For the eighth year in a row, America’s Best Racing is challenging some of the brightest minds in horse betting to come up with their top three picks for key races every weekend leading up to the 2024 Triple Crown and then continuing through the 2024 Breeders’ Cup World Championships. The handicappers face off in what we like to call the “Big-Race Showdown.”

The players’ picks will be posted here and a running bankroll will be kept to track their success all year long. Bankrolls will be tabulated on the basis of $2 exacta and $2 trifecta box bets of each player’s top three selections. We will also be keeping track of which player correctly selects the most winners.

Your players for the 2024 Big Race Showdown season are Edison Hatter (In The Money Media Podcast Host & Track Announcer), Thomas Kearney (Track Announcer, Shenandoah Downs), Ashley Mailloux (freelance racing analyst), Jessica Paquette (Racecaller for Parx Racing, Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation), John Piassek (Communications Manager, Maryland Horse Breeders Association),  Roberto Rodriguez (El Potro Roberto, DRF en Espanol), Mike Somich (VSiN Host; The Magic Mike Show – The Racing Dudes), Darwin Vizcaya (Handicapper and Host), Rowan Ward (Chartcaller at Hawthorne Race Track and a Freelance Writer), and Alexa Zepp (Handicapper, DRF).

This week’s Big-Race Showdown races are: the $1 million California Crown Stakes Presented by SirDavis American Whisky and $200,000 City of Hope Mile Stakes Presented by MyRacehorse Saturday at Santa Anita Park along with the $400,0000 Ack Ack Stakes Saturday night at Churchill Downs.

The Califirnia Crown is a “Win and You’re In” Challenge Series race for the $7 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic Nov. 2 at Del Mar; the City of Hope Mile offers an expenses-paid berth to the FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Mile Presented by PDJF; and the Ack Ack is a qualifier for the Big Ass Fans Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile.

The California Crown card from Santa Anita in its entirety will be broadcast live on FanDuel TV as part of that network’s daily coverage of Santa Anita racing. FanDuel TV will also show racing from tracks such as Churchill Downs (which hosts the “Win and You’re In” Ack Ack Stakes Saturday evening), Gulfstream Park, and Woodbine. NBC Sports announced Sept. 26 that it would broadcast three races from the California Crown card during a show from 6 p.m.-8 p.m. ET on CNBC and also streaming on Peacock, inclduing the featured California Crown Stakes Presented by SirDavis American Whisky.