Like many, I am looking forward to the Alabama this weekend. Will It's Tricky solidify her place at the top of the division, will Plum Pretty take it away from her, or will another 3-year-old filly jump into the mix? My money will be on Plum Pretty. The race intrigues me, but in a way I just want to...

(Originally published in the August 6, 2011 issue of The Blood-Horse magazine . Feel free to share your own thoughts and opinions at the bottom of the column. ) By Eric Mitchell - @EJMitchellKy on Twitter The 3-year-old male who can nail down at least one more grade I stakes before the end of the year...

Bob Baffert has performed so many extraordinary feats of magic over the years nothing he does should ever come as a surprise. But since the White-Haired Wonder hooked up with new jockey, Garcia the Great, even he is amazed at what he and Martin Garcia have been able to accomplish. That amazement reached...

Who will win the 2011 Haskell Invitational (gr. I)? Will it be Fire or Ice? Shackleford? Will Coil run a big one? How will the rest come in? Need more information about the Haskell? Read the race preview , or watch That Handicapping Show . writeRanker("http://i.bloodhorse.com/xml/ranking/2011HaskellOrder...

At this point, it really is impossible to predict year-end championships in almost every division. The way things are going in 2011 the Breeders' Cup will settle most of the Eclipse Awards, with the Classic probably deciding Horse of the Year. In the 3-year-old division, Shackleford and Ruler On Ice...

When Nehro’s connections decided to skip the Preakness and wait for the Belmont Stakes (gr. I), the first thought was that the son of Mineshaft–The Administrator, by Afleet was going to be the buzz horse in the Test of the Champion. Despite having run second in his last three starts–the Louisiana Derby...

The last pieces of the puzzle in the Triple Crown races are the post positions, and horsemen cannot wait until they can get that out of the way. The main drama in Wednesday’s draw for the June 11 Belmont Stakes (gr. I) came when two post positions remained in the 12-horse field – Post 1 and Post 9. One...

Who will win the Belmont Stakes? Will it be Derby winner Animal Kingdom, Preakness winner Shackleford, or a new face? How will the others finish? Need more information about the Belmont Stakes? Read the race preview That Handicapping Show . --> writeRanker("http://i.bloodhorse.com/xml/ranking/2011BelmontOrder...

If you’re going to play catch with Team Valor’s Barry Irwin, don’t assume if you lob the ball to him he’s going to lob it back to you. New York Racing Association’s Andy Serling lobbed one to Irwin while emceeing Tuesday’s Belmont Stakes (gr. I) media luncheon, asking him if he’s concerned about the...

Originally published in the June 11, 2011 issue of The Blood-Horse magazine . Feel free to share your own thoughts and opinions at the bottom of the column. By Evan Hammonds Even without a horse going for the Triple Crown in New York, we’re getting jacked up for the Belmont Stakes (gr. I). Belmont Park...