Things You'll Need:
- The Daily Racing From
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Step 1
Glance over the opening paragraph.The section at the top of form can give you a lot of information. It will tell you the name of the race (if there is one), the type and any restrictions on the entrants. It will also tell you the weight restrictions for handicap races and why horses are being given the weights they are.
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Step 2
Take a look at the jockey.When I am betting on horses, there are certain jockey who I always look for, and there are others I might try to avoid. Either way, it's important to take a look. Next to the jockey's name, are their stats. The first set show their stats from the track's meet. There are multiple numbers (x x x x .xx) inside the parenthesis. The first number is how many mounts the jockey has had; the second number is how many wins; the third number is how many places; the fourth number is how many shows; and the final number is the jockeys winning percentage.
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Step 3
Look at the trainer.The trainer is the person who is preparing your horse for every race and it's important to know who it is and maybe what their tendencies might be. Everyone has strong points, and if you know your trainer, it could give you an edge.In the middle of the box, next to where it says "TR:" is the trainer of the horse. And next to the trainer's name is another set of numbers with the same meanings as for the jockeys - it's their stats. At the bottom of the box, it says "TRAINER" in big bold letters. The stats at the bottom are more figures for the trainer that pertain to the particular circumstances for this race. You'll see things like their turf/dirt record, sprint/route record, off lay-off record and others. These can show you how the trainer has done in similar circumstances that are facing their horse in this race. These can often be helpful in determining if their horse will run well or not.
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Step 4
Know the breeding of your horse.A horse's breeding is one of the most important factors determining how it can run. There are horses who run well without good breeding, but generally speaking, horses with better breeding will run well over the course of their career.Millions and millions of dollars are spent on the breeding of horses, so take a look at your horse's breeding before the race.Look in the middle of the box. At the top, it will say "SIRE" and "DAM". The sire is the horse's father and the dam is the horse's mother. The names in parenthesis to the right of the sire and dam is the sire of those horses.Go online to a horse website and learn who are the better sires in the horse world. There are some who are always good and have been for years, but each year, there are new hot sires whose foals run extremely well.
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Step 5
See how your horse has done.On the top right side of the box is your horse's performances. The numbers work the same as for the jockeys, with total races, wins, places, shows. They will have figures for the current year, last year, the track where the race is being run, and for every track condition just to the right. The numbers on the far right is their prize money.
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Step 6
Read the past performances.In the middle of the box are the past performances for the horse. The races are in chronological order from their most previous race. The numbers/figures refer to the following, starting all the way on the left, to the right:Date of last race, race number, track abbreviation, track condition, distance, split times, race restrictions/particulars, Beyer Speed Figure, post position, start position, 1/4-mile position, 1/2-mile position, top of the stretch position, final (smaller number is how many lengths back/in front), riding jockey, medications, weight, odds, pace figures, track bias, top three finishers, horse comments, total number of horses in race.
