There’s still one more opportunity to make some money this week at Colonial Downs as we wrap up a busy week of coverage with some thoughts on Sunday’s races highlighted by a pair of stakes races for juveniles.
Follow me on Twitter: @mdomhokie
Selections
- Race 1: 3-6-4-5
- Race 2: 1-3-7-5
- Race 3: 7-6-2-5
- Race 4: 7-5-4-6
- Race 5: 2-4-3-7
- Race 6: 3-5-1-4
- Race 7: 6-9-5-4
- Race 8: 6-3-9-5
- Race 9: 7-3-9-6
Colonial Downs Race 6: Regalo (#3) at 9-2 or higher
My strongest opinion on the card comes in this allowance optional claimer for turf routers. There’s certainly some contenders with deserving credentials, but you have to wonder what kind of form they are in right now. That goes for both Win for the Money (#4) and Funtastic Again (#6). Both of these guys have graded stakes wins to their name, with the former winning the G1 Woodbine Mile back in 2024 and the latter placed second in the G1-Shoemaker Mile that same year. However, both have been disappointing in their 2026 campaigns thus far with a pair of 8th place finishes in their last starts. Legalize (#5) might not be over the top just yet and he’s run just fine this year, but he could vie for favoritism in a wide-open race. My top pick is Regalo (#3) going out for the potent combination of Sheldon and Brittany Russell. I think this gelding will be able to get to the lead and moderate the pace better than his last effort and the slight cutback to 8f should suit him.
Colonial Downs Race 7: Prince of Peace (#6) at 7-1 or higher
Both the juvenile stakes races look like fun events starting with the Hickory Tree Stakes for colts. Though his maiden win came over the turf, I still project Fission (#9) as the horse to beat in this spot. He ran well enough finishing second over the main track in his debut and he’s well drawn outside the other speeds. Alapocas (#5) is also dangerous right back after showing the ability to rally past horses and win in his debut, but the Mo Town colt was 6-1 on that afternoon and will be a fraction of that price in this spot. I made my top pick Prince of Peace (#6) who returns on just 9 days rest off a near miss in a maiden event last week. This gray colt possesses and abundance of early speed and I can see him being the quickest of the quick early. This race represents a slight cutback to 5.5f for him and that could make all the difference for him springing the upset.
Colonial Downs Race 8: Bravojuliet (#6) at 7-2 or higher
The filly counterpart to the Hickory Tree is the Keswick Stakes and a bulky field of eleven is signed on. Like my top pick in the prior race, Cyber Spy (#3) comes out of a maiden event on the 7/24 card where she wired the field. She does looks to be the speed in this spot as well, but with the large field it might be tough to take them all the way. The John Robb barn is sending out three runners in this spot and I could use both The Stork Club (#5) and Costa Linda (#9) somewhere on my tickets. The former is dropping precipitously in class after contesting the Debutante at Churchill last time, but showed at least some ability to pass horses winning her debut from a stalking position. The latter is another speedball that dominated a Laurel maiden event from flag-fall to that’s all despite some trouble at the break. However, with all these fillies who like to go to the front I made Bravojuliet (#6) the top pick. While she’s still a maiden, I thought her debut back in June was a promising effort. Vikki Oliver’s barn isn’t known for having them cranked up to win first out, but this Army Mule filly nearly overcame that and an awkward start finishing second beaten just a 1/2 length. I always take it as a positive when juveniles show the ability to close early in their careers vs just bossing fields on the front end.
#TheCheatSheet
2026 Summer Meet Statistics (thru 7/31)
All
Top Picks: 78-18-12-18 (23%, $1.60); Featured Horses: 24-5-4-5 (21%, $2.23)
Fair Odds Met
Top Picks: 57-14-5-15 (25%, $1.99); Featured Horses: 20-4-2-5 (20%, $2.51)
Grid
Percent of Races Won By: A’s: 51%; B’s: 32%; C’s: 13%; X’s: 4%
