You read it, it was a huge payday for some people who like underdogs as virtual longshot Mine That Bird came out of nowhere to win the 135th Kentucky Derby last weekend.

It was a shocking result to what has been a disappointing outing for some of the Derby favorites. One of the favorites, Friesan Fire, deemed by some as the horse that will finally give the sport its first Triple Crown champion in years, finished second to last.

Who would've thought that Mine That Bird would go on and win the Kentucky Derby after being listed by sportsbooks with 51-1 odds of winning? Heck, who would've thought that the thoroughbred would snatch the race lead after running in dead last coming to the final turn?

Incredible.

And while many bettors are now probably putting their money on Mine That Bird already for the next leg of the Triple Crown, that being the 2009 Preakness Stakes at the Pimlico Race Course, we found out that the Kentucky Derby champion's availability for the next big race is still uncertain.

Yes, after shocking horse racing fans, Mine That Bird is...

And while most of us will stay tuned to the NBA playoffs, the NHL playoffs if you live in Canada, or looking forward to see Manny Pacquiao lose to Ricky Hatton if you're J.J. Jack, the 135th Kentucky Derby will look to get a piece of this Saturday's madness as the Triple Crown trail begins.

You read it, the 2009 Triple Crown trail begins as the first leg is set at Churchill Downs for the Kentucky Derby. Who will take that first step towards horse racing;s Holy Grail this year? Take a look at some of these favorites.

Dunkirk will be one of the favorites in the 2009 Kentucky Derby this Saturday because of what he has done in just three starts this year at Gulfstream Park in Florida. That's a 5 3/4-length maiden win going 7 furlongs, a 4 3/4-length allowance win going 11/8 miles and a strong second-place finish in the Florida Derby, also going 11/8miles. His Beyer Speed Figure progressed from 77 to 98 to 108.

A son of Unbridled's Song out of the A.P. Indy mare Secret Status, Dunkirk cost owners John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith $3.7 million at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale in 2007. Todd Pletcher began training Dunkirk in March 2008 with what he calls ''typical 2-year-old stuff.''

Next, we have the Louisiana Derby winner Friesan Fire...

Yup, Papa Clem is considered as one of the favorites to win the 135th Kentucky Derby. The contender comes in at 13/1 off his excellent Arkansas Derby victory which included a somewhat weak field that featured the now-injured Old Fashioned (50/1 Kentucky Derby odds) and Summer Bird (35/1).

Papa Clem has an excellent record, going a step up from his last race, and it will be interesting to see if the three-year old thoroughbred Gary Stute trained has what it takes to hang with the big boys.

Papa Clem has never finished worse than 2nd place in any of his races and has a very experienced jockey riding him in the first leg of the 2009 Triple Crown trail, Rafael Bejarano.

Bejarano has won at Churchill Downs before, as well as just about every major track in Kentucky and California it seems. Veteran leadership will definitely help a horse that can turn it on whenever his jockey needs to, thanks to great tactical speed he acquired from his sire Smart Strike.

Recent workouts at Churchill Downs have focused more on tiring out Papa Clem a bit before the big race since...

In just a couple of days, 20 of the top three-year-old thoroughbreds in the world will enter the starting gate of the 135th Kentucky Derby.

Victory in the legendary race, ran in the first Saturday of May, has eluded some of the top names in the sport. For the past two years, trainer Larry Jones has saddled the runner-up in the ''Run for the Roses.''

Last year, it was the amazingly talented filly Eight Belles who gave Jones and owner Rick Porter the thrill of a lifetime. She fearlessly powered past 18 male rivals to finish second to the highly touted Big Brown.

As jockey Gabriel Saez was pulling up the filly, she took a bad step and fell to the racetrack. The tragedy that ensued made international headlines and spurred an unprecedented outcry for safety in horse racing. It was also a heartbreaking moment for Jones.

Good things happen to good people, though, and Jones, 52, is an underrated horsemen who has two major contenders for the 2009 Derby. One of his colts, Old Fashioned, was back in action when he competed in the $1 million Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark.

Old Fashioned was undefeated as a two-year-old...

On May 2, the race for horse racing's Holy Grail begins again as the 2009 Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs is going to be held to kick off this year's quest for the Triple Crown.

For all of you who forgot what winning the Triple Crown in horse racing means, it means the winner has conquered all three legs of the trail for the Triple Crown, that means winning the Derby, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes. Oh yeah, no one has done it for a while.

The Kentucky Derby is a stakes race for three-year-old thoroughbred horses, staged yearly in Louisville, Kentucky on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival.

The race currently covers one and one-quarter miles (2.012 km) at Churchill Downs; colts and geldings carry 126 pounds (57 kg), fillies 121 pounds (55 kg).

The race, known as ''The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports'' for its approximate time length, is the first leg of the Triple Crown of thoroughbred racing in the United States. It typically draws around 155,000 fans.

The Kentucky Derby is one of the crown jewels of the elusive Triple Crown which includes the Belmont Stakes and the Preakness Stakes.For over 125 years the Kentucky Derby has been everyone's race, from the dapper men and beautiful women, all in hats and sipping on frosty mint juleps, to the laid-back infield crowd...

That's right, the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes champion, Big Brown, will be back on the race track competing in the $1-million 2008 Haskell Invitational on August 3 at Monmouth Park in New Jersey.

Much to our surprise here on OddJack, Big Brown was given a clean bill of health during a post-race veterinary examination and now will look to capture the Haskell Invitational after failing to win what many thought was his for the taking a few weeks ago, this year's Triple Crown.

''The Haskell's clearly a first target right now,'' IEAH Stable president Michael Iavarone said.

Owned by IEAH Stable, Big Brown finished last to 38-1 longshot Da'Tara at the 2008 Belmont Stakes last June 7 at Belmont Park, making him the first Triple Crown hopeful to finish last at Belmont Park. You can just imagine how utterly irritated those people were, riding the Big Brown bandwagon.Iavarone also said that he had specific reasons for choosing the Haskell over the upcoming Jim Dandy Stakes at the end of July.

''We're trying to avoid certain things that happened in the Belmont,'' he said. ''We're trying...''

Big Brown won the 2008 Preakness Stakes at Pimlico after winning the Kentucky Derby, making him merely a win away from the elusive Triple Crown. It was a huge payout for us too because, like most of you probably, we were riding the ''Big Brown bandwagon'' again and I got to tell you, it was like having your own ATM machine. Hee hee...

With Big Brown already winning two of the three races for the Triple Crown, the focus now shifts for the 2008 Belmont Stakes. Hell, these guys around Big Brown were so confident that they were already talking about the third leg of the Triple Crown trail even BEFORE the second leg was underway.

Of course, Big Brown winning the Belmont Stakes to capture the 2008 Triple Crown series title will indeed make horse racing history since it's been a while since this sport had a Triple Crown winner.

But the fact of the matter is, it's still a little too early to talk about that, right now, we should just probably admire the colt and how he dominated the field again for the second straight race. (Or, you can just continue admiring the way the hot and sexy Maria Sharapova moves around a tennis court, making those itsy bitsy little skirt of hers fly...)

As for Big Brown, he did not disappoint horse racing fans after winning the...

But first, I heard those folks from Bodog are offering something for all ya'll. We have a special promotion from Bodog for the 2008 Preakness Stakes that aims to give a $50 bet for a new depositing player who signs up and deposits a minimum of the same amount. This special promotion is available until Saturday's race so go get it already will ya?

Just click this phrase here appropriately dubbed, ''special promotion from Bodog for the 2008 Preakness Stakes'' and you'll have them bending over for ya' in a heartbeat. Remember, you have to deposit $50 first to receive the bonus. Oh yeah, this is ONLY available for players who do not have an existing Bodog account.

Now that THAT is out of the way, the 2008 Preakness Stakes, running for the 133rd time this Saturday, will have the top thoroughbreds of the world assemble at the Pimlico race track looking to be crowned the new champion of the ''Run for the Black-Eyed Susans.''

Kentucky Derby champion, Big Brown, is the heavy favorite to win the 133rd Preakness Stakes this Saturday. After winning the first leg of this year's Triple Crown trail, all eyes will be fixed on the colt as he looks to continue his run to become...

It's a special promotion from Bodog for the 2008 Preakness Stakes that aims to give a $50 bet for a new depositing player who signs up and deposits a minimum of the same amount. This special promotion is available today until Saturday. This is probably the right time to cash in on Big Brown's success eh?

Just click this phrase here appropriately dubbed, ''special promotion from Bodog for the 2008 Preakness Stakes'' and you'll have them bending over for ya' in a heartbeat. Remember, you have to deposit $50 first to receive the bonus and all ya'll who already have an existing account, unfortunately, can't join this promo for the Preakness. Speaking of this Saturday's race...

Big Brown, the fancied 3-year-old colt who dominated the Kentucky Derby last May 3, will gallop once again for the 2008 Preakness Stakes at Pimlico on Saturday, looking to follow up on his win at Churchill Downs and keep his hopes of a Triple Crown title alive.

Usual exercises for Big Brown, with jockey Michelle Nevin guiding him to the race track, were made in preparation for this Saturday's big race. Trainer Richard Dutrow said Big Brown went well in his trip around the course, limiting the colt to...

The 2008 Preakness Stakes is set this Saturday, May 17 at Pimlico in Baltimore, Maryland as horse bettors from around the world can now look at the odds on whose going to win the $1 million purse.

The second and shortest leg of the 2008 Triple Crown trail, this year's Preakness Stakes could be the start of a historic feat for the Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown.

If Big Brown wins the Preakness Stakes, he'll only be needing one more win at the Belmont Stakes to be crowned the first Triple Crown series champion for quite a while.

Horse bettors can also look at other contenders who will be competing for the Preakness Stakes title. Behindatthebar, trained by Todd Pletcher and is coming from the Padua Stables, is the Lexington Stakes winner and has never been worse than second in four starts on synthetic surfaces.

Giant Moon, who is owned by Albert Fried, Jr., was the Count Fleet winner and has finished...