Horse Racing Odds - Grade 1's from Coast to Coast
- Who: Thoroughbreds – Gio Ponti, Indian Blessing, Life Is Sweet
- What: Horse Racing Betting Tips – The Man O’ War, The Princess Rooney Handicap, The Hollywood Gold Cup
- Where: Belmont Park, Calder Race Course, Hollywood Park
- When: Saturday, July 11th
There’s a nice variety of Grade 1 events on Saturday at the racebook, and you might be able to catch a few horses at bargain prices. You’ve got the 1 3/8-mile Man O’ War over Belmont’s Inner Turf Course, the 6-furlong Princess Rooney Handicap on Calder’s conventional dirt track, and the 1 ¼-mile Hollywood Gold Cup over Hollywood Park’s poly-track surface. Let’s take a look at the contenders.
In the Man O’ War, Gio Ponti will be a deserving favorite in his current sharp form, having won a pair of Grade 1’s most recently. There’s sufficient pace in the race to set up his powerful closing kick, so if he gets clear sailing, he’ll be tough to beat, especially if you’re betting online. The key may be to figure out who to use underneath. Midships will be well backed, but I’m not sold on the competition he faced in his last three winning efforts, and he’ll be picking up 5 pounds of his latest win. Marsh Side will appreciate the extra distance, and he never gets much support at the windows. Let’s try Gio Ponti over Marsh Side in the exacta.
Indian Blessing leaves the West Coast poly-track environment to race on dirt, which she prefers. Despite her brilliant record of nine wins in 14 starts, she’s been a bit of a money burner of late, losing three of her last four starts. She was sent off at 9-5, even money and 1-2 in those three losses. Nevertheless, she towers over this field from a talent standpoint, and should get the job done. Dubai Majesty captured the Grade 3 Winning Colors last out at Churchill Downs, and has trained well since. She’s also done well at Calder. I’ll use her underneath Indian Blessing in the exacta. The Beyer figs for all the horses exiting the UCanDoIt Handicap appear to be inflated, so I’m tossing them all.
The Hollywood Gold Cup features the filly Life Is Sweet taking on the boys. She gets in light at 113 pounds, and has been training brilliantly since her recent placing behind undefeated stablemate Zenyatta. The pace should be lively, and the added distance will suit her come-from-behind running style. It’s also nice to see jockey Garrett Gomez sticking around. He said she didn’t fire her best shot last time...perhaps Saturday will be the day. I’ll bet her to win at odds of 2-1 or better.
There’s your horse racing betting tips for the weekend. As the great Harvey Pack used to say, “May the horse be with you.”
Pete Mitchell has been handicapping horses since his teenage years. He has been a professional horse player for many years, and came to BetOnline.com’s attention through multiple referrals from industry insiders/sportsbook owners. Pete is revered for his horse handicapping opinion and industry experts acknowledge his impressive career winning record. Thoughts or questions? Email Comments@BetOnline.com.
