Daily Horse Picks - Top Trainers

Although natural ability plays a role in every horse race around the country, there is undoubtedly a human impact on the outcome of races. Jockeys and trainers can help horses reach their potential or prevent them from achieving it. Daily Horse Picks trainer analysis tool is here to help horseplayers understand which type of trainers have runners in today's race.

One of the key elements of understanding trainers is the fact that trainers are creatures of habit. When they find something that works, they will repeat it over and over. This may include frequent success at a certain distance, on a certain surface, at a certain level, or during a specific meet. This is where the power of Daily Horse Pick's trainer analysis tool can be a huge asset to any handicapper.

By using the filters a player can get away from using standard win and in-the-money percentages and instead break down how the trainer specifically does in races that fit today's conditions. This may suggest that a super trainer that everyone is likely to use may not have the horse ready to go today or that the little low percentage barn is ready to fire their one shot today. Either way it can mean a profitable day at the races. As you adjust the filters the DHP ratings will also adjust to reflect the trainer's proficiency at getting a horse in-the-money under the selected conditions.

Don't forget to check out the jockey analysis tool to give yourself a further edge on the competition!

Track

Surface

Condition

Distances

Race Types

Posts

Top Trainers

Name Starts Win % Show % DHP
1st/2nd/3rd
4th or 5th
6th +
Joseph Jr Saffie A 196 19% 53% Good
103
41
52
Calhoun W Bret 196 21% 53% Good
104
41
51
Pickett Crystal G 152 10% 35% Bad
53
42
57
Mott William I 141 15% 48% Avg
67
32
42
Wood Trey 126 11% 40% Poor
51
33
42
Brown Ronney W 112 12% 38% Avg
42
42
28
Carrizales Jose 108 10% 30% Bad
32
24
52
Sherman Steve M 93 22% 53% Great
49
22
22
Servis John C 80 19% 48% Good
38
19
23
Breen Kelly J 77 12% 36% Poor
28
26
23
Bravo Francisco 72 22% 47% Good
34
18
20
Meche Robi A 72 19% 51% Good
37
15
20
Hernandez Javier 71 17% 37% Poor
26
22
23
LaVanway Dayson 57 9% 30% Bad
17
15
25
Lynch Brian A 56 11% 39% Bad
22
11
23
Specht Steven 55 15% 49% Good
27
14
14
Badilla Manuel 54 20% 50% Great
27
15
12
Gorham Michael E 54 15% 46% Avg
25
12
17
Gaines Carla 48 10% 40% Avg
19
19
10
Jackson Ellen L 48 4% 40% Poor
19
15
14
Petty Kristy 42 7% 50% Avg
21
8
13
Marquez Jesus M 42 17% 43% Poor
18
7
17
Evans II Michael 42 5% 31% Bad
13
14
15
Galvin Brendan W 40 8% 38% Poor
15
13
12
Weeks Kenneth 38 8% 32% Bad
12
10
16
Rodriguez Manuel Rodolfo 35 11% 26% Bad
9
11
15
Roman Manuel 34 6% 35% Bad
12
10
12
Keefe Timothy L 32 6% 34% Bad
11
8
13
Pompay Teresa M 27 19% 67% Great
18
2
7
Mendoza Jesus 24 8% 29% Bad
7
8
9
Crotts James E 24 12% 38% Poor
9
8
7
Sanchez III Noe Rolando 24 4% 25% Bad
6
9
9
Markle Dan L 22 23% 68% Great
15
4
3
Deiter Kelly Lynn 20 0% 5% Bad
1
5
14
Rodriguez jr Raul 20 15% 55% Great
11
5
4
Barrera Jorge Luis 17 0% 24% Bad
4
4
9
Ward Dennis 15 13% 33% Bad
5
2
8
Wismer Glenn S 14 7% 29% Bad
4
3
7
Carlos Katie 14 7% 36% Bad
5
4
5
Geralis Emanuel J 14 29% 64% Great
9
3
2
Sepulveda Carlos M 13 23% 77% Great
10
2
1
Dussette Alvin 12 8% 42% Avg
5
4
3
Klanfer Alan 12 17% 50% Avg
6
2
4
Margotta Anthony R 9 11% 44% Bad
4
0
5
Gallegos Martin 8 0% 25% Bad
2
1
5
Lewis Lisa L 7 14% 57% Great
4
3
0
Stinson Jr William 6 33% 33% Poor
2
1
3
Zuazo Ramiro Lopez 5 0% 60% Great
3
2
0
Young Robert A 4 25% 50%  - 
2
2
0
Hop Michael D 3 0% 0%  - 
0
2
1

Why Trainers Matter?

Trainers are entrusted by the owners of the horse to prepare them to win races. Think of a trainer like the coach of a team. Individually the trainer cannot win the race, but the way the trainer prepares the athlete for the race can maximize the horse’s ability. This becomes especially important as horses start to mature beyond their two year old season.

Why is the DHP Top Trainer Tool Helpful?

Horses can be upgraded or downgraded based on their trainers, but many people will overgeneralize the effectiveness of a trainer based on their overall win percentage. However, even the best trainers have blind spots and the weakest trainers have some ability that allows them to pay bills and attract new owners to their barn.

Using the DHP Top Trainer Tool for a Race

To use the top jockey tool follow the steps below:

  1. Change the drop down menus to match any or all of the conditions for the race you are handicapping.
    • Track: Many trainers will have meets that they like to point their horses to. It is very hard to have horses fully cranked year round. Knowing which meets a trainer targets can be a great separator.
    • Surface: With dirt and turf surfaces running so dramatically different in terms of race flow, it is not surprising that many trainers who excel on dirt are less effective with turf runners. The same is true for those who are prolific with turfers.
    • Condition: This factor plays the biggest role when the ground is not fast or firm. Off tracks typically will favor trainers that are good at putting early speed into their horses.
    • Distance: Horse races are often classified as either sprints (less than 8 furlongs) or routes (one mile and over). However, dynamics can change dramatically depending on the various lengths within each of these categories. If a trainer is good at training sprinters, they may be left vulnerable in route races and vice versa.
    • Race Types: This is especially important for trainers. Some trainers get the best of the best talent at the track which will be reflected with high marks in the stakes and allowance ranks. Some trainers are masters of the claiming game (buying and selling horses out of races). A claiming trainer who sends out a stakes runner may be in too deep. A top stakes trainer may be racking up high percentages with good animals but when they drop to the claiming ranks, they can’t move average horses forward. Understanding which levels the trainer excels at is paramount to unlocking hidden value in races.
    • Barriers/Post Positions: Post position stats for trainers are of limited importance and may be used to eliminate horses in clear weak spots for the trainer, but likely won’t uncover any actionable angle by itself. This filter can still be useful, but should be used in combinations with other filters in the menu.
  2. Once you have set any or all of the filters, select the “Refresh Charts” button to see the updated data which reflects your race.

Using the Top Trainer Tool for an Individual Trainer

While the top trainer tool is extremely effective for comparing all trainers in a given race, it can also be a major factor when analyzing an individual trainer.

This can be done from the top trainer charts. Simply find the trainer you want to look up and click their name. You will now see a report of their rating and percentages at every one of the filters from the top trainer tool.

Using this view you may be able to identify spots where you can beat a high percentage trainer. For example, Bob Baffert wins at a nearly 30% clip across all races. His horses are often crushed at the windows and offer little value. However, looking closer at the trainer profile the is rated as “Poor” on turf. Many people will see the 28% winning percentage and bet his horses without recognizing that many of his turf runners do not perform to the level of his dirt contingent. This can provide a great advantage for the horse player who can look to fade this super trainer on turf.