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PREAKNESS PLAYS
By CHARLES JAY, Editor/Publisher, TotalAction.com
Posted May 19, 2001
The Preakness Stakes is the subject of much speculation and excitement surrounding
favorite Monarchos. Of course, it's always that way when the Kentucky Derby winner,
especially one who triumphed in such impressive fashion, is running in the second leg of
the Triple Crown. From our survey of some of the more highly-traveled online sportsbook
destinations, much of the money is naturally moving in Monarchos' direction.
Listed as a 5-2 co-favorite on Pimlico's morning line, Monarchos is getting a lot of
support at the books we visited, namely Intertops (http://www.intertops.com), SportingOdds
(http://www.sportingodds.com), and the World Sports Exchange (http://www.wsex.com), where
he is the 2-1 favorite. The best price we found on Point Given was at William Hill
(http://www.williamhill.co.uk), which listed him at 10-3 as of 11:30 AM Eastern time.
Percy Hope is bringing great disparity in prices. As of 11:30, he was just 10-1 at
SportingOdds and 25-1 at William Hill, but 50-1 at the World Sports Exchange. And
Dollar
Bill may present some value in the minds of many, with 12-1 odds posted at Intertops and
William Hill. The most consistent longshot across the board was Griffinite, who checked in
at 50-1 at William Hill, Intertops, SportingOdds, and World Sports Exchange, and 66-1 at
Ladbrokes (http://www.ladbrokes.com).
Lots of props to be found around the Net as well. At Olympic Sports (http://www.thegreek.com), you can bet on whether the margin of victory will be over or
under 1-1/2 lengths - you'll lay -210 on the "over", with a takeback of +155 on
the "under". Olympic has Congaree a -150/+110 favorite over Point Given in terms
of the order of finish, and a Monarchos-Congaree-Point Given 1-2-3 finish returns +275.
They have a lot of other trifecta combos if you want to look at them.
At English Sports Betting (http://www.telebet.com), you can bet on the time of race. The
number they have put up is 1:54-2/5, with the "over" at -230 and the
"under" at +180. Among the multitude of additional props they are offering,
you'll lay -170 on the victorious jockey being a first-time winner, with a takeback of
+130. As for the winning trainer being a first-time victor, the "No" is favored
at -180 ("Yes" at +140).
So will Monarchos win the Triple Crown? Well, you can get prices, obviously, on that as
well. At Olympic Sports, Monarchos is -1000 NOT to win it, with a takeback price of +600
for those who think he will. It's tighter at ESB, where it's -460
for the "No" and +385 for "Yes". Intertops and BetOnSports
(http://www.betonsports.com) have one-way propositions on Monarchos - Intertops listing it
at 9-2, with BetOnSports offering a little more value at 6-1.
If you want to bet one horse against another, regardless of the overall outcome, there are
several books who will take your action. At World Sports Exchange, for example, Point
Given and Congaree are listed at -110 apiece, while AP Valentine is a -115/-105 favorite
over Dollar Bill. Olympic Sports and English Sports Betting, among others, also have these
propositions.
BOXING NEWS
Tonight in Connecticut, in a Showtime-televised bout, Charles Brewer
and Antwan Echols
will battle for the NABA supper middleweight title. And we did find an online sportsbook
taking action on this one - Olympic Sports (http://www.thegreek.com), which has the fight
a pick'em (-110 each way). We like Brewer, the natural super middle, who should be more
like a 9-5 pick...............Tonight, over in London, also marks the widely-anticipated
professional debut of British Olympic super heavyweight gold medalist Audley
Harrison, who
takes on American Mike Middleton in a six-rounder. Middleton has little chance to win the
fight - at William Hill, for example, you'd have to lay 50/1 on Harrison with a takeback
of 12-1 on Middleton - but there is some hot prop action on the fight. You'd have to
actually lay 11-10 if you favor a Harrison knockout in the first round. Value might
present itself in the price for second (5-2) and third (11-2) round knockouts, since
Middleton has at times shown himself as a tough customer and indeed, someone who serves as
a durable sparring partner for several world-class fighters. At SportingOdds, the
proposition is pretty simple - a Harrison win in the first five minutes of the bout is a
4-7 favorite, while any other result will bring a 5-4 yield. At Paddy Power
(http://www.paddypower.com), Harrison is even money to score a first-round knockout, and
8-1 to win a decision, while Middleton is 150-1 to score a knockout in any one of the six
rounds. At the British service BlueSQ.com (http://www.bluesq.com), Harrison is 8-11 for a
first-round KO, and 12-1 to win on points. It's 3-2 that the fight will last less than two
minutes, 3-1 that it will go between 2-4 minutes, and 11-10 that it will last beyond the
four-minute mark...........By the way, next Saturday's junior lightweight title fight
between WBC champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Carlos
Hernandez, being held in Mayweather's
hometown of Grand Rapids, is posted at Olympic Sports.
Mayweather is the favorite, at -800/+600. That figure, we feel, represents HUGE value for
the champion.............. On the lighter side, British deputy Prime Minister
John Prescott, who just recently slugged a Welsh protester who pelted him with an egg, is
getting some respect from British bookmakers, in particular Ladbrokes (http://www.ladbrokes.com), who has offered a 50-1 proposition on Prescott being the next
opponent for former heavyweight champ Lennox Lewis.
OTHER PRESCOTT SPECIALS, STRAIGHT FROM LADBROKES
*Prescott to break the first rule and talk to us about Fight Club in 2001 - 20-1
*Prescott to play Henry Cooper against Will Smith's Cassius Clay in the forthcoming biopic
-- 33-1
*Prescott to be Van Damme body double in next action thriller - 40/1
*Prescott to release a remix of "Eye of the Tiger" - 10-1
*Prescott to replace MI5 as the Prime Ministers bodyguard - 10-1
*Prescott to retire to Japan and practice the ancient art of Sumo - 25-1
*Prescott vs Cantona in a spectator bashing endurance competition - 25-1
*Prescott to release a "Boxercise" fitness video - 40-1
For all the latest boxing news, go to http://www.totalaction.com/fightpage/news.htm
SPURS-LAKERS SERIES
Let's stick with Ladbrokes here as we run down some of the creative propositions available
for the NBA's Western Conference final series between San Antonio and the L.A. Lakers.
Shaquille O'Neal, who averaged 14.8 rebounds against San Antonio this season, is 3-4 to
have the highest rebounding average in the series, while Tim Duncan of the Spurs is even
money. The over-under on Shaq's free throw percentage is 53%, where you'll basically lay
-120 either way. And it's 25-1 that the home team will win every game in the
series..........At the World Sports Exchange, Kobe Bryant is a 4.5-point favorite for most
points scored over Tim Duncan in the series, while the Spurs' David Robinson is -3.5
points and -130 over Laker guard Derek Fisher. Other props can be found at
http://www.wsex.com.
And oh by the way, the Chicago Bulls are 3-1 to win the #1 pick in Sunday's NBA Draft
Lottery. The Golden State Warriors are 4-1. And the Houston Rockets are 199-1. Those are
the mathematical odds. If we find a sportsbook taking action on this proposition, we'll be
sure to let you know.
Of course - and this goes without saying - the numbers are subject to change. And some of
them have probably changed while I was writing this. For best results, as always, shop
around. And remember, we're just reporting; we don't necessarily endorse any of the
sportsbooks mentioned here. All info for news matter only.
Best of luck today.
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