Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn has field of nine

Horseracing Betting Lines

04/07/2010 - Hot Springs, AR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rebel Stakes runner-up Noble's Promise tops a field of nine Kentucky Derby hopefuls for Saturday's $1 million Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park. The 1 1/8-mile race has a post-time of 5:45 p.m. (et).

Owned by Chasing Dreams Racing, the colt will start from post three with Robby Albarado returning to ride. Noble's Promise is trained by Ken McPeek and is 2-1 in the morning-line.

"I'm pretty sure that this horse can handle running here," said assistant trainer Walter Blum, Jr., "then back in the (Kentucky) Derby in three weeks. He's a very tough horse. He had a nick on his ankle after winning the Breeders' Futurity at Keeneland. But it didn't really stop him before the Breeders' Cup, where he was third."

Noble's Promise has won three of seven career starts for $793,500. In 2008 he won the Fitz Dixon Stakes at Presque Isle Downs and Keeneland's Breeders' Futurity Stakes. Following his third in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile he was second in the CashCall Futurity to Lookin At Luck who won the Rebel Stakes.

Blum, who was the regular exercise rider for 2008 Kentucky Derby champ Big Brown, favorably compares the two colts.

"He's just as good, if not better," Blum said of Noble's Promise. "He doesn't have the bad feet that Big Brown had, but that's what made him special, in that he overcame so much. He (Big Brown) was better suited for the turf, so that made his wins on the dirt special, too. Noble can run on grass, poly or dirt. He could probably run over broken glass."

Super Saver, the third-place finisher in the Tampa Bay Derby, has been made the 9-5 favorite for the 74th Arkansas Derby. The three-year-old colt will start from the inside post with Calvin Borel riding.

Trained by Todd Pletcher, Super Saver is owned by WinStar Farm. The colt was making his 2010 debut in the Tampa Bay Derby where he was the 3-2 favorite. After setting the early pace he faded down the stretch to finish behind Odysseus and Schoolyard Dreams.

Last year he won the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill Downs after finishing fourth at Belmont Park in the Champagne. Super Saver has earned $201,232 in five career starts with two wins.

Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas sends out Dublin in the Arkansas Derby. Third in the Rebel, Dublin will break from post two with Terry Thompson in the saddle. The chestnut colt is the third choice at 7-2.

Owned by Robert Baker and William Mack, Dublin began the year by finishing second to Conveyance in Oaklawn's Southwest Stakes. The colt has earned $308,623 with two wins in seven starts. His only stakes victory was the Hopeful at Saratoga last September.

Here is the complete field for the Arkansas Derby in post position order: Super Saver, Calvin Borel, 9-5; Dublin, Terry Thompson, 7-2; Noble's Promise, Robby Albarado, 2-1: Northern Giant, Victor Espinoza, 8-1; Uh Oh Bango, Shaun Bridgmohan, 15-1; New Madrid, Abel Castellano, Jr., 20-1; Berberis, Aaron Gryder, 30-1; Line of David, Jon Court, 15-1 and Pulsion, Corey Nakatani, 15-1.

The Arkansas Derby will be televised on NBC along with the Blue Grass Stakes from Keeneland.

Wwwtechweb Horseracing Betting News

<< Bengals re-sign OL Cook
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cincinnati Bengals announced Wednesday center Kyle Cook has signed a one-year tender contract for 2010. Cook started all 16 games at center for the Bengals in 2009. The 26-year-old Michigan State pro

<< Eagles' OL Cole signs one-year tender
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Philadelphia Eagles offensive lineman Nick Cole has signed a one-year tender contract for the 2010 season. Cole started all 16 games for the Eagles in 2009. He appeared in nine games at right guard and s

<< Garcia-Lopez, Serra reach Casablanca quarters
Casablanca, Morocco (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Second-seeded Guillermo Garcia-Lopez and 2009 runner-up Florent Serra were a pair of second-round winners Wednesday at the Grand Prix Hassan II tennis tournament. The Spanish Garcia-Lopez leveled

<< KC's Zoltan faces lengthy spell on sidelines
Kansas City, KS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kansas City Wizards striker Zoltan Hercegfalvi is expected to miss the next five to eight months after tearing his ACL in an exhibition game against A.C. St. Louis on Saturday. The 30-year-old

<< Abidal sidelined by thigh injury
Barcelona, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Barcelona defender Eric Abidal has been ruled out of Saturday's showdown with Real Madrid after he suffered a thigh injury in Tuesday's 4-1 win over Arsenal in the Champions League. Abidal was replac

Salmons has become NBA's Mr. Fix-it >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - John Salmons is no superstar, but he is a 6-foot-6 wing player with solid offensive skills and the ability to match up on the defensive end with the NBA's top scorers. He's also become the league's version

Bosh ruled out for Wednesday >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Toronto Raptors All-Star forward Chris Bosh has been ruled out for Wednesday's game against Boston after suffering multiple fractures to the right side of his face in Tuesday's loss to Clevela

TFC original Brennan announces retirement >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Toronto FC announced on Wednesday that defender Jim Brennan has retired and will be moving upstairs to take on the role of assistant manager, working alongside Mo Johnston "Jim Brennan was my first signin

Phils bring back P Figueroa >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Phillies added a familiar face to the team on Wednesday, claiming right-hander Nelson Figueroa off waivers from the New York Mets. The 35-year-old spent parts of the 2001 seas

Nash resigns at St. Francis College >>
Brooklyn Heights, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - St. Francis College announced the resignation of men's basketball coach Brian Nash on Wednesday. Nash cited personal reasons for his departure after five years at the helm. The Terriers finish

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. 

Big favorite Sundance came in with a flat version of "Knights in White Satin" and the judges let him have it, including Paula.  Randy claimed the song was out of pitch throughout.

Korean American - and a Jenny Woo favorite - Paul Kim was up next.  Another pitchy flat one but Randy said he still liked his potential.  Kim at +3000 odds was said to have sung a "third rate version of that (George Michael) song" according to Simon Cowell.  He sang "Careless Whisper".

22 year old Chris Richardson was up next.  He was listed with +1100 odds coming in.  He got the best response from the judges though Simon did not believe the vocal was that great. 

Nick was boring and pitchy.  Simon didn't think he was that bad though and predicted he would be back next week.  Nick Pedro was a big +3000 dog coming into this competition. 

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. 

22-year old AJ Talbado, who has tried out for American Idol five times, was up next.  "Kind of a theme park performance" said Simon.  Though the judges felt he performed okay.  Simon did feel AJ might be better than he originally thought.

Phil - this season's military favorite - came into this competition with +1200 odds to win the competition.  He was the last to perform.  He was certainly strong enough to get through this stage of the competition and perhaps the best one after a shaky start. 

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.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.