betonline banner
betonline banner

Betting News - 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. Betting News 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 Betting News' 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 +
Kelly J Breen 823 21% 48% Good
395
209
219
Patrick B McBurney 653 14% 40% Avg
263
190
200
Rory K Huston 638 10% 36% Bad
230
186
222
Michael Dini 598 11% 36% Poor
216
186
196
Claudio A Gonzalez 577 20% 54% Great
312
147
118
J Kent Sweezey 540 15% 41% Poor
222
130
188
Jose H Delgado 492 22% 57% Great
278
123
91
Chuck Spina 446 12% 40% Poor
179
125
142
Gregory D Sacco 435 15% 46% Avg
200
111
124
Kathleen O'Connell 425 15% 38% Poor
161
109
155
Jorge Navarro 403 38% 67% Great
271
85
47
Patricia Farro 361 11% 37% Poor
135
98
128
Derek S Ryan 352 11% 36% Bad
125
100
127
Chad C Brown 349 30% 64% Great
224
70
55
Douglas Nunn 336 13% 39% Poor
130
86
120
Tony Wilson 310 14% 41% Avg
126
88
96
Luis Carvajal 308 16% 44% Avg
136
77
95
Wayne Potts 299 21% 53% Great
159
68
72
Jerry Hollendorfer 275 24% 60% Great
164
53
58
Leopoldo M Ortega 274 10% 36% Bad
100
68
106
Skip Einhorn 274 8% 40% Poor
109
76
89
K A Demasi 265 14% 45% Avg
119
66
80
Joseph W Mazza 259 5% 29% Bad
74
83
102
John I Pimental 258 8% 28% Bad
71
70
117
John D Stephens 243 12% 37% Poor
90
68
85
Juan Carlos Avila 243 14% 39% Poor
94
69
80
Anthony Foglia 236 2% 25% Bad
60
71
105
Mario Serey Jr 235 11% 43% Avg
101
76
58
James A Frangella 228 7% 32% Bad
72
70
86
Todd A Pletcher 228 22% 54% Great
124
61
43
William J Hogan 221 5% 24% Bad
54
62
105
Jason Servis 218 33% 74% Great
161
31
26
Jorge Duarte Jr 214 22% 55% Great
118
55
41
Allen John P Mc 212 6% 33% Bad
70
59
83
Michael Stidham 208 18% 53% Great
111
49
48
Jorge Delgado 208 22% 52% Great
109
54
45
Russell J Cash 204 3% 33% Bad
68
51
85
Timothy A Hills 203 15% 48% Avg
97
48
58
Anthony R Margotta 197 15% 46% Avg
90
51
56
Jane Cibelli 172 22% 49% Good
85
39
48
Gerald S Bennett 167 14% 38% Poor
63
44
60
Michael J Trombetta 149 22% 50% Good
75
36
38
John C Servis 143 9% 34% Bad
48
44
51
William J Hogan Jr 141 6% 21% Bad
30
35
76
Eddie Owens Jr 137 18% 53% Good
73
31
33
Joan Milne 137 10% 41% Poor
56
36
45
Jose M Camejo 135 11% 41% Avg
56
45
34
Susan L Crowell 131 5% 31% Bad
40
40
51
Pompeyo Gomez 130 10% 29% Bad
38
38
54
Brenda McCarthy 130 5% 32% Bad
41
35
54

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.