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 +
Jamie Ness 112 23% 62% Great
70
27
15
E Padilla-Preciado 91 36% 75% Great
68
16
7
Jacinto Solis 85 7% 31% Poor
26
37
22
Michael V Pino 85 29% 55% Great
47
18
20
Trevor Gallimore 60 3% 33% Bad
20
20
20
J Santaella-Calderon 53 13% 43% Good
23
22
8
Kathleen A Demasi 48 15% 44% Avg
21
15
12
Scott A Lake 48 12% 38% Poor
18
13
17
Louis C Linder Jr 48 15% 38% Poor
18
14
16
Ruperto A Perez 44 11% 36% Poor
16
16
12
Lewis Uriah St 44 2% 25% Bad
11
13
20
Robert E Reid Jr 42 31% 57% Great
24
10
8
Martinez E Soto- 41 22% 49% Good
20
8
13
Michael M Moore 41 5% 46% Avg
19
12
10
Irving Rodriguez 39 23% 62% Great
24
4
11
Jorge Diaz 38 11% 29% Avg
11
20
7
Howard R Brown Jr 38 5% 32% Bad
12
13
13
Miguel Penaloza 36 22% 56% Great
20
9
7
J Guadalupe Guerrero 35 6% 46% Avg
16
12
7
Robert Mosco 35 3% 46% Avg
16
10
9
Hugo O Padilla 34 24% 53% Great
18
9
7
J G Gonzalez-Milian 33 9% 33% Poor
11
13
9
Miguel A Rodriguez 33 6% 55% Good
18
7
8
Harold Wyner 30 7% 47% Avg
14
9
7
Ilias Tapsas 28 11% 36% Poor
10
11
7
Juan Carlos Guerrero 28 25% 68% Great
19
8
1
Esteban Padilla 27 26% 56% Great
15
7
5
Eli Betancourt 27 19% 63% Great
17
7
3
James E Nicholson Jr 25 12% 32% Bad
8
8
9
Ronald B Abrams 25 24% 72% Great
18
5
2
Guadalupe Preciado 23 39% 78% Great
18
4
1
Felix L Flores-Coba 23 22% 43% Great
10
10
3
Richard Vega 22 23% 59% Great
13
8
1
Alexander Martinez 21 5% 48% Avg
10
5
6
J Tyler Servis 20 10% 35% Bad
7
6
7
Wayne Potts 19 16% 53% Great
10
7
2
Philip T Aristone 19 16% 42% Poor
8
4
7
Bobbi Anne Hawthorne 19 11% 26% Bad
5
6
8
Edward J Coletti Jr 19 26% 37% Avg
7
6
6
John T Kirby 18 17% 50% Great
9
7
2
Josue Arce 17 0% 18% Bad
3
11
3
Marya K Montoya 17 18% 47% Avg
8
3
6
Carlos E Caban 16 19% 50% Good
8
3
5
Alfredo Velazquez 15 40% 67% Great
10
4
1
Julio Rodriguez 15 27% 60% Great
9
4
2
Susan L Crowell 14 14% 29% Bad
4
3
7
Melecio S Guerrero 14 0% 29% Bad
4
4
6
Angel Castillo Jr 13 31% 85% Great
11
1
1
Jack Abrams 13 15% 54% Avg
7
1
5
John C Servis 13 15% 54% Good
7
3
3

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.