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.

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Online Sportsbook Football Betting

Colts give the ‘D’ its due

The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.

They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.

"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."

Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.

New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.

Not so sound on the ground

If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.

Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com

“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.

Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.

Brees says bring it on

Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.

Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.

Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.

"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."

SportsBooks ready for a shootout

Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.

“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”

New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.

The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.

“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts US credit cards

Marlins could start season without No. 2 starter Johnson

JUPITER, Fla. -- The Foorida Marlins are preparing for the likelihood that right-hander
Josh Johnson won't be ready when the season starts April 2.

Grapefruit League action starts Wednesday, but Johnson, penciled in as the No. 2 starter, hasn't even thrown off a mound at full speed since September. He's experienced some soreness in his right forearm.

MySportsbook.com have the Marlins listed with baseball betting lines at +800 to win the NL East this season .

''You guys know the math. If he's not on the hill then he becomes an opening day roster issue,'' manager Fredi Gonzalez said Saturday. ''We're borderline now.''

Johnson, who finished 12-7 with a 3.10 ERA in 2007, was supposed to throw on flat ground Saturday. That was canceled when he woke up with pain.

He played catch on Wednesday with no pain but felt discomfort in a throwing session on Thursday. He's expected to try again Sunday.

''Like we always said from the very beginning, we're going to take it easy on him,'' Gonzalez said. ''He didn't feel right, so we shut him down. We're going to take it back to step one and see where we're at.''

Among the candidates to take Johnson's spot in the rotation are left-hander Chris George and right-handers Yusmeiro Petit and Jose Garcia.

Right-hander Sergio Mitre, who missed most of last season with arm and shoulder problems, also is behind.

With Johnson's status doubtful, Gonzalez said right-hander Ricky Nolasco will stay in the rotation and no longer will be considered a candidate for closer.

Additional basbeall odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

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