Everyone I know was greatly disappointed this past July when Rachel Alexandra did not race in Saratoga.

Instead, she would take part in the Lady’s Secret Stakes.

Rachel Alexandra won easily and offered little excitement or thrill as it was a completely one-sided affair.

But maybe one can still have the showdown that everyone is waiting for.

Experts are predicting Zenyatta Rachel Alexandra could happen at the Personal Ensign Stakes late August.

If so, I’ll be glued to my TV…and betting a bundle.

The Zenyatta vs. Rachel Alexandra at the Personal Ensign Stakes in late August is expected to pull in large crowds.

Neither parties have made official announcements as yet but Personal Ensign seems to be the likely destination for both the star horses.

Rachel Alexandra’s  latest start was at the Lady’s Secret Stakes which was run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles. In contrast, Zenyatta is perfectly at ease over the 10 furlong distance.

Zenyatta would have had the obvious advantage on a longer track but Rachel Alexandra’s trainers have been trying to level the playing field.

Zenyatta may have an advantage of running longer distances but Rachel Alexandra has more experience on dirt than Zenyatta. Personal Ensign is a 1 ¼ miles dirt track and would give no clear advantage to either filly if they do face off over there.

Zenyatta’s next start is expected to be at Del Mar before the 29^th August Personal Ensign Stakes. Zenyatta is in complete form as she has won the Clement L Hirsch Stakes for the last two years now and this year’s event is scheduled for August 7. Zenyatta’s trainers and owners expressed reservations about the track surface at Del Mar. Despite the efforts, no final decision has been made as yet.

Rachel’s trainers might want to have her at Personal Ensign but it’s not clear if they would let her race against Zenyatta.

Many believe that even if the reigning horse of the year, Rachel Alexandra, was scheduled for Personal Ensign, she might be pulled out of the race if the undefeated Zenyatta shows up.

So what do YOU think?

Zenyatta?

Or Rachel A.?

For those who are bemoaning the state of American horse racing, check this out.

Britain’s second most popular spectator sport: horseracing finds itself, once again, in the midst of financial crisis and organisational meltdown.

With the seemingly perennial row over funding the sport threatening to spiral out control this year, the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has opted to delay publication of its 2011 fixture list and issue a furious press release blaming bookmakers and betting exchanges for “exploiting loopholes” to get out of paying their share.

Bookies are legal in the U.K., you know.

The decision – described by the BHA as “unprecedented” – could be set to cast a shadow over the livelihoods of 20,000 full-time workers in the sport and a further 80,000 who work indirectly within racing.

Racing is unique among sports in the UK (and totally different from the U.S., I should add) in that it is funded by a statutory levy of 10 per cent on the profits bookmakers and betting exchanges make from those who bet on the sport.

The racing authorities argue that bookies should pay much more.

The bookies disagree.

It is usually all resolved in meetings at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) where ministers (who would dearly love to get shot of the responsibility) are called upon to knock heads together.

The BHA, which regulates the sport, says it has made the decision to suspend the fixture list because the yield from the levy has collapsed.

“Despite the betting industry posting bumper profits in recent years, the amount contributed to the levy has gone into freefall,” it says. “In 2009, the yield from the Horserace Betting Levy shrank by more than 20 per cent, from £115.3m to £91.6m. It has been reported that the 2010 levy has dropped even further to £76.5m, a further fall of 17 per cent.”

In other words, the levy has dropped by more than a third in the last two years.

Nic Coward, the BHA’s chief executive, said: “This is massively frustrating, particularly as in many ways the sport’s hard work to prepare for and beat off the worst of the recession is going to plan.

“The levy underpins the fixture list, tens of thousands of people depend on it for their livelihoods and this year we are facing a catastrophic cut in income. It is not fair and not right that the people working in racing should suffer as a result of the majority of the betting industry looking to bypass the levy in order to maximise their own profits.

I’ll keep my eye on what’s occurring in the U.K.

Have you ever been over there and gone to one of their grass tracks? Stunning.

I want to see this industry thrive everywhere, not just in the UK, not just in the US.

Everywhere.

Are you with me?

There is trouble brewing in Texas.

It’s about the last place you’d expect difficulties in the horse racing business, but there you go. It’s true.

The Texas Horse Racing Commission voted to allow Retama Park in Selma, Texas, to reduce its fall thoroughbred schedule from 30 days to 16, to be staged on weekends in September and October.

Keeping the full meet, Retama CEO Bryan Brown said, would result in “unacceptably” low purse levels because of reduced live and simulcast betting at the track.

Also this past week, Howard Phillips, owner of Manor Downs outside Austin, told the commission he would not apply for racing dates in 2011 and plans to shut down simulcast operations July 25.

That is not good news.

Commission members acknowledged the fact that they are overseeing an industry in crisis mode.

“It seems to me from a business standpoint that these operators are facing a dire situation,” said commission member Tom Clowe of Waco. ”

We are bound to understand these problems and do what we can to allow racing to continue … while we delve into solutions.”

Officials at the three major Texas tracks – Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Sam Houston Race Park in northwest Houston and Retama – have disclosed plans to consolidate their 2011 thoroughbred race dates for one year at Lone Star in an effort to produce a premier meet that would attract attention from simulcast bettors around the country.

I hope they survive.

Commissioners said they will discuss those plans with the tracks and with horsemen over the next two months before setting race dates in September. Track officials, meanwhile, plan to meet with Texas legislators to discuss proposed legislation that would provide expanded gaming options for Texas tracks, which track owners claim would put the state’s industry on level ground with Louisiana, Oklahoma and New Mexico.

“We lose money on live racing,” said track owners. Losses are less on simulcast-only days, he said.

“The amount of money it costs us to stay open is just overwhelming us,” another owner said. “The industry, we all know it’s in dire straits.”

I’m hoping something is done. I promise you I’ll keep an eye on what the commission does.

New York State had similar problems a few months ago, remember?

It’s been called the “Greatest Horse Race in the World” and the “Longest Horse Race in the world.” Either way, the Mongol Derby is not a challenge just any horse rider is willing to take on.

Indeed, the 1,000 kilometer (more than 630 miles) endurance race over the Mongolian steppe — a diverse, often unforgiving terrain that includes forest, mountains and desert — is so challenging that organizers of the race provide three days of training for the small group of international competitors who qualified to be in the race.

A true adventurist, 33-year-old Justin Nelzen, a-Pinehurst-farrier- turned-endurance athlete, is one of 16 representing five counties who qualified for the second annual derby to start Aug. 7.

Nelzen is one of the first three Americans ever selected for the 10-day equestrian event. And, while several might be happy just to finish the race, Nelzen’s standard is set a bit higher.

“My goal is to win it,” he said.

With only three years of endurance horse racing under his belt, some might think Nelzen is a risky bet, but his record says otherwise.

“Justin is very accomplished,” Rhita McNair of McNair Internationale, who has trained horses for more than 40 years, said. “I am very impressed with his skills as a rider and as a trainer. He took a mare he bought from me all the way to a world champion.”

Last year, Nelzen also swept first, second and third places in the Hog Scramble, a 30-mile endurance race in Huntsville, on horses he owns and trained. His 7-year-old daughter, Trinity, placed first.

So, who knows? He could win. Wouldn’t that be very very cool.

“I didn’t know anything other than to train my horses like I trained myself,” he said. “Someone asked me before my first race what I expected. I told them I expected to win, and I did. I didn’t know any better at the time.”

Excited at just the thought of Nelzen winning the derby, McNair said Justin is very good at reading horses, a skill that is sure to pay off when he selects his Mongolian mounts for the derby.

If the countryside and route don’t offer enough challenge and history then the horses supplied for the derby certainly do. Decedents of the horses that gave Khan and his warriors superior advantage over their enemies and helped establish the Mongol Empire, make up the pool of more than 200 horses the derby supplies.

“This is a land where horses outnumber people seven to one,” Nelzen said. “They are practically worshiped by the people there.”

Riders will get a fresh mount at each station choosing from a collection of the Mongolian horses on a first-come, first-served basis.

“I hope I’ll get there first, have a good selection and be able to choose a good horse,” Nelzen said.

We hope so too. I’ll let you know how he does.

I love the Derby, but I grew up 15 minutes away from Belmont Raceway so the Stakes holds a place dear in my heart.

Wherever I live, I watch the Belmont Stakes and it takes me back to when I was a kid.

Meanwhile, I loved the race. And I’m glad First Dude lost. Nice horse…but I hate the name.

Drosselmeyer had a final time of 2:31.57. Paid out $28 on a $2 bet. Fly Down ($6.80) was second and First Dude ($4.90) third.

First Dude set the pace around the first turn with Uptowncharlybrown on his tail with Ice Box 11 lengths from the lead early.

Everyone was waiting for Ice Box to make his move but the horse never did.

Over the halfway mark First Dude was being pushed by Interactif and the pace was reasonably quick with Game On Dude in 3^rd.

Ice Box was 8 lengths back at the ¾ mark.  Coming around the final turn and First Dude and Game On Dude battled.

Drosselmeyer flew by them both right at the end.

The New York racing season looks like it’s been saved.

A bill that would loan the New York Racing Authority, which essentially runs the Belmont, Aqueduct and Saratoga race tracks,  has been introduced to the New York legislature by Governor Paterson.

That’s good news, one week before the June 5 Belmont Stakes.

Here’s what the bill will provide: it gives the NYRA a $25 million capital loan.

In return, NYRA would have to pay the state back by March 31st, 2011 or thirty days after a deal is struck with a vendor to operate VLT’s at Aqueduct.

Without the money, most people believe, racing would not continue at those tracks.

And that would be tragic.

Because I like to cover horse racing around the world, I thought it would be nice to tip the hat to six horses and four individuals who will be inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame.

Mister Big is one horse. Remember him? The second biggest pacer of all time in Canada. His trainer, Robert McIntosh, will also enter the hall.

Mister Big  earned more than $4 million. He finished in the money 65 times in 85 career starts — 34 wins, 20 second-place finishes and third another 11 times. And 18 times the multiple Dan Patch and Nova Award winner posted a time of 1:49 or lower.

McIntosh, from Windsor, Ont., is a four-time O’Brien winner as Canada’s top trainer and is also the leading trainer in the Breeders Crown with 15 wins.

He has recorded over 3,562 wins and his horses have earned more than $78 million in earnings. WOW.

Other inductees include Belmont Stakes winner Victory Gallop, along with Lady Angela. They join builder Mel Lawson of Hamilton and trainer-jockey Frank Barroby.

Joining Mister Big in the standardbred class of 2010 is broodmare Classic Wish along with builder R. Peter Heffering and A Worthy Lad in the veterans category.

The 10 new inductees will be enshrined Aug. 19 at the Mississauga Convention Centre.

Lawson, 87, and Jim Dandy Stables were involved in the breeding and racing of quality horses for almost 50 years.

Barroby, 66, dominated racing as a jockey, winning titles in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and B.C.

Heffering, of Port Perry, Ont., has campaigned many notable horses including Precious Bunny, a winner of over $2 million and a member of the Hall of Fame.

Congratulations to all.

The 136th Run for the Roses ended with jockey Calvin Borel winning AGAIN, the third time in the past four years. This time, on Super Saver.

The horse went off at 12-1 odds.

So winning the Derby was nothing new for this great jocket (from Louisiana)…not so for trainer Todd Pletcher, who has had 24 (count em) entrants in the Derby before yesterday’s win. His first.

Borel knows this track. And we know Borel.

He broke from the gate and went directly to the rail. Waiting for just the right moment to make the break.

Confident, as always, he told reporters  ”I knew nothing was going to run him down.” This, despite a hard charge from Ice Box down the home stretch.

Pletcher, who had come close to Derby wins with Bluegrass Cat (2006) and Invisible Ink (2001), was happy to have Borel on his side for once, especially given his history at the famed Louisville course.

“Calvin Borel is a great rider anywhere he goes, but at Churchill Downs he’s even five lengths better,” Pletcher said.

We couldn’t have said it better.

Be interesting to see the horse he rides next year.

The horses most commonly amongst the expert Kentucky Derby betting picks are Super Saver, Awesome Act, Ice Box, and the filly Devil May Care.

Here’s why:

It’s gonna be a muddy track, remember.

Super Saver is a popular Kentucky Derby pick because he’s one of the few horses in the 2010 lineup that has won at Churchill Downs.

He’s a dirt horse that has had success on this track and it doesn’t hurt that 2009 Kentucky Derby winning jockey Calvin Borel will be yanking the reins.

You can get close to 17/1 Kentucky Derby betting odds on Super Saver online even though the track odds at Churchill Downs have him as the race favorite at 7/1.

Awesome Act is liked because he’s really figured it out recently and has the versatility to run any sort of race.  In a 20-horse race like the 2010 Kentucky Derby, that type of skill is looked fondly upon.

Ice Box seems to be the consensus favorite as the top closer in the 2010 Kentucky Derby lineup and many are making picks on him because of how easily Mine That Bird came from way back last year.

Devil May Care is the filly and she really doesn’t appear all that talented at first glance.  She’s ran one nice race in her career and it was against a lineup of iffy contenders.

That said, there are plenty making Kentucky Derby picks on her because of the huge speed figure she put up in that race.  It puts her amongst the top 3 in terms of that statistic and you can get close to 20/1 odds on her currently.

Good luck, bettors everywhere. I’ll post news after the race.

Ok. Now we have a problem, as bettors.

Eskendereya, whom I would have bet on this Saturday, in the 136th Kentucky Derby has been withdrawn.

Eskendereya, for those who aren’t aware of the horse, won the Fountain of Youth Stakes and Wood Memorial.

He would have been a strong favorite in Saturday’s Kentucky Derby, but the colt was withdrawn from the first leg of the Triple Crown on Sunday because of swelling in his left front leg.

Damn it.  Of course, we don’t want anything to happen to the horse, so it is right that he was withdrawn. Don’t get me wrong on that.

Trainer Todd Pletcher said at a news conference at Churchill Downs, “The horse isn’t lame. I wouldn’t call it that. He’s not uncomfortable; he’s slightly off. We’re hopeful that this is not career threatening.”

Pletcher still has as many as six horses eligible for the Kentucky Derby, as he tries to win the race for the first time. He has competed in nine of the past 10 Derbies with 24 starters, and his best finishes were seconds by 51-to-1 shot Invisible Ink in 2001 and 30-to-1 shot Bluegrass Cat in 2006.

“It is extremely disappointing, of course,” Pletcher said.

So who do we bet on now?

With Eskendereya gone, the probable Derby favorite will be Lookin At Lucky, who has won six of eight starts and was the champion 2-year-old in 2009.

Lookin At Lucky is trained by three-time Derby winner Bob Baffert.

Watch this week for MANY MORE postings on the Derby.