In The Money Telegraph
Wednesday, June 24, 2026 · By ITM Staff
One of the most fun meets of the summer kicks off tomorrow — and there’s a hype video to match.
Colonial Downs Is Back
Virginia’s premier track opens its summer meet on Thursday, June 25, and racing broadcaster Jason Beem put together a hype video for the occasion. It’s a must-watch.
▶ Watch Jason Beem’s Colonial Downs hype video →
It’s a big one this year: a record 45-day meet running Thursday through Sunday from June 25 all the way to a Labor Day finale on September 7, with a 12:30 PM post and racing over Colonial’s world-famous Secretariat Turf Course. The schedule packs in 35 stakes worth more than $6.5 million.
The centerpiece is the Festival of Racing on Saturday, August 1, headlined by the Grade 1 Arlington Million ($1 million) alongside the Grade 2 Beverly D. and Grade 2 Secretariat Stakes — one of the best turf cards in the country. But the fun starts right away: opening Saturday, June 27 features the all-new Corgi Races, and general admission is free nearly every day, so it’s an easy one to bring the family to.
Around the Sport
Sovereignty headlines a loaded Stephen Foster. Reigning Horse of the Year Sovereignty returns to Churchill Downs for the first time since his 2025 Kentucky Derby win in Saturday’s $2 million Grade 1 Stephen Foster — a seven-horse showdown that also draws White Abarrio (who beat him in April’s Oaklawn Handicap), Dubai World Cup winner Magnitude and Baeza. Churchill doubled the purse to $2 million, and the winner earns a “Win and You’re In” berth to the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Keeneland.
Smooch Up stays perfect in the Malvern Rose. Our man Chance Rains had Presque Isle’s Malvern Rose Day covered, and the favorite delivered: Smooch Up romped by 6¼ lengths to stay unbeaten in the $75,000 feature for Pennsylvania-bred sophomore fillies.
Read Chance’s Malvern Rose preview →
Pletcher begins serving suspension. Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher has started a suspension tied to Forte’s positive test from the 2022 Hopeful, per Horse Racing Nation — closing the book on one of the sport’s longest-running medication cases.
Contest Corner: A Huge Saturday Ahead
Saturday is loaded for tournament players, with seats to the sport’s richest handicapping championships on the line — and we’ll have you covered going in:
ITM HorsePlayers Tour feeder. Our Friday feeder on HorsePlayers.com funnels into Saturday’s BCBC qualifier — and it benefits Breeders’ Cup charities. Top four advance to our season-ending Playoffs, where the champ wins a $10,000 BCBC seat on us.
Laurel — De Francis Day Challenge. A $500 buy-in ($250 bankroll) on De Francis Dash Day, with a BCBC seat, two NHC seats and cash up for grabs. Online players pre-register by 3:00 PM ET Friday.
TwinSpires — $3,500 Stephen Foster Betting Challenge. The featured Saturday tournament at Churchill — the same card as Sovereignty’s return — with a guaranteed $15,000 pool and seven championship seats. Lower-cost feeders are in the lobby too.
Full rundown — plus the big summer dates →
And we’ve got shows all weekend to get you ready. Friday, PTF and Mike P dig into the ITM HorsePlayers Tour. Saturday, PTF and Dan Illman go through the Laurel contest card, and JK and PTF preview the star-studded Stephen Foster. Watch on the ITM YouTube channel.
Today’s Card: Presque Isle Downs
Chance Rains is back with a race-by-race look at today’s Presque Isle card — some deep fields, a longshot or two, and a read on whether that early-week rail bias is gone now that the track has dried out.
Read Chance Rains’s Presque Isle card →
A Racetrack Favorite Is Coming to Lexington
Here’s one for the foodies — and the Keeneland crowd. Deluca’s Pizza, the brick-oven institution that’s been a fixture of the Oaklawn racing scene in Hot Springs, Arkansas since 2013, is opening a Lexington location. Owner Anthony Valinoti is aiming to have the doors open by October, right in time for the Keeneland fall meet and the Breeders’ Cup.
It’ll land in the Palomar Springs shopping center just off Harrodsburg Road, with a full bar and a patio, serving the same menu that’s built a cult following down south: 18-inch brick-oven pies with that signature near-charred crust, Italian “soaked” salads, and the famous “Spiteburger.” The racing world is already on board — Santa Anita and Saratoga announcer Frank Mirahmadi, who’s helping spread the word, predicts it’ll be “the most popular restaurant in town,” and Hill ‘n’ Dale’s John Sikura and trainer Michael Stidham are fans too. Valinoti plans to spend the Keeneland meets in town — so pencil it in when the Breeders’ Cup rolls into the Bluegrass this fall.
Read it at the Lexington Herald-Leader →
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