Horse Race Handicapping – More than the Big Three

Here are three more things you can look into when handicapping horses.

1. Race Conditions – Does the horse that you are looking to wager on legit on the surface and distance in the race? Horses that are in good form, have good ability, and are in the class to win the race tend to get beat when they run in races that do not suit their style. There are some horses that can easily move to sprints and from dirt to turf and there are other horses that can’t. Before you bail on a contender you should be sure that they will be able to handle the race conditions.

2. Connections – Even in horse racing the human aspect of the equation is important. While it is the case that a good jockey and a good trainer still can’t win on a bad horse, you need to take the bad ones out of the equation. However, solid horses can be beat by a poor decision by a jockey who simply can’t saddle the horse right. Take horses that are either trained or ridden by low percentage stables or jockeys. You should also look hard at short priced types of horses that are trained by either jockeys or trainers that are going through a racing slump. Just like with athletes from any sport, jockeys, as well as trainers, will go through a slump. Don’t just look at the horse, as the human factor needs to be looked into as well.

3. Breeding – Analyzing the pedigree of a horse only really significant when closely looking into a horse that has had little no chances to show what they can do under the condition of that certain race. 1st time starting horses that are bred for speed versus horses bred for the long run, or sprinters trying to run longer, or dirt type horses that move to turf. The only time you should really take breeding into consideration is when a possible contending horse has gone through the first 5 steps. When betting on a “on the come” horse you need to get good value and also be willing to wager against, or pass on the race, when the favorite horses have not proved they can run in the race you are looking to bet on. This is even the case even if the pedigree of the horse states that they can deal with the situation. Simply because the horse is bred to handle the situation it does not mean that they will.