Eight Belles Set to Race from No. 5 Post

With all the pressure on Big Brown, Eight Belles may be the big surprise. You go, girl!

The field for the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby is set, the post positions have been drawn. Holding down the outside position, Big Brown is the 3/1 morning line favorite heading into this weekend's big race. But over in the No. 5 position will be the only filly set to race in the Kentucky Derby: Eight Belles. Undefeated this year in four starts, including victories in the Fantasy, Honeybee and Martha Washington Stakes, Eight Belles should give bettors good value at 15/1 odds to win. If she does win, Eight Belles will become only the fourth filly to win the Kentucky Derby. Regret won it in 1915, Genuine Risk took it in 1980, and the last filly to win the Kentucky Derby was Winning Colors in 1988.

Listed below are the post positions for the 2008 Kentucky Derby, with Post Position, Horse, Jockey, Trainer, Morning-Line Odds:

1 Cool Coal Man, Julien Leparoux, Nick Zito, 20-1
2 Tale of Ekati, Eibar Coa, Barclay Tagg, 15-1
3 Anak Nakal, Raphael Bejarano, Nick Zito, 30-1
4 Court Vision, Garrett Gomez, Bill Mott, 20-1
5 Eight Belles (f), Gabriel Saez, Larry Jones, 15-1
6 Z Fortune, Robby Albarado, Steve Asmussen, 30-1
7 Big Truck, Javier Catellano, Barclay Tagg, 50-1
8 Visionaire, Jose Lezcano, Michael Matz, 20-1
9 Pyro, Shaun Bridgmohan, Steve Asmussen, 6-1
10 Colonel John, Corey Nakatani, Eoin Harty, 4-1
11 Z Humor, Rene Douglas, Bill Mott, 30-1
12 Smooth Air, Manoel Cruz, Bennie Stutts Jr., 20-1
13 Bob Jack Black, Rich Migliore, James Kasparoff, 20-1
14 Monba, Ramon Dominguez, Todd Pletcher, 15-1
15 Adriano, Edgar Prado, Graham Motion, 30-1
16 Denis of Cork, Calvin Borel, David Carroll, 20-1
17 Cowboy Cal, John Velazquez, Todd Pletcher, 20-1
18 Recapturetheglory, E.T. Baird, Louie Roussel, 20-1
19 Gayego, Mike Smith, Paulo Lobo, 15-1
20 Big Brown, Kent Desormeaux, Rick Dutrow Jr., 3-1

With only a few days to go, you don't have a lot of time left to get your Kentucky Derby betting in...don't miss out on the Fastest Two Minutes in Sports!

Technorati Tags: Kentucky Derby betting, Eight Belles

Nick Zito - Zee Man to Beat?

With three top 20 Kentucky Derby contenders headed to Churchill Downs on May 3, Hall of Fame trainer Nick Zito has a pretty good shot at taking another Derby trophy home this year (he's already got two).

Reigning 2-year-old champion War Pass and Fountain of Youth winner Cool Coal Man both have earned their way into the running and both have a fair shot at winning; and then there's Anak Nakal, winner of the Kentucky Jockey Club last fall at Churchill, who also remains on the list of top Kentucky Derby nominees.

And to think Zito began his career as a hot walker. (A hot walker is someone who walks horses post-exercising or post-race.) Zito's first big win was the 1990 Grade 1 Wood Memorial Stakes, and then that same year he earned a second place finish in the Belmont Stakes. In addition to two Derby wins, Zito has also won the Preakness and Belmont Stakes once each.

As a testament to his life's work within the horse racing industry, Zito was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2005 (that year his horses took in more than $8 million in purses).

What do you think? Does Zito have a winner this year? Get your Kentucky Derby odds while the gettin' is good.

Technorati tag: kentucky derby odds

Betting on the Final Four - NCAA Tournament

And you thought you were on pins and needles, waiting for this weekend's Final Four games. North Carolina junior Tyler Hansbrough can think of nothing else.

"It means a lot," said Hansbrough, who admits he's having one heck of a time lately trying to get any sleep; he keeps thinking about the upcoming game. "It's a goal we set out. Obviously, we beat some good teams to get here and we feel like we're playing really well. We want to keep on moving."

To keep moving, however, they'll have to stay ahead of the high-scoring Memphis Tigers.

UCLA Bruins vs. Memphis Tigers
Oddsmakers currently have the Tigers listed as 2½-point favorites versus the Bruins, while the game's total has not yet been posted.

Team records:
Memphis: 37-1 SU, 19-19 ATS
UCLA: 35-3 SU, 22-14-1 ATS

UNC Tar Heels vs. Kansas Jayhawks
Oddsmakers currently have the Tar Heels listed as 4-point favorites versus the Jayhawks, while the game's total has not yet been posted.

Team records:
Kansas: 35-3 SU, 19-15-2 ATS
North Carolina: 36-2 SU, 24-10-1 ATS


Your NCAA Final Four odds and college basketball lines are up. Get 'em while they're hot.

Technorati Tag(s): Final Four odds