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 +
Jason L Olmstead 252 12% 37% Poor
93
68
91
Dee Keener 224 16% 43% Poor
97
49
78
Matt Whitekiller 137 15% 37% Bad
51
28
58
Jesus Ruben Ruiz 119 5% 29% Bad
34
24
61
Justin W Joiner 98 13% 38% Bad
37
18
43
Stacy Charette-Hill 96 12% 38% Poor
36
25
35
Clinton Crawford 96 7% 32% Bad
31
25
40
Samuel E Valdivia 91 4% 32% Bad
29
22
40
Leonardo Alcala 86 31% 56% Great
48
16
22
Joe M Davis 86 14% 33% Bad
28
21
37
Guillermo Valdivia 78 6% 31% Bad
24
16
38
Hernesto Ramirez 77 12% 49% Avg
38
14
25
Fernando I Manriquez 76 13% 41% Bad
31
12
33
Eddie D Willis 71 10% 28% Bad
20
15
36
John A Stinebaugh 71 18% 54% Great
38
18
15
Luz Chavira 70 7% 23% Bad
16
19
35
Luis Villafranco 62 5% 26% Bad
16
12
34
Michelle Hurdle 61 7% 23% Bad
14
16
31
Stacey L Capps 60 13% 42% Poor
25
14
21
Haley N Hobbs 58 12% 29% Bad
17
14
27
Jed H Vane 56 21% 54% Great
30
16
10
S Trey Wood 54 2% 31% Bad
17
22
15
Marc E Jungers 54 13% 33% Bad
18
7
29
Samuel Mendoza 53 11% 40% Poor
21
14
18
Josue Jacob Garcia 52 38% 65% Great
34
3
15
Kasey Willis 50 20% 52% Great
26
16
8
Tyler Stein 49 12% 33% Bad
16
9
24
Edward Ross Hardy 42 17% 31% Bad
13
9
20
James J Gonzales III 41 24% 59% Great
24
10
7
Marla Dayana Vargas 40 25% 38% Poor
15
9
16
Ramon Mendoza 39 8% 23% Bad
9
6
24
Jose E Gamez 36 6% 22% Bad
8
8
20
M A Chavez-Gutierrez 36 17% 53% Good
19
6
11
Valerie Torres 36 14% 44% Avg
16
8
12
Jorge L Gonzalez 35 6% 29% Bad
10
8
17
Tyler Cole Crawford 34 6% 18% Bad
6
11
17
E Escamilla-Gonzalez 32 9% 28% Bad
9
4
19
Buddy Leon Clay 32 6% 38% Bad
12
7
13
Rodrigo Covarrubias 31 10% 32% Bad
10
6
15
Mallory Norton 30 3% 20% Bad
6
7
17
Victor Ibarra 29 10% 48% Avg
14
7
8
Kash Reed 29 14% 38% Bad
11
6
12
Gerardo Arroyo 29 3% 24% Bad
7
9
13
Raul Ramirez 28 4% 25% Bad
7
7
14
G Quinones-Sarmiento 28 7% 39% Bad
11
7
10
Durk Peery 26 8% 15% Bad
4
8
14
James J Gonzales II 26 23% 46% Good
12
6
8
Gary K Walker 26 0% 27% Bad
7
7
12
Juan L Vazquez 22 23% 55% Great
12
4
6
James Kevin Goodnight 22 32% 55% Great
12
3
7

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.