Horse betting will be adding another Mid-Summer Derby to its long and storied history. The first Mid-Summer Derby was held all the way back in 1864 and in the 146 derbies they’ve held since then, this year’s Travers Stakes might be the most open. The race will be hosted at the Saratoga Race Track in New York on the 3 year old 1 ¼ mile dirt track. Fans looking to tune in can do so on Saturday the 27th of August at 4:30 pm EST on NBC.
Exaggerator, mud-loving son of Curlin and 5-time stakes winner, will be the favorite at Saratoga likely due to the victories he enjoyed at the Santa Anita Derby, Preakness, and Haskell. Exaggerator has certainly been on an impressive streak this season but a quick glance at his performance during Belmont Stakes will prove that he’s beatable. Exaggerator struggled tremendously during that race and the Mid-Summer Derby may prove to be even more difficult. The son of Curlin may be a horse betting favorite but there will be plenty of fierce competition at Saratoga.
The race will be capped at 14 meaning that of the original 15 that were selected at the draw ceremony, one will have to sit out. Ultimately, the horse with the least graded stakes earning will have to rest on the also eligible list. There are a lot of great horses that have been drawn for this race and it would not be an overstatement to say that the Travers waters run deep this year. Let’s take a look at some of the best options to pull off a horse betting upset heading into Saturday’s race.
Almost as talented as his father is son of Twirling Candy, Gift Box. In fact it was Gift Box that dominated the field at Belmont Park, the race that showed Exaggerator’s weakness. This horse might have an edge over Exaggerator considering that he’s been trained by Chad Brown, one of the best trainers in the world. Gift Box has the speed to earn a tactical position early in the race, and the pure explosiveness to win it in the end. Coming in with 12-1 odds Gift Box will be the horse many punters back over Exaggerators 7-2 odds.
Although he wasn’t able to finish as strongly as he should have at Belmont Stakes, Governor Malibu’s performance early in the race shows there is promise in backing the son of Malibu Moon. While Malibu may not win at Traverse, his performance at Jim Dandy proves he is more than capable of placing. Many of the best betting websites agree as they have posted his odds at 8-1.
Destin was the horse that finished right behind Malibu at Jim Dandy. Destin’s 6-1 odds show that many are expecting him to finish in a similar manner. At the Mid-Summer Derby you can expect Destin to make a push for the lead, just like he did at Belmont. Destin’s strategy usually revolves around waiting to make his moves until he is heading into the far turn and it’s unusual that he’d deviate from his usual game plan.
