2012 Kentucky Derby Countdown

Horseracing Betting Lines

01/16/2012 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hansen and Union Rags ran their hearts out last November in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile with the former defeating the latter by a diminishing head. Hansen comes into 2012 undefeated in three starts while Union Rags has three wins in four tries.

Will either colt be able to bring home the roses on the first Saturday in May? If recent history is a guide, the answer is a resounding no. The last horse that finished first or second in the "Two-Year-Old of the Year" voting to make any noise in the Kentucky Derby was five years ago when Street Sense prevailed under Calvin Borel.

Hansen, who will make his three-year-old debut in the Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park in less than two weeks, did nothing wrong as a two-year-old. However, his running style (on the lead) and pedigree (both top and bottom) will prevent him from being a major player on May 5th.

Union Rags has a much more reasonable chance of crossing the finish line first at Churchill Downs, but in order to do so, he must correct his tendency to drift out through the stretch, something that has troubled him in two of four career races. In fact, had he run a straight course down the long Churchill stretch in the Juvenile, he would have defeated Hansen and remained unbeaten heading into 2012.

The son of Dixie Union will have just two starts before the Kentucky Derby beginning with the Fountain of Youth Stakes in late February, followed by the Florida Derby five weeks before the first Saturday in May.

One colt that should not be overlooked is Creative Cause. The third-place finisher (beaten only a length) in the BC Juvenile has lost only twice in five lifetime attempts. Nevertheless, there are question marks about his ability to get the 1 1/4-mile distance and the February 19th San Vicente Stakes at seven- furlongs will not provide any legitimate answers.

Trainer Todd Pletcher has his usual highly-rated bunch of three-year-olds aimed for Kentucky with Discreet Dancer, Gemologist and Algorithms leading the way.

Discreet Dancer is undefeated in two starts, including a track record performance in his debut. After winning that race by 9 3/4-lengths, the son of Discreet Cat overpowered an entry-level allowance field by 5 1/2-lengths, while running the mile in a solid 1:36 1/5.

His capacity to handle nine or even 10 furlongs remains an issue since his sire (Discreet Cat) was a miler and his dam's only other foal (Travelin Man) was a sprinter. Pletcher doesn't know when Discreet Dancer will run next but it's obvious a stakes appearance is in order.

Gemologist, as is the case with Union Rags, will make just two starts prior to the Derby. The WinStar Farm colt concluded his two-year-old campaign with an impressive victory over favored Ever So Lucky in the Kentucky Jockey Club. Gemologist has won two of his three races around two turns and since he is sired by Tiznow (whose progeny usually improve as they get older), look for him to be a major player on the road to Kentucky.

Algorithms has started just twice in his young career but both times the son of Bernardini proved best. He rolled by over five lengths in his debut last summer at Belmont Park and then hit the winner's circle once again at Gulfstream Park on December 16th defeating the highly-rated Consortium by a length. He is a little bit behind the early contenders since he has yet to race further than 6 1/2-furlongs. However, the bay colt will meet up with Hansen in the one-mile Holy Bull Stakes later this month to prove he belongs.

OTHER POSSIBLE CHALLENGERS

Creative Cause is not the only star in California as Liaison, Out of Bounds, and Sky Kingdom could all become Kentucky Derby starters if they remain healthy.

Liaison has won back-to-back, two-turn, stakes events but questions will always come up about the 1 1/4-mile distance since Indian Charlie is his sire. Remember all the talk last spring about Uncle Mo (also sired by Indian Charlie) and how he failed miserably as the distances increased.

Out of Bounds was never involved in his initial race last October, but the Eoin Harty-trained colt has rebounded with a pair of victories, including the one-mile Sham Stakes at Santa Anita.

Sent off as the surprising 10-1 fourth choice, Out of Bounds collared the 1-2 favorite Secret Circle in the stretch to win by a half-length while completing the mile in 1:34 2/5 seconds. His next start will be the San Felipe Stakes on March 10th, followed by the Santa Anita Derby in early April.

Out of Bounds should be capable of winning at nine furlongs as his half- brother Etched and dam Unbridled Elaine had done so on multiple occasions. The big test will come in the 1 1/4-mile Kentucky Derby.

The 10-furlong distance will not be a problem for Sky Kingdom, who has won two of three races around two turns. The son of Empire Maker recently scored the easiest of victories in his first start on dirt as he mowed down Smart Ellis by 4 1/2-lengths, a number that could have been closer to 10 if jockey Martin Garcia had asked him for more through the stretch.

Previously, Sky Kingdom had run fourth in the Cash Call Futurity, a very good effort considering he was bumped at the start, which caused him to race further off the pace than usual.

As previously mentioned, Sky Kingdom is one of the few Kentucky Derby contenders bred for the 1 1/4-mile distance. His dam, Sky Beam, is a full- sister to 2008 Travers Stakes runner-up Mambo in Seattle, and his second dam, Weekend in Seattle, is a full-sister to 1992 Horse of the Year, A.P. Indy.

Other three-year-olds to watch in the coming month are Alpha, Sabercat, Rousing Sermon, Ever So Lucky, Brother Francis, I'll Have Another, Casual Trick, Fed Biz, Blingo, and Consulado.

JEFF FRANK'S INITIAL 2012 "DIRTY DOZEN"

1) Sky Kingdom; 2) Union Rags; 3) Algorithms; 4) Gemologist; 5) Discreet Dancer; 6) Hansen; 7) Alpha; 8) Out of Bounds; 9) Liaison; 10) Creative Cause; 11) Consortium; 12) Sabercat

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American Idol odds : Blake Lewis the Early Standout

An important American Idol betting lines recap from February 20 Guys episode. The 12 men came out flat overall with Blake Lewis appearing to have the early edge after the first hour and a half.

Rudy - was quite good singing "Free Ride" to start off.  Randy was not impressed though.  Paula thought he started off fantastic.  "Never had anyone stop off so lively" said Paula but Simon (who does not like Rudy) does not feel he has a distinct voice and was not impressed either. 

Brandon was a little pitchy according to Randy and Paula agreed.  Simon said he was a good singer but the song was "too safe" and he needs to make an impact.  He was listed at +1200 odds or $1200 paid out on a $100 bet should he win the competition. 

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Beat boxer Blake Lewis was listed with early +1000 odds or $1000 payout on a $100 bet if he were to become the next American Idol winner odds .  These of course were the early odds.  He was considered original for picking an "odd song".  He did not beat box and the judges felt it was the best vocal of the night. 

Sanjaya came in as the second biggest favorite after Chris Sligh but his performance Tuesday night was not very good. 

Chris Sleigh was the early favorite at +450 odds.  Great voice and a great sense of humor.  He's a real standout.  Randy felt it was on point but maybe ahead of the chorus a little bit.  Simon Cowell said he felt like he was in some "sort of weird student gig". 

Jared Cotter followed.  He was listed with +2000 odds early on to win the competition.  The judges felt he needs to take more risks but looked good. 

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Tomorrow night, the ladies perform and I sure hope they do a better job than the boys.  Check out all the American Idol betting odds here.

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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

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