Nationwide Series Great Clips 300, Woodward Stakes at Saratoga Race Course

By JoeDuffy.net Administrator

It’s not all NCAA Football Odds betting Saturday. Super sportsbook Bodog knows that football sports services have the winning picks, but there is also auto and horse racing.

Saturday’s (G1) $750,000 Woodward Stakes at Saratoga Race Course has Todd Pletcher trained Quality Road (and jockey John Velazquez) as the 1-4 morning line favorite. Breaking from the No. 1 post, though, is Convocation, 6-1 on the morning line and the only likely candidate to challenge the favorite for the win.

“It’s a big pot, Grade 1, you got a horse in shape you might as well take a shot then,” said Jimmy Jerkens, Convocation’s current trainer and Quality Road former trainer. “Quality Road, as great as he is, is coming off for him a dismal effort. Knowing him I’m sure he’ll bounce back, but if not maybe we’ll be there to pick up the pieces.”

2009 Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird will break from the No. 2 post, while the No. 3 post belongs to Quality Road.

Earlier this year Quality Road proved victorious in the Hal’s Hope, Donn Handicap and Metropolitan Handicap, but a win in the Woodward would be wonderful.

Post-time for Saturday’s Woodward Stakes is 5:50 p.m. Eastern.

The favorite heading into Sunday’s $300,000 (G2) Del Mar Derby for 3-year-olds is Twirling Candy, a pretty sweet name for a horse owned by weight loss queen Jenny Craig (Craig Family Trust). Jockey Joel Rosario will ride Twirling Candy for trainer John Sadler from the No. 6 post.

Once again, the weekend’s hottest race tracks are at Del Mar and Saratoga and as always — Bodog’s got the coolest horse racing action.

The Nationwide Series continues on NASCAR Bodog odds Saturday with the Great Clips 300. This week, Kyle Busch finds himself atop the Bodog auto racing odds at 7/4.

Busch is third in the Nationwide standings after winning at Bristol in his last start. Incredibly, it was Busch’s 10^th victory in 20 races this season. He’s been pure dynamite lately, too, winning four of his last six outings and never finishing worse than fifth in that span. Obviously, Bodog has it right when it makes Busch the overwhelming favorite. In fact, Busch hasn’t finished worse than seventh since a 34^th-place finish at Talladega in April.

Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano each clock in with 9/2 NASCAR odds. Keselowski leads the standings but has started five more races than Busch. Still, he’s been quite strong, earning 21 finishes in the Top-10, including four victories. Keselowski placed fourth in Montreal last week.

Logano has started just 17 races this season, but he’s been competitive in all of them, finishing among the Top-10 in 16 races and the Top-5 in nine races. He has just one win, however, and finished sixth in Montreal last week.

Up next is Kevin Harvick – ranked sixth in the Nationwide standings — with 6/1 odds. He’s been incredibly solid if unspectacular, racking up 17 finishes among the Top-10 in his 19 starts. He’s also poured in another 10 finishes among the Top-5. That said, he could use a little more “boom” — Harvick has earned just two victories this season. The U.S. Coast Guard driver came in 10^th in his last race (the Carfax 250 at Michigan) but managed to secure Top-3 finishes in his two starts before that.

Also keep an eye on Carl Edwards, who has 8/1 odds. Edwards ranks second in the Nationwide standings but finished just 20^th in Montreal. That said, he finished fifth and second, respectively, in his two starts before that.

Get all of today’s top sports picks are up.