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02/17/2012 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Saturday marks the return to competition for 2011 Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom after eight months on the sidelines. The 4-year-old colt last raced in the Belmont Stakes in June.
Owner Team Valor International and trainer Graham Motion made a surprise move on Wednesday by entering the champion colt in a $60,000 allowance race on the turf at Gulfstream Park for Saturday. The 1 1/16-mile grass race has a six- horse field with none of the other five starters having close to Animal Kingdom's credentials.
Early this month, the colt's connections announced that the Eclipse Award winner would hit the track in the Tampa Bay Stakes on February 25 to begin his 2012 season.
"He (Motion) would have worked the horse seven furlongs next Monday to get him ready for the Tampa race, but for this kind of allowance race, I think the horse will be fine on Saturday," Team Valor president Barry Irwin said. "He's doing super, but we don't want him to be too primed for a big race first time back. We want him to get something out of the race, not leave his Dubai World Cup race on the course."
Animal Kingdom will have the services again of jockey John Velazquez for the colt's second start on the turf. Motion is using the grass race as a prep for the $10 million Dubai World Cup on March 31.
"I believe that I'm running him with the bare minimum of works that I would want to run him with. But with this race being this weekend, it gives me six weeks to Dubai, which I think gives me ample time for him to recover from the race," Motion indicated. "In whatever race we ran him in, the objective of running him was to get him to Dubai in the best possible shape.
"The problem with waiting until next weekend at Tampa is that it would be the only option I would have before running in Dubai. If for some reason we had bad weather like we had last weekend, I wouldn't have a backup plan. That's what's so attractive running this week."
Animal Kingdom was voted the 2011 champion 3-year-old male despite not having started the second half of the year. After finishing second in an allowance race last March at Gulfstream, the colt captured the Spiral Stakes at Turfway Park.
For the Run for the Roses, Animal Kingdom was a 20-1 long shot in the 19-horse field. Ridden by Velazquez, he powered down the stretch to a 2 3/4-length victory over Nehro.
The Preakness, two weeks after the Derby, saw Animal Kingdom go off as the 2-1 favorite versus 13 rivals. Following a slow start, Velazquez got the colt rolling, but missed by a half length from catching Shackleford and jockey Jesus Castanon.
The Belmont Stakes was a lost effort for Animal Kingdom. He finished sixth, nearly 10 lengths behind Ruler On Ice. It was later discovered he had suffered an injury that ended his 3-year-old season.
"I believe he is a special horse that did not get to show how good he was, and I hope he gets that chance this year," Motion said. "This is just a start, but it doesn't all have to happen this weekend. But I hope he gets a chance this year to show what a super horse he is."
In seven career starts, Animal Kingdom has three wins and an equal number of seconds for more than $1.9 million in purses.
<< Magic entertain Bucks at Amway Center
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Orlando Magic take aim at a fourth straight win this
evening when they conclude a three-game homestand versus the Milwaukee Bucks
at Amway Center.
The Magic continued to roll on Wednesday, as Ryan Anderson scored
<< Rounding Third: In Carter, baseball loses one of its good guys
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Growing up in New York whether you were a
fan of the Yankees or the Mets, it was hard not to get caught up with what was
going on at Shea Stadium in the Summer of 1986.
A big reason for the excitement that
<< Wizards pay a visit to Jazz
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Washington will resume a five-game road trip on Friday
against the Utah Jazz at EnergySolutions Arena.
After winning during the first two stops on their trip against the Pistons and
Blazers, the Wizards were tripped
<< Lakers open home-and-home set with Suns
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pacific Division rivals renew hostilities at Staples Center
on Friday when the Los Angeles Lakers open up a home-and-home series with the
Phoenix Suns.
Fresh off a 3-3 Grammy Road Trip the Lakers returned to SoCal on Tu
Hornets try to stop Lin, Knicks at MSG >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Some think New Orleans will put an end to the Lin-sanity
that has engulfed New York City on Friday. Others think it will eventually be
Carmelo Anthony.
The thought was Jeremy Lin and Anthony could be in the star
J.R. Smith bound for New York >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Free agent swingman J.R. Smith used social media to reveal
who he'll be playing for this season, tweeting on Friday, "New York Knicks It
Is!"
There has been no official word from the Knicks yet.
Smith, who recently r
Mertesacker out 'for a while' >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger revealed
Friday that defender Per Mertesacker will be out for unspecified period of
time after undergoing surgery to repair an ankle problem.
The German defender sus
Almagro reaches Brasil Open semis >>
Sao Paulo, Brazil (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top seed and defending champion
Nicolas Almagro was an easy quarterfinal winner Friday at the $475,300 Brasil
Open.
The Spanish Almagro cruised past fifth-seeded Argentine Carlos Berlocq 6-3,
6-2 in
Super Bowl XLIII isn't even a week old yet and oddsmakers have already released Super Bowl XLIV odds.
Despite the Pittsburgh Steelers winning Super Bowl 43, the New England Patriots are 8/1 favorites to win Super Bowl 44.
Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds
With their 27-23 victory over the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII, the Steelers became the latest NFL champion. But believe it or not, oddsmakers from online sports book MySportsbook.com don't have the Steelers the favorites to win Super Bowl XLIV next season.
That honor belongs to the New England Patriots, who are 8/1 favorites to win despite not even qualify for the postseason in 2008. The Pats also have a major decision to make regarding what to do with Matt Cassel, who played well in Tom Brady's (knee surgery) absence last year but is also a free agent this offseason.
Ironically, the Steelers aren't even oddsmakers second choice to win Super Bowl 44, as the Dallas Cowboys are listed right behind the Patriots at 9/1 despite not making the playoffs themselves. Clearly oddsmakers think the public will hop back on the Cowboys' bandwagon considering the immense talent they have and the opening of a brand new stadium.
After Dallas, then comes Pittsburgh at 10/1, but they share those odds with the New York Giants, who won Super Bowl XLII. The Indianapolis Colts and San Diego Chargers round out the top six teams at 12/1, while the Baltimore Ravens (14/1), Tennessee Titans (16/1), Carolina Panthers (18/1) and Philadelphia Eagles (18/1) complete the top 10.
The NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals got no love from oddsmakers as they were established as a 30/1 long shot to win next year's Super Bowl. They share those same odds with the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers – two teams that didn't even qualify for the postseason. Other long shots are the Kansas City Chiefs (100/1), Detroit Lions (100/1), St. Louis Rams (75/1) and Oakland Raiders (75/1).
To see a complete list of all the team's odds to win Super Bowl XLIV, check below.
NFL TEAM FUTURE ODDS TO WIN SUPER BOWL XLIV
New England Patriots 8/1
Dallas Cowboys 9/1
New York Giants 10/1
Pittsburgh Steelers 10/1
Indianapolis Colts 12/1
San Diego Chargers 12/1
Baltimore Ravens 14/1
Tennessee Titans 16/1
Carolina Panthers 18/1
Philadelphia Eagles 18/1
New Orleans Saints 20/1
Atlanta Falcons 25/1
Denver Broncos 25/1
Green Bay Packers 25/1
Jacksonville Jaguars 25/1
Minnesota Vikings 25/1
New York Jets 25/1
Arizona Cardinals 30/1
Chicago BearS 30/1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30/1
Buffalo Bills 35/1
Houston TexaNS 35/1
Miami Dolphins 35/1
Washington Redskins 35/1
Seattle SeahawkS 50/1
Cleveland Browns 55/1
Cincinnati Bengals 60/1
San Francisco 49ers 60/1
Oakland Raiders 75/1
St. Louis Rams 75/1
Detroit Lions 100/1
Kansas City Chiefs 100/1
Odds as of: 2/2/09
Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds
To visit this online sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.
“You play to win the game!”
Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.
The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.
The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.
Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?
Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.
Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.
Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.
Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.
The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.
Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.
Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.
This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.
First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”
The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason.
Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football wagering needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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