In The Money Telegraph
Wednesday, July 22, 2026 · By ITM Staff
A Grade 1 rubber match is brewing at the Spa for Saturday, Colonial gets a second crack at a washed-out card today, and Friday’s Tour feeder spans both coasts.
The Rubber Match: PTF Previews the CCA Oaks
Saturday brings one of the oldest and best races in the American calendar for 3-year-old fillies. The Grade 1 Coaching Club American Oaks, first run in 1917 and won over the years by the likes of Ruffian, Songbird, Monomoy Girl, and Thorpedo Anna, is the middle leg of the unofficial filly Triple Tiara, bridging the Acorn and the Alabama. After Scottish Lassie turned last year’s edition into a 15-length rout, this renewal looks a genuine contest.
The hook is simple: Kentucky Oaks winner Always A Runner and Acorn winner Counting Stars are level at a win apiece against one another, which makes this the decider between the two best sophomore fillies in the country. Chad Brown saddles Always A Runner alongside the progressive Directive, Mark Casse counters with Counting Stars and the closer Measure, and Todd Pletcher adds Zany to a nine-strong field.
PTF has the horse-by-horse guide for Sky Sports Racing — and he’s looking past the big two, landing on #3 La Rascasse as an each-way play, on the theory she may be better than her bare form suggests and will go off a bigger price than she should. Post time is approximately 5:45 p.m. ET Saturday. Read PTF’s CCA Oaks guide →
Watch: PTF and JK Take Stock — and Disagree
The weekend recap show is up, and it’s a good one, because the guys genuinely don’t see the Haskell the same way. PTF is intrigued by Baby Vino’s upward trajectory and unwilling to write him off before the Travers; JK isn’t buying a new star in the division at all. They also dig into whether Paco Lopez rode Napoleon Solo or rode his rivals, and into Knightsbridge’s demolition of the Monmouth Cup — a performance that has JK reserving judgment on just how good he might be until the next one.
From there it’s forward: Chad Brown’s remarkable ownership of the Diana, a preview of Saturday’s CCA Oaks — where PTF sticks with La Rascasse and JK leans to Always A Runner reversing the Acorn form — and Del Mar’s Bing Crosby, another “Win and You’re In,” this one to the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.
▶ Watch the Haskell weekend recap →
Today at Colonial: A Second Try — and Off the Turf
Remember that Colonial Downs card that never got off the ground on Friday? It was moved in its entirety to today — and the weather isn’t done with it yet. Overnight storms have pushed the races off the turf, so if you’re playing, treat Michael Domabyl’s posted analysis as a starting point and check back for his updated picks once the scratches are in. Read Domabyl’s card →
Friday’s Tour Feeder: Both Coasts
A reminder that this week’s In the Money HorsePlayers Tour feeder gives you Saratoga and Del Mar in one sequence — the Spa’s Races 7 through 10 paired with Del Mar’s Races 3 through 8, ten races in all, feeding Saturday’s BCBC Qualifier. Twenty dollars gets you in, the top 10% advance toward a $10,000 Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge seat, the top four book a place in the ITM Tour Playoffs, and the house cut goes to Breeders’ Cup Charities.
Seven Fridays are in the books, which means 28 of the 68 Playoff spots are spoken for — and four more go every week. Forty still to play for.
Enter Friday’s ITM Tour feeder →
Playing Today: Presque Isle
Weather got the better of Tuesday at the Erie tapeta too — a storm ended that card after the fifth — so Chance Rains is back with a full eight today (first post 3:30 p.m. ET). He offers a useful confession up top: his second and third choices have been running past his win picks lately, so read the whole line, not just the top number. There’s a title race to track as well, with Antonio Gallardo having caught and passed Gaddiel Martinez at the top of the jockey standings. Read →
ITM Plus
Your Daily Edge at Saratoga and Del Mar
Nick Tammaro brings his Saratoga notebook to ITM Plus every day of the meet, and Adam Dempo joins with full-card Del Mar analysis — detailed written selections, a play of the day, and exclusive podcasts 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.
