In The Money Telegraph
Wednesday, July 15, 2026 · By ITM Staff
Saturday is shaping up as the biggest contest day of the summer — and the clock is running on one of the best value plays on the board.
Last Call: The $1,000 Haskell Handicapping Challenge
If you’ve been on the fence, this is the moment. Monmouth Park’s $1,000 Haskell Handicapping Challenge goes Saturday, July 18, and it is loaded for anyone chasing a Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge seat: seven-plus BCBC seats, two NHC seats, and cash are on the line — and Monmouth has said the more players who sign up, the more BCBC seats they’ll try to add. That’s a rare structure, and it rewards a full field.
The particulars:
The card. Monmouth races only — the whole 14-race Haskell Day program, which drew this week.
The format. Win, place, show, exacta, and double wagering only.
Where to play. Online only, through Xpressbet, TwinSpires, TVG/4NJBets, or HPI.
The deadlines. Playing TVG/4NJBets? You must be signed up by 3 p.m. ET Friday. Playing Xpressbet or TwinSpires? You can sign up through the ADW right up until noon Saturday, which is first post.
One important note if you’re heading to Oceanport for the day: on-site players must play through TVG, since Xpressbet and TwinSpires aren’t legal in New Jersey.
Download the entry form and sign up →
The Card You’ll Be Playing
It’s a monster. The $1 million Grade 1 NYRA Bets Haskell — a mile and an eighth for 3-year-olds, and a “Win and You’re In” to the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Keeneland — goes as Race 12, with a post time of approximately 5:45 p.m. ET and NBC carrying it live. First post for the 14-race card is noon.
And the Haskell is only the headliner: the card also carries the Grade 2 United Nations ($500,000), the Grade 2 Molly Pitcher ($500,000), the Grade 3 Monmouth Cup ($350,000), the Grade 3 Matchmaker ($300,000), and the Wolf Hill ($100,000). Monmouth is also guaranteeing a $500,000 Pick 4 ending in the Haskell and a $300,000 late Pick 5 — so the pari-mutuel pools are worth a look even if you’re not in the contest.
Same Day, Great Cause: LRF Cares
Saturday is a doubleheader for contest players, because the 7th Annual LRF Cares Horseplayer Contest runs the same afternoon — a $250 Pick & Pray on HorsePlayers.com over all of Del Mar’s races, awarding one 2027 NHC seat for every 40 entries (two guaranteed) and sending every dollar to Thoroughbred aftercare. Our goal this week is to fill it up: the more players in, the more seats awarded and the more raised for retired racehorses. You can also win your way in cheap through the $14 feeders on HorsePlayers.com.
Around the Sport
A carryover waiting at the Spa. Saratoga returns from its midweek break tomorrow, and there’s money on the table: the roughly $166,000 Pick 6 carryover, stranded when Sunday’s sequence was canceled after a late distance change, starts fresh in Race 4 on Thursday’s card.
Del Mar Opens Friday: Load Up Your Horse Tracker
The seaside meet begins Friday, and if you play the babies, this is your homework. Roughly one in five races at Del Mar this summer are for 2-year-olds, and Brad Free’s trainer-by-trainer roster in the Daily Racing Form is loaded with names worth stashing in your stable alerts right now.
The headline: the first California-based juveniles by Flightline hit the track this meet, led by Inshallah, a $2.1 million colt nearing his debut for John Sadler. Kennyten has already announced himself, winning first out with the highest Beyer Speed Figure earned by any juvenile in the country this year, a 92, and points to the Grade 3 Best Pal on Aug. 8 — where Doug O’Neill’s stakes-placed He Is No Lie awaits. And keep an eye on Michael McCarthy’s Magic Queen, an Into Mischief filly out of Mopotism, which makes her a sibling to Journalism.
One new wrinkle worth knowing before you bet: Del Mar has added “auction races” for 2-year-olds, restricted to horses sold at auction at or below a set price, giving less expensive purchases a spot against similar stock without the risk of being claimed. The first one goes as Race 3 on Friday’s opening-day card. Read the full roster at DRF →
Playing Tonight: Presque Isle
Need something to sharpen up on before Del Mar and the weekend arrive? Chance Rains has tonight’s eight-race card over the Erie tapeta (first post 3:30 p.m. ET), where both title races are getting good: Kevin Rice edged back ahead of Scooter Davis for the training lead, and Martina Rojas keeps piling up winners in the jockey standings. Read →
ITM Plus
Nick’s Notebook Is Here for Saratoga
Churchill Downs morning-line maker Nick Tammaro brings his Saratoga notebook to ITM Plus — detailed written analysis and a play of the day, every day of the meet, alongside exclusive podcasts and premium selections right through to the Breeders’ Cup.
More all week at inthemoneypodcast.com, with daily previews on the ITM YouTube channel and premium tips on ITM Plus.
