Vance Hanson
Vance Hanson has been a contributing writer and editor for BRISnet.com, TwinSpires.com and KentuckyDerby.com since 2008. Prior to joining the Churchill Downs Inc. family, he served as a publicity assistant at Canterbury Park and as a handicapper/writer for Daily Racing Form.
Playing the March 25 Bayou Bluegrass 5
Fair Grounds and Turfway Park team up Saturday to offer the Bayou Bluegrass 5, a 50-cent minimum Pick 5 wager that includes the main features on the biggest cards of the season at both facilities.
Wagering
Meet the Contenders: 2023 Louisiana Derby
Meet the horses running in the 2023 Louisiana Derby over 1 3/16 miles on dirt at Fair Grounds in Louisiana.
Kentucky Derby
Meet the Contenders: 2023 Fountain of Youth Stakes
Meet the horses running in the 2023 Fountain of Youth S. (G2), plus a pro, con and rating of their potential.
Wagering
Meet the Contenders: 2023 San Felipe Stakes
Meet the horses running in the 2023 San Felipe S. (G2), plus a pro, con and rating of their potential.
Wagering
Meet the Contenders: 2023 Holy Bull Stakes
Star Ratings and Pros/Cons for the Holy Bull Stakes contenders.
Racing
Hanson: Betting the Pegasus World Cup Late Pick 5
The all-stakes Late Pick 5 on Pegasus World Cup Day includes several races with seemingly vulnerable favorites, customarily the optimum conditions in which to hop in and play this type of wager.
Wagering
2022 in Review: Leading Turf Horses by Eclipse Award categories
A majority of Eclipse Award categories for equine flat performers is technically open to all runners, regardless of surface proclivity.
Racing
2022 in Review: A record year for trainer Todd Pletcher
With stable earnings of more than $30.3 million, Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher has enjoyed a record season in 2022.
Features
Fair Grounds spot plays for Dec. 26
After providing a couple opinions on Monday's "Road to the Derby Kickoff" card over at the TwinSpires Jury post, here are several other horses of interest on the stakes-laden program.
Wagering
Oaklawn Park: How scrutinizing race conditions can be beneficial
The first thing bettors should generally do before handicapping a race is read and comprehend its conditions.
Education
Five trends to consider from Week 1 at Turfway Park
The four-month winter meet at Turfway Park is only one week old, but has already begun producing some interesting trends after four days of racing.
Wagering
Chop Chop among three early stakes winners for freshman sire City of Light
Since our first installment highlighting the first crop by City of Light, the freshman sire has been represented by an additional six winners, three of whom have won stakes.
Features
Hanson: A case for Flightline's early retirement
While some racing fans are disappointed Flightline won't reappear on the racetrack, the "he has nothing more to prove" argument might be a sound one.
Breeders Cup
Breeders' Cup: How to play the All-Turf Pick 3 on Friday
The All-Turf Pick 3 starts with the Juvenile Turf Sprint (G2) and will include the Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1) and Juvenile Turf (G1).
Breeders Cup
2022 Breeders' Cup contenders worth considering at a price
As was the case last year, the longshots we find the most intriguing a week out from the Breeders' Cup are largely concentrated on the weekend's grass races.
Breeders Cup
Finding vulnerable favorites in the 2022 Breeders' Cup
A primary key to handicapping the Breeders' Cup successfully, or any race card for that matter, is finding and eliminating vulnerable favorites.
Racing
Magnificent Seven: Multi-generation winners of the same Breeders' Cup race
One of the more intriguing situations in racing occurs when a horse replicates family success by winning the same stakes that their sire or dam did during their racing days.
Breeders Cup
Hanson: Spot Plays for British Champions Day at Ascot Oct. 15
There are several competitive betting affairs with larger fields earlier in the Ascot card, and a couple horses have caught my eye as potential value plays.
Racing
The up and down history of the American Grand National
The American Grand National, which carries a purse of $250,000 and is contested over 2 5/8 miles, is the richest and most prestigious jumping event in the U.S.
Racing
Lukewarm Breeders' Cup favorites typically ones to avoid
Knowing what kind of horses are best avoided is often just as important as who to latch onto. Breeders' Cup favorites the betting public is very cool towards is one such group.
Racing
Hanson: Betting the 2022 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe
With course conditions expected to be very soft and a with a full field of 20 entered, Sunday's Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (G1) looks a fascinating betting affair.
Racing
Recent trends in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe
With the 2022 edition of the Arc at Longchamp coming up this Sunday, Oct. 2, here's a look at recent trends in the 1 1/2-mile fixture.
Trends
What does shaky history of odds-on BC Classic favorites mean for Flightline?
The main question is not so much who specifically will win the Breeders' Cup Classic, but whether Flightline will be a single or not.
Breeders Cup
Spot Plays for Doncaster Sept. 8
Fillies are in the spotlight Thursday on Day 2 of the St Leger Festival at Doncaster.
Racing
Famous Racehorse Names and Their Meanings
Scan the entries on a typical racecard and you'll see a wide assortment of ordinary nouns and phrases make up a significant portion of the names Thoroughbreds carry with them throughout their lives.
Features
Prominent Thoroughbreds that lived to a great age
A sampling of notable Thoroughbreds over the past century that lived to the age of 33 or more
Features
Arbitrary BAQ track code a disservice to bettors
Rather than identify all races run at Aqueduct from Sept. 15 through Oct. 30 as being run at "Aqu," past performance data will now refer to the track as "BAQ."
Racing
How to bet the 2022 Del Mar Oaks
Barring any late withdrawals, Saturday's $300,000 Del Mar Oaks (G1) will have a capacity field of 14 three-year-old fillies.
Racing
Hanson: Spot Plays for Day 1 of Ebor Festival at York Aug. 17
The final major English racing fixture of the summer takes place this week at York, which presents its four-day Ebor Festival from Wednesday through Saturday.
International
How to bet the 2022 Ellis Park Derby
The finale on a stakes-laden Ellis Park card on Sunday is the $200,000 Ellis Park Derby, a one-mile event for three-year-olds.
Racing