Apple Blossom Betting Odds – Showdown Back On March 5th, 2010
The Apple Blossom betting odds are going to have some high stakes this year. After some back and forth, and unlike the Floyd Mayweather Jr-Manny Pacquiao blockbuster event in boxing, it looks like online betting fans will actually get to see the showdown at the Apple Blossom.
Since Rachel Alexandra’s magical run at The Preakness and since Zenyatta tore up the circuit in the second half of last season, a lot of horse betting fans have been itching to see the two thoroughbreds matchup.
Zenyatta has been in 14 races and it has placed first each and every time. Zenyatta’s biggest win – metaphorically, financially and distance-wise – was at the Breeders Cup. After such a dazzling year, the filly was named as a runner up to Serena Williams as the AP Female Athlete of the Year.
Meanwhile, while Zenyatta had a good year, Rachel Alexandra had an even better banner year in 2009. The filly came out of virtually nowhere to win the Preakness Stakes and finished the year with a perfect 8-0 record. She all set some remarkable records with the largest winning margin at the Kentucky Oaks and the Mother Goose Stakes and set the fastest times at Golden Rod Stakes and Martha Washington.
As the two have emerged as the best thoroughbreds around, it was only a matter of time before they finally got together in a head-to-head matchup.
Charles Cella, the owner of Oaklawn Park, stepped up and made a genuine case for the two horses to race: $5 million. At the Apple Blossom Invitational, if both Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra start the race, the purse will bump up to $5 million. If they don’t, the purse will be much smaller.
The main goal has been to orchestrate a spectacle for the fans and a showdown between the horses. Many racebook handicappers are already talking about the prospects of this race and beyond that, many are talking about the potential of a “Triple Crown” like showdown between the three with three races between them at different points in the year.
All in all, it’s a good event for everyone and it should get the attention on the sport of kings for more than just regular Triple Crown races this year.