records that have stood unbroken for many years. Then there have been other great horses such as War Admiral, Citation, Seattle Slew, which have graced the Kentucky Derby.

Identifying a horse to place a wager on

For you to place a winning wager, it is important that you are able to use a certain pre-defined set of characteristics. One of the things that can demonstrate the need to do this for the Kentucky Derby is that in almost all cases, winners of the Kentucky Derby had started competitive racing as two-year olds. Scarcely, has a horse that began racing as a three-year old been able to make a significant impact on the derby. Choosing an inexperienced horse thus statistically lowers your chances of a win.

Another thing you need to look at is the performance in previous events. This is more than just the Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes races. Rather, you must also look at the performance of the horse in events as a two-year old. When doing this, it is important that you always make your assessment while understanding the caliber of the competition in each race. Take time to determine the general caliber of horses that were participating in the event. Any good performance during a previous race must be benchmarked against the quality of horses that took part so no single horse achieves a higher rating purely based on race wins whereas the competing horses then were of a mediocre class.

You also benefit by assessing the experience and past accomplishments of the trainers of each horse. Look at the track record of the trainer on different horses he or she has handled. Do not focus on wins only but also on top three or top five finishes. As you do this, also note trends in terms of performance. Be on the lookout for horses that have demonstrated continuous improvement race after race even though the horse may never have won any significant race prior to the Kentucky Derby. This could present a great opportunity to bet on a ‘dark horse’ that all other punters may have neglected. This should however be done with measured caution to prevent you from taking on risk unnecessarily.

Betting process

The statue of the Kentucky Derby means that you do not have to be worried on your location across the developed world. Even when in Australia, it is possible for you to select and bet on the horse you perceive has the highest probability of winning the race and giving you maximum return on your wager. You can obtain up to date statistics on each horse through dedicated sports television channels or by checking out sports betting and sports history websites. Here, you will be able o obtain data that will give you the necessary basis to pick the winning horse. In other words, someone else will have done the requisite research for you. Whether you do it online or at the bookmaker’s premises should not make much of a difference as you can expect good service especially from website’s and betting houses that have been around for a while.

Visit Races.com.au for Horse Racing coverage of this year’s Melbourne Cup and find the best Melbourne Cup odds and Melbourne Cup betting prices.