Big Truck Upsets War Pass in Tampa Bay Derby

Posted on Saturday, March 15th, 2008

The 1-20 horse betting favorite War Pass shockingly finished last in the $300,000 Tampa Bay Derby on Saturday, March 15, at Tampa Bay Downs where Big Truck led by a neck over Atoned.

The Tampa Bay Derby was the first loss of War Pass, one of the leading 2008 Kentucky Derby contenders trained by Nick Zito for owner Robert LaPenta.

War Pass was scheduled for a final 2008 Kentucky Derby prep, the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct in New York on April 5, but LaPenta said the plan would be re-evaluated.

Big Truck, who ran second to the Nick Zito-trained Fierce Wind in the Sam F. Davis at this track on February 16, likely won’t run again until the 2008 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 3.

Big Truck, trained by Barclay Tagg and purchased for $90,000 by Eric Fein, returned $16.40, $5.80 and $25.20. Second place Atoned, trained by Todd Pletcher, paid $6.60 and $27.80. Dynamic Wayne paid $76.40 to show.

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Churchill Downs Horse Betting Service via Internet Delayed

Posted on Sunday, April 29th, 2007

Churchill Downs’ very own Internet enabled advanced deposit wagering (ADW) system won’t be available to horse racing bettors in time for the track’s opening day. However, Churchill officials are hopefult to resolve issues in time for the 2007 Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby.

The debut of Churchill Downs Inc.???s account wagering service will be delayed until next week, the company announced late this afternoon.

The TwinSpires service, www.twinspires.com, had been expected to debut in time for today???s opening of the spring meet at the company???s Louisville track.

The company hopes to have the issue resolved within a few days so its up and running before the May 4 Kentucky Oaks and May 5 Kentucky Derby.

Churchill???s races will be available through AmericaTAB affiliated wagering sites and Magna Entertainment Corp.???s XpressBet.

During final pre-launch testing ???an issue arose with one of the vendors that supports the site,??? Vernon Niven, a Churchill executive vice president and president of TwinSpires, said in a statement. ???This is a minor issue that in no way impacts the integrity of wagering with TwinSpires, nor the ability to place wagers through TwinSpires online and telephone processes??? full story

Here’s hoping that Churchill Downs will be able to fix the problems with its online horse betting service or the horse bettors will be left out in the cold especially since Youbet cannot offer bets on the Kentucky Derby. Offshore racebooks are still able to offer wagers on the Kentucky Derby, AllHorseRacing offers a Free Bet on the Kentucky Derby and Bodog Racebook has a 2007 Breeders Cup package prize to lucky horse bettors.

tags: Churchill Downs, Horse Betting, Kentucky Derby

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Tampa Bay Bans Seven Jockeys Amid Probe

Posted on Wednesday, December 20th, 2006

Tampa Bay Downs ruled off seven jockeys effective Dec. 19 because of what management called an “ongoing investigation” being conducted by the Thoroughbred Racing Protective Bureau. Officials at the track on Florida’s Gulf Coast said Jorge G. Bracho, Derek C. Bell, Luis A. Castillo, Jose H. Delgado, Terry D. Houghton, Joseph C. Judice, and Ricardo A. Valdes have been refused access to the facility “for an indefinite period of time based on its rights as a private property owner.”

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Deputy Glitters Upsets Bluegrass Cat in Tampa Bay Derby

Posted on Monday, March 20th, 2006

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Deputy Glitters turned the tables on favorite Bluegrass Cat by winning the Tampa Bay Derby on Saturday and joined to road to the Kentucky Derby.

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Bluegrass Cat Bound for Tampa Bay Derby

Posted on Friday, March 17th, 2006

Todd Pletcher-trained Bluegrass Cat, who currently leads theTriple Crown candidates, makes his second start of the 2006 season at Tampa Bay Downs in the $250,000 Tampa Bay Derby (gr. III) Saturday.The 1 1/16-mile Tampa Bay Derby, which attracted a field of nine, is one of four stakes on the 13-race program.

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Road to the Roses Features $1 Million Saturday

Posted on Tuesday, March 14th, 2006

Saturday’s racing spotlight will be on four different tracks where a dozen of the Top 25 3-year-olds will attempt to make their case to stay on the Road to the Roses. All four graded stakes, worth at least a total of $1 million, are 1 1/16 miles…

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Tampa Bay Downs To Boost Purses

Posted on Wednesday, March 8th, 2006

Tampa Bay Downs, in conjunction with the track’s Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association division, will boost purses for all overnight races on Festival Day, March 18, by 35%. The increase, which amounts to $5,000 per race, is expected to increase to more than $850,000 the total purse money that will be paid out that day, including stakes and breeders’ monies.

"We are trying to make the afternoon even bigger by increasing our overnight purses with the belief that field size and mutuel handle will increase substantially," said vice president and general manager Peter Berube. "We expect the response from horsemen and the public to be very positive and our goal is to come up with one of the best cards of the entire year."

Last year’s total Festival Day handle of $6,889,834 represented an increase from the previous year of more than $1.5 million and this season’s prep card for Festival Day, headlined by the Sam F. Davis Stakes, has already posted record co-mingled mutuel handle of $7,430,768.

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