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 +
Jose Silva Jr 96 36% 68% Great
65
18
13
Alex J Torres-Casas 88 18% 44% Poor
39
16
33
Robertino Diodoro 86 35% 65% Great
56
18
12
Rigoberto Guillen 72 4% 31% Bad
22
26
24
Rafael S Barraza 68 13% 46% Avg
31
19
18
Matthew M Fales 65 22% 60% Great
39
15
11
Frank Lucarelli 64 17% 47% Good
30
16
18
Vann Belvoir 56 16% 46% Avg
26
13
17
Kevin Eikleberry 53 26% 60% Great
32
14
7
Bennie L Woolley Jr 51 10% 45% Poor
23
12
16
Eliana Thompson 48 6% 31% Bad
15
12
21
Joe Toye 48 12% 44% Good
21
17
10
Scott Tubbs 45 11% 24% Bad
11
13
21
Jack McCartney 42 12% 48% Avg
20
10
12
Diego Cervantes 41 12% 37% Bad
15
7
19
Ryan Kenney 41 17% 49% Good
20
12
9
Wade Rarick 36 25% 67% Great
24
10
2
Esteban Martinez 35 17% 46% Avg
16
9
10
Dan L McFarlane 35 14% 43% Good
15
13
7
Dayson LaVanway 34 12% 29% Bad
10
9
15
James L Gilmour 32 9% 41% Poor
13
8
11
Neil A Koch 32 3% 38% Poor
12
11
9
Howard F Gibson 31 13% 35% Bad
11
8
12
Gonzalo Anderson 30 7% 40% Poor
12
10
8
David John Williams 30 23% 57% Great
17
6
7
Edward J Kereluk 30 23% 60% Great
18
6
6
Jose Puentes 29 10% 45% Good
13
11
5
Edgar O Moreno-Alcala 29 3% 17% Bad
5
7
17
Ruben Fuentes 28 18% 54% Great
15
9
4
Sergio S Perez 28 18% 50% Good
14
6
8
Wendell L Matt 28 25% 43% Great
12
11
5
Juan Pablo Silva 27 15% 37% Poor
10
8
9
Valorie Lund 27 15% 52% Good
14
6
7
Isaiah Ortiz 25 20% 52% Good
13
4
8
Kasey Kemper 24 17% 29% Poor
7
11
6
Stacy Campo 23 0% 39% Poor
9
9
5
Kendra S Lyons 23 4% 48% Poor
11
4
8
Candelario Villamar 22 5% 27% Bad
6
6
10
Victor M Trujillo 22 9% 41% Poor
9
6
7
Shannon Simpson 22 5% 27% Bad
6
6
10
Marcelino Trujillo 21 10% 33% Bad
7
5
9
A Dominguez 20 10% 35% Bad
7
4
9
Shelly Crowe 20 10% 25% Bad
5
6
9
M L Pierce 20 20% 45% Great
9
8
3
Robert Baze 19 5% 37% Poor
7
6
6
Shawn H Davis 19 16% 37% Bad
7
4
8
Manuel Ortiz Sr 19 5% 37% Good
7
11
1
Jennifer Nunnally 18 11% 44% Good
8
7
3
Johnathon Feron 18 6% 11% Bad
2
10
6
Jorge Duarte-Noriega 18 6% 11% Bad
2
5
11

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.