Presenting Noel Michaels’ Weekend Selections, your definitive source for prime weekend wagers and targeted picks from seasoned handicapper and tournament-play innovator Noel Michaels. Return weekly for a pair of featured choices crafted to assist you in securing some payouts and accumulating funds. Noel’s predictions have been disseminated across nearly all platforms offering horse racing advice, including print publications such as the Daily Racing Form, The HorsePlayer Magazine, and American Turf Monthly; online at DRF.com, Twinspires.com, and USRacing.com; from the trackside paddock at Arlington International Racecourse; and on broadcast media like HRTV, TVG, NYC OTB Extra, NYRA’s Talking Horses, and television channels WAVE-3 Louisville, ABC KOLO-8 in Reno, Nevada, and channel 72 Long Island Cablevision.
Six Introductory Wagering Resources
- Commence simply with an approachable handbook on placing bets in horse racing.
- Uncertain of a term’s meaning? Horse racing jargon constitutes its own unique dialect. Allow us to decipher it for you.
- What precisely is a speed rating? This foundational guide to speed ratings encompasses all necessary information.
- Engaging in horse race wagering can be daunting. Team ABR has compiled a set of recommendations and prohibitions for new enthusiasts entering race betting.
- Everyone commits errors when it comes to betting on horse racing; here are eight insights gleaned from practical experience.
- Pre-calculate the cost of each wager with our Betting Estimator, brought to you by NYRA Bets.
Some of the premier racing and betting opportunities this Saturday are located at Tampa Bay Downs, which presents an 11-race agenda featuring four stakes events, including the $250,000 Sam F. Davis Stakes for three-year-olds on their journey to the Kentucky Derby, Sponsored by Woodford Reserve. For this weekend’s successful predictions, let us examine the two stakes races that form Tampa’s late daily double on Saturday: the Sam F. Davis Stakes and the $125,000 Pelican Stakes for sprinters. Should we accurately forecast the victors of these two races and combine them in daily doubles, we anticipate leaving with full wallets this Saturday. Wishing you good fortune.
Saturday, Feb. 7
Tampa Bay Downs, Race 10, $125,000 Pelican Stakes, scheduled start 5 p.m. ET
The Pelican Stakes has attracted a collection of nine swift sprinters slated to contend over six furlongs on the primary track. #6 Silver Slugger enters this contest riding a current four-race winning streak, including two consecutive triumphs at Tampa Bay Downs. He exemplifies an ideal Tampa course specialist with eight victories in nine career appearances at this track, predominantly over the six-furlong distance. Silver Slugger’s two most recent wins, which included earning a 91 Beyer Speed Figure in a 2 ¼-length triumph last time, were achieved from closely tracking positions, and this capacity to win without taking the early lead positions him perfectly within this fast-paced field. #8 Chrome Ghost is another contender exhibiting exceptional form, arriving with back-to-back recent victories, and is expected to maintain a favorable stalking position just off the pace, demonstrating sufficient speed to win based on his 90 and 91 Beyers in those latest two outings. If you are seeking a third horse in the lineup with potential for more generous odds on the tote board, particularly for exacta and trifecta wagers, a promising option is #1 Rolando, a horse possessing considerable sprint capability who has not recently had many optimal six-furlong sprint opportunities. He claimed victory in Gulfstream Park’s $100,000 Hutcheson Stakes at six furlongs last year and suffered a defeat in a $300,000 stakes race at Mahoning Valley in his last start due to an unfavorable trip. He is skilled enough to challenge in this situation and might be overlooked by bettors.
The Recommended Wager: Place a bet on #6 Silver Slugger (4-1) to win and include him in exacta and trifecta box combinations along with #1 Rolando (6-1) and #8 Chrome Ghost (10-1). If you are participating in the final daily double, pair Silver Slugger and Chrome Ghost from this race with #6 Renegade in the concluding event.
Tampa Bay Downs, Race 11, $250,000 Sam F. Davis Stakes, scheduled start 5:30 p.m. ET
The Sam F. Davis Stakes has drawn a group of nine three-year-olds scheduled to cover 1 1/16 miles for a prize of $250,000 in a race that will allot Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the first five finishers. While numerous intriguing emerging talents are in the field, #6 Renegade already possesses valuable experience and is anticipated to be the horse to beat. Although Renegade is technically still a maiden, he has twice already competed effectively against Paladin, a horse widely regarded as one of the current leading Kentucky Derby prospects. Renegade was subjected to a debatable disqualification from a maiden victory over Paladin at Aqueduct two races prior and subsequently finished second to Paladin in a commendable effort in Aqueduct’s Grade 2 Remsen Stakes. Renegade showed some fatigue in the deep stretch during the longer Remsen Stakes, but should encounter no similar difficulties here at the 1 1/16-mile distance. Trainer Todd Pletcher has secured a record seven wins in the Sam F. Davis, and jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. is present for the ride. The other logical contender in the field will be #1 Confessional, representing trainer Brad Cox with Flavien Prat in the saddle. Confessional won his seven-furlong career debut at Keeneland and enters this race following a second-place finish at Gulfstream Park behind none other than Nearly, who proceeded to impressively win the Grade 3 Holy Bull Stakes in his subsequent outing. This will mark Confessional’s initial route attempt, and he must avoid being caught up in a fast early pace. Should Confessional ease off the early lead, that scenario could create an opportunity for #9 Dr. Kapur to maintain a prominent position up front for an extended period. Dr. Kapur’s maiden win was achieved in wire-to-wire fashion over Chip Honcho, who later won the Gun Runner Stakes, and he could contend for a portion of the purse in this race if unchallenged on the lead.
The Recommended Wager: Bet on #6 Renegade (8-5) to win and include him in an exacta box with #1 Confessional (2-1). For trifecta wagers, append #9 Dr. Kapur (5-1) to the concluding positions of your selections.
