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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 +
Eddie D Willis 705 17% 46% Avg
326
171
208
Scott E Young 662 23% 57% Great
379
149
134
Steve F Williams 642 12% 39% Avg
248
230
164
Dee Keener 521 17% 44% Avg
228
129
164
Clinton Crawford 492 13% 37% Poor
183
134
175
Jesus Ruben Ruiz 467 17% 46% Good
217
123
127
Scott Corderman 408 7% 30% Bad
124
144
140
Joe S Offolter 401 19% 50% Good
200
101
100
Jason L Olmstead 400 24% 53% Great
211
79
110
Lucio Espiritu 398 9% 28% Bad
112
108
178
Matt Whitekiller 397 21% 52% Good
208
77
112
Luis Villafranco 388 10% 33% Bad
127
104
157
J Alan Williams 385 20% 55% Great
210
91
84
Tim Dixon 383 13% 40% Avg
155
131
97
Francisco Bravo 363 20% 53% Great
193
87
83
Michelle Hurdle 352 20% 47% Good
164
84
104
M Brent Davidson 331 17% 51% Great
168
96
67
Guillermo Valdivia 320 10% 35% Bad
113
78
129
Boyd Caster 315 15% 48% Good
150
93
72
Mark W Buehrer 311 15% 48% Good
149
88
74
Everardo N Escamilla-Gonzalez 308 5% 23% Bad
72
77
159
Salimm Hernandez 304 12% 35% Bad
105
78
121
Kari Craddock 287 23% 55% Great
159
63
65
Jody Pruitt 281 16% 41% Avg
116
96
69
Ray A Enlow 271 13% 43% Avg
116
73
82
Patrick E Swan 259 12% 40% Avg
103
86
70
Gary K Walker 245 10% 34% Poor
83
82
80
Eddie Lee Willis 233 15% 44% Avg
103
66
64
H Ray Ashford 231 19% 53% Great
122
58
51
Luz Chavira 228 11% 38% Poor
86
62
80
Andy Gladd 228 21% 54% Great
123
50
55
Stacey L Capps 226 15% 43% Avg
98
69
59
Karl Broberg 207 19% 55% Great
113
57
37
Rodrigo Covarrubias 203 7% 31% Bad
63
53
87
Jose Cruz Villafranco 203 9% 32% Bad
65
58
80
Kenneth Nolen 201 17% 46% Good
93
53
55
Jose Ibarra 194 10% 35% Bad
68
55
71
Mallory Norton 193 4% 24% Bad
46
52
95
Carlos Ruiz Ruiz 193 17% 47% Avg
90
38
65
Tammy Kay Johnson 185 16% 39% Poor
73
52
60
Juan Padilla 185 16% 45% Avg
83
49
53
Jesse Oberlander 179 10% 35% Bad
62
54
63
Marti L Rodriguez 172 5% 27% Bad
47
42
83
Carlos A Padilla 172 9% 33% Bad
57
48
67
James Victor Hale 168 11% 39% Poor
66
46
56
Juvenal V Licona-Vazquez 167 13% 36% Bad
60
36
71
L C Alexander 163 4% 20% Bad
33
52
78
Juliana Mancillas 158 6% 27% Bad
42
35
81
Theresa Sue Luneack 154 18% 56% Great
87
30
37
Erik N Rodriguez-Garcia 151 11% 31% Bad
47
33
71

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.