Rachel Alexandra absence does not affect Zenyatta
Horseracing Betting Lines
03/15/2010 -
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The hoped for meeting next month at
Oaklawn Park between 2009 Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra and champion mare
Zenyatta has been put on hold.
Rachel Alexandra's majority owner Jess Jackson announced on Sunday that his
four-year-old filly will not take on her older rival in the Apple Blossom
Invitational on Friday, April 9. Both females began their 2010 season on
Saturday with different results.
Racing in the New Orleans Ladies at the Fair Grounds, Rachel finished second
to Zardana, a stablemate of Zenyatta. Zardana, trained by John Shirreffs, got
the best of the 1-20 favorite in the 1 1/16-mile race. Rachel came up three-
quarters of a length short of getting the win.
"Yesterday's race while a disappointment," Jackson said on Sunday, "helped us
define Rachel Alexandra's racing condition. While she is healthy, just as I
had anticipated, she is not in top form. Therefore, I decided today she will
not be going to the Oaklawn Invitational on April 9. Steve and I discussed
this fully and we now regret we tried to accelerate her training in order meet
the Apple Blossom schedule. We have a whole season before us to help define
her greatness. She will tell us when her next race will be.
"We tried and we really wanted to go (to the Apple Blossom). It's unfortunate
but the timing just wasn't right. For the health of the horse. It's obvious
she's not in top shape. The race yesterday was to define how far along she
was. I repeatedly told people she was only 80 or 85 percent of what I thought
was up to her top condition last year. That race proved it."
Zenyatta, on the other hand, exhibited her now classic style of racing.
Sitting last in the nine horse field, Zenyatta and jockey Mike Smith did not
begin to move past other horses until the far turn.
The two-time champion mare had to maneuver around horses down the stretch, but
eventually prevailed over Dance to My Tune by 1 1/4-lengths. Unlike Rachel who
was the overwhelming 1-20 favorite, Zenyatta was the 3-10 favorite in the
1 1/8-mile Santa Margarita Invitational.
"Everybody really loves her," owner Jerry Moss said about Zenyatta.
"Everybody's so pleased to have her back and to root for her, and when she
wins, she makes everybody happy. It's sort of like something going on inside
each and every one of us. She's perfect. She's the idol of perfection we all
strive for. That's about as profound as I get.
"We're disappointed that we're not going to be able to face each other in the
Apple Blossom. Hopefully, we can meet down the line. We respect both Steve
(Asmussen) and Mr. Jackson as horsemen and they're going to do what's right
for their horse. That's all anybody could ask for. We'll go on to the Apple
Blossom as planned."
The Apple Blossom will now revert to its original $500,000 purse due to the
absence of Rachel Alexandra. Oaklawn Park did everything it could to
facilitate a meeting between the two champions. The race was originally
scheduled for April 3, but was pushed back six days to accommodate both
parties.
The question now is whether Rachel is going race again this year? It appeared
on Saturday that she was capable of winning, but jockey Calvin Borel felt the
filly simply needed the race.
"We had talked about her being 75 or 85 percent fit," trainer Steve Asmussen
said. "The filly got tired but she cooled out fine and came back well from it;
it's just a case if we can move forward in a positive direction fitness-wise,
as well as with everything else. Her physical condition and her state of mind
are what we need to concern ourselves with and we'll address that moving
forward."
As has always been the case Jess Jackson is in no hurry to have Rachel race
before she shows she is ready.
"It's up to her," Jackson commented. "She has to show us that she's back up to
her '09 form. We had progressively accelerated her conditioning and it didn't
work, so we're going to gear back, let her develop at her own pace. I can't
give you a prediction as to when, but it might take a couple of months."
While the racing world is anxious to have Rachel and Zenyatta meet, we have to
commend Mr. Jackson and his crew for their diligence in keeping the filly's
health primary.
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Eastern Conference Playoff Betting Trends
We all know by now that the “public” loves to put their money on the FAVORITES and the OVERS. Just by taking a quick glance at Sportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends” it appears as is this tendency will continue as far as the Eastern Conference games are concerned. For the inaugural games of the first round, 69% of the early money is on Toronto -4.5; 59% of bettors prefer Chicago -4.5; 84% are backing Detroit -9; and 56% think Cleveland -11.5 is the way to go. As far as TOTALS are concerned, the only UNDER the “public” is backing is the Cleveland/ Washington game in which 83% are pounding the UNDER (190). Remember, there is no better way to predict a possible line change than by monitoring MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”. By determining who the “public” is backing, you can get the most ideal line for your bet. For example, if you are siding with the public you better place your bet before the line moves in the wrong direction. On the other side of the coin, if you prefer the team that the “public” is betting against; you might be able to get and extra ½ or even more by placing your bet a bit later. Under the “Betting Trends” section, Sportsbook.com also provides plenty of statistical data and trends in order for the bettor to make the most informed pick. Below are some extremely important trends for the first round opponents of the Eastern Conference match-ups, more can be found at MySportsbook.com
New Jersey Nets vs. Toronto Raptors
Toronto was the most reliable covering team this season with a 48-33-1 ATS record but covered the OVER only 41.5% of the time.
The last 20 times these teams have played, the TOTAL has gone UNDER 16 times.
Versus Eastern Conference teams, Toronto is 33-19 ATS including 17-9 at home.
New Jersey has covered four games in a row while Toronto has failed to cover their last four games.
When playing a team with a winning record during the second half of the season, New Jersey was just 5-13 ATS this season.
After scoring 105 points or more, Toronto has covered the OVER only 28% of the time this season.
Miami Heat @ Chicago Bulls
Miami has failed to cover their last 7 games whereas Chicago has covered 6 out of their last 8 games.
Miami has covered the UNDER in four of their last five games whereas Chicago has covered the UNDER in five out of their last six.
When playing on Saturdays, Miami covered 80% of their games this season.
Away from home, Chicago is just 16-25 ATS this season.
At home, Miami covered the UNDER about 66% of the time whereas Chicago covered the UNDER about 61% of the time.
The last 13 times these teams have played each other, Chicago has covered 9 times.
In Miami’s last 11 road games, the UNDER covered 9 times.
Orlando Magic @ Detroit Pistons
Detroit has covered 5 out of their last 6 games.
Away from home, Detroit is 28-13 ATS but just 14-26-1 ATS at home.
At home, Orlando covered the UNDER 64% of the time while Detroit covered the UNDER in 63% of their away games.
The last five times these teams have played in Detroit, the OVER covered each time.
Versus Eastern Conference teams, Detroit is 8-17-1 ATS at home but 17-9 ATS away.
Detroit covered the spread 5 out of the last 6 times they played Orlando.
After a Division game, Orlando covered the UNDER 87% of the time this season.
Washington Wizards @ Cleveland Cavaliers
In a home game where the TOTAL is between 190 and 194.5 points, Cleveland is 9-1 ATS this season.
Washington has covered the UNDER in their last 6 games and in 8 of their last 9 games.
The last 6 times these teams have played each other, the UNDER covered each time.
When playing on 3 or more days of rest, Washington is just 18-37 ATS since 1996.
Since 1996, Washington is 28-16 ATS versus Cleveland including 11-5 over the last 3 seasons.
In their last 7 road games, Washington is 6-1 ATS.
Versus Eastern Conference teams at home, Washington is just 6-18-2 ATS.
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