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01/17/2012 - Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Oriol Servia will drive for Dreyer & Reinbold during the 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series season, the team announced on Tuesday.
Servia finished fourth in IndyCar points last year, driving for Newman/Haas Racing. The 37-year-old Spaniard posted 11 top-10 finishes during the season, including second-place runs at New Hampshire and Baltimore.
This past season, Servia led all drivers in laps completed (2,103 of 2,011) and was the only driver to finish top-10 in the first five races. He was also one of three drivers who ran at the finish in all 17 races.
Servia lost his ride with Newman/Haas last month when the team ceased its operations for at least the upcoming season.
In 2011, Justin Wilson and Ana Beatriz were the principle drivers for DRR, which is co-owned by Dennis Reinbold and Robbie Buhl. Wilson's season was curtailed in August when he sustained injuries in a practice crash at Mid- Ohio.
"DRR is a team that I raced against since 2008, and they've always shown to be very professional at the racetrack," Servia said in a team statement. "Although I knew the owners, I didn't know them very well, to be honest. Before signing with the team, like everybody else, I did my research, and I couldn't find one individual that didn't speak highly of Dennis or Robbie, which gave me a lot of confidence.
"I went to the team's sponsor summit last week and met all of their partners that they have been involved with for many, many years, which was another clear sign that they are good people."
Servia said that he is eager to begin pre-season testing and debut DRR's new DW12 car in the March 25 IndyCar season-opening race in St. Petersburg, Florida. DRR is one of the Lotus-partner teams in IndyCar this year.
"With a new engine, new chassis and a revamped engineering department, we believe it is crucial to have a highly talented veteran driver to be able to develop these new components," Reinbold said. "Oriol has always been a smart driver and has always put himself and his team in a position to win races. We are going to have to be well-prepared to take advantage of his abilities and we look forward to the challenge."
DRR also noted in its news release that it "continues to work towards a second full-time entry for the 2012 season."
<< Illinois State adds six mid-year transfers
Normal, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Illinois State football coach Brock Spack
announced on Tuesday the addition of six mid-year transfers, including five
from Football Bowl Subdivision programs.
All six players are eligible immediately and can par
<< Counsell joins Brewers front office
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Milwaukee Brewers have named former
infielder Craig Counsell as a special assistant to the general manager.
Counsell wrapped up a 16-year big league career in 2011 with the Brewers, for
whom he pla
<< Mets avoid arbitration with Pelfrey
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Mets signed pitcher Mike Pelfrey
to a one-year contract Tuesday, avoiding arbitration with the 28-year-old
hurler.
Although financial terms were not released, the deal is believed to be wo
<< Brewers, K-Rod come to terms
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Milwaukee Brewers and right-handed
reliever Francisco Rodriguez have reportedly agreed on a one-year deal, thus
avoiding arbitration.
Unable to land a free agent deal to his liking, Rodriguez ac
Hambletonian to remain at Meadowlands >>
East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Harness racing's premier event, the
Hambletonian, will continue at The Meadowlands through 2014.
An agreement has been reached between the Hambletonian Society and Meadowlands
leaseholder Jeff Gural
Colts fire Jim Caldwell >>
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Indianapolis Colts have fired head
coach Jim Caldwell.
More to follow.
Baltimore avoids arbitration with Johnson >>
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Baltimore Orioles have agreed to terms
with pitchers Jim Johnson, Darren O'Day and Dana Eveland on one-year
contracts, avoiding arbitration.
Johnson, 28, appeared in a career-high 69 games
Yankees avoid arbitration with Chamberlain, Robertson >>
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Yankees have agreed to terms with
pitchers Joba Chamberlain and David Robertson on one-year contracts, avoiding
arbitration.
Chamberlain's 2011 season was cut short due to Tommy John surgery. T
(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).
The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.
"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."
Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.
"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."
When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:
CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.
DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.
PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.
You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.
"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."
Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.
(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)
Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."
But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."
Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."
Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."
All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.
In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.
"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."
To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.
Michael Vick is back, Brett Favre isn't and the NFC East remains the best division in the NFC, maybe in all of football.
As players start to gather for the start of another season, some things change and some stay the same in the world of the NFL.
The NFC East has been the dominant division in the National Conference for a while, despite limited playoff success, save for the New York Giants surprise Super Bowl win two seasons ago.
Hell, there's a generation of kids in Texas who have never seen the Cowboys win a playoff game (last win was in 1996).
But collectively, the Giants, Eagles, Cowboys and Redskins (well, maybe not so much the Redskins) are as good as a division gets in an NFC conference that has struggled to stay competitive with the AFC side.
Sports bettors have both acknowledged the NFC East's dominance, as one glance at the NFL future odds menu will show.
Looking over the NFL betting odds at online sports book MySportsbook.com we see the top three teams listed to win the NFC Championship are all from the NFC East:
Dallas Cowboys - 7 - 1
Philadelphia Eagles - 13 - 2
New York Giants - 9 - 2
Slotting in behind these three are two teams from the NFC North: the Minnesota Vikings (15-2) and the Chicago Bears (10-1).
Again, despite the lack of recent playoff success, the Dallas Cowboys are popular with the sports betting community, as they hold 14% of all the money wagered on who will win the NFC Championship.
So far, the New York Giants are the bettors' favorite to represent their conference in the Super Bowl, as they have 24% of the overall NFC Championship betting volume.
And what about the Philadelphia Eagles? For the most part, the Eagles had a very productive offseason, the kind that could bring them back to the top.
They had a good draft adding the likes of WR Jeremy Maclin and RB LeSean McCoy.
Unfortunately, the team received a blow when long-time defensive coordinator Jim Johnson passed away on Tuesday.
But this team will make a real run at the division title this year. Going into the regular season, Philly is listed at +240 to win the division.
Last season the Eagles were 9-6-1 SU and 10-6 ATS.
Teams from the NFC East will play teams from the AFC West in the regular season and the Eagles haven't really been a good bet in the last 20 games against the likes of San Diego, Oakland, K.C. and Denver, only going 8-12 ATS.
Two seasons removed from that Super Bowl title, the New York Giants see themselves listed as the odds-on favorite in NFC East championship futures at +162.
Plaxico Burress is gone and with him all the bad publicity surrounding the gun in the sweatpants incident, but can they replace him in the offense?
Last season the Giants were a very reliable bet going 12-4 ATS.
In the Giants' last 20 games against fellow teams from the NFC East; they are 13-7 ATS.
Dallas is listed at +240 to win the division.
Dallas went 9-7 SU and 7-9 ATS last season and with the amount of talent the Cowboys have, a similar performance won't do.
The Cowboys have been atrocious against divisional rivals, going 6-14 ATS in their last 20.
The Washington Redskins are longshots to win the division at +550.
Visit MySportsbook.com for free sportsbook odds RSS feeds go to MySportsbook.com for all your betting football needs.
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