ROI Results 4/4 @ Oaklawn

[JolyB]

Originally Posted by NJ Stinks

I'm sure I will pay for whining about a horse race during this pandemic but here goes (since I have nothing but time on my hands ):

1. If Winning Combination, who won the 8th race on the track at 12-1, stayed up I have a $4 exacta worth at least $240. So yes, the DQ DQ'ed me too here.

2. Finnick the Fierce ran a terrific race was clearly second best having been bothered while rallying up the rail.

3. The favorite, owned by Robert LaPenta and trained by Brad Cox, was the horse bothered when the winner drifted in on the favorite. The stewards were obviously guessing that the winner cost the favorite a better placing. I think the favorite was backing up by the time the winner drifted in. So the stewards guessed wrong to DQ the winner IMO. (You expected a different ending to this post? )

Hey, NJ - I've got some extra time on my hands also, so I'd like to continue the discussion of that 7th race of last Saturday, solely in the spirit of a fan talking about a very interesting race after the dust had settled.

I probably should not have used the term "clearly" in describing the DQ of Winning Impression. I was probably influenced both by trying to root Answer In home since I had him in a handicapping contest at another venue and saw how his jockey checked him abruptly shortly after Winning Impression had passed him. He certainly lost a lot of momentum and had no time to regain it. Exactly where he would have finished without the incident is tough to say. A lot was going on in deep stretch.

The betting public certainly had a different view of that race than the oddsmaker. How in the world was Answer In sent off at 1-2 from his ML odds of 3-1? Conversely, Winning Impression was an absolute overlay at 12-1 from a ML of 7-2, although perhaps with Finnick and Trev in the race, the 7-2 ML odds were a bit too low.
I've always had a peeve about morning lines that are widely divergent from how the betting public actually bets the race. The linemaker at Oaklawn never placed a favorite below 3-1 or 7-2, except for Frank's Rockette. A number of the favs on Saturday went off at odds WAAAAY below the ML - e.g. Drena's Star at 0.60-1, Answer In at 0.50-1, Cherokee Maiden at 1-1 and Maryanorginger at 1.7-1.

Finnick the Fierce had a very eventful trip himself. I thought he had been impeded by General Trev even before the W.I./A.I incident. Whether his jockey might have had legitimate grounds for an objection if he hadn't been able to pass Trev is interesting to speculate.

I've rambled enough. Now, out into the sunshine to enjoy a beautiful spring day up here.