Top pick selections for all races at Laurel Park today, plus select trip notes and horses to follow. Good luck!
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Race Selections
R1: 5-10-6
R2: 6-1-5
R3: 5-3-9
R4: 3-2-7
R5: 1A-7-1
R6: 7-1-12
R7: 7-3-5
R8: 2-8-5
R9: 4-7-1
R10: 7-9-6
Trip Notes – Recent performances that deserve an asterisk. All others: trust the past-performances.
| Race 1: MSW, 2YO (F), 1 Mile, Turf | |||
| Horse | Race | Trip | Notes |
| #5 GOLD BREW | MSW, CNL, 1M, Firm Turf, 07/09/26 – 3rd | Broke cleanly from gate 9, then settled into mid-pack, ~4L off the very slow pace while 2W; raced between horses as the field bunched racing into the far turn, then found herself boxed in and unable to build the necessary momentum rounding the turn; managed to tip out into the clear 4W ~1/4 pole, then finished willingly for 3rd. | She did well to finish 3rd here in what was her second start and first route considering the slow pace (25.21, 52.05) worked against her, and she was prevented from building momentum or advancing on the far turn; recon she has more to offer and she’s deserving of respect right back. |
| #10 WAVES OF SUCCESS | MSW, CNL, 1M, Firm Turf, 08/21/26 – 4th | Chased honest pace from ~3L back into the far turn; responded to pressure and crept a little closer racing to the ¼ pole but then found herself boxed in and was on heels in upper stretch; steadied and then switched out into the center which hurt her momentum and put her 4L down at the 1/8 pole; rallied again late but had too much to do. | Liked the way that, after having her momentum halted in upper stretch and losing a couple of lengths at a pivotal moment, she then re-rallied to be beaten just 2L; feel she’d have gone very close with a clear path through and notable improvement and a form reversal with CORDOVA seems possible second out. |
| Other notes:
– #2 SHE’S THE MOAMENT was under pressure from the start at Colonial on debut, continuously responded and stayed on well late; she very much left the impression that today’s stretch out in trip will benefit her; player switching surfaces. – Not entirely sure how much difference it made to her finishing position, but #3 DOE’S LEMONADE steadied entering the turn when sprinting 4F at Timonium last time; switches surfaces and stretches out today. – #6 CORDOVA didn’t have a bad trip at Colonial last time, but she did briefly lack room and was forced to wait a few strides racing into the lane; while she didn’t have to check or steady, this brief pause allowed the winner to get the jump on her which, based on her finishing effort, very possibly cost her the race; respected right back. |
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| Race 2: Claiming 12.5k, 3YO+ (F), 6 Furlongs, Dirt |
| Other notes:
– #3 LADY SRIRACHA received a good pace setup when just failing at Parx last out; her prior start to that, in which she finished 2nd, came over a heavily SPEED BIASED track. – #6 SCARLET’S DREAM was positioned close to a fast, closer friendly pace (22.91, 45.97) going 7F at Saratoga last out; she stayed on willingly despite losing position in upper stretch and not having been ridden hard in deep stretch; she has the potential to offer more than that if rationing out her speed more efficiently down in both class and trip today. |
| Race 3: MSW, 3-6YO, 1 1/16 Miles, Turf | |||
| Horse | Race | Trip | Note |
| #5 SOUPER CHA CHING | MSW, CNL, 1 1/16M, Firm Turf, 08/29/26 – 3rd | Broke a beat slowly, then took a strong hold and settled in rear ~4L off a very slow early pace; advanced slightly between horses in the 2P racing to the far turn; kept revs up while in behind horses racing to the ¼ pole, then things got a little tight and he had to tap on the brakes in upper stretch; angled out and bumped notably with a rival upon straightening, now ~6L off the quickening leaders; from there, he finished very well down the center for 3rd but had too much to do; galloped out well. | He managed to close into a slow pace (25.73, 50.74; speed held very well) despite having had some traffic trouble in upper stretch; it’s easy to argue that he was actually best in here; massive player second out. |
| Other notes:
– The chart comment correctly highlights how #2 RESOLUTE was carried out passing the 1/8 pole after sitting a 3W trip in a slowly run race at Penn National last time; while true that he was carried out, it was extremely minor interference and did not affect the beaten margin/speed fig at all; lasix back on today. – Having received an excellent pace setup at Del Mar when making his turf debut last November, #9 RIO GRANDE was extremely rank and ran up on heels aggressively entering and rounding the first turn at Santa Anita in his most recent turf start which surely contributed to his very poor finishing effort; makes debut for Russell off a layoff and following a gelding operation today. |
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| Race 4: Claiming 7.5k, 3YO+, 6 Furlongs, Dirt | |||
| Horse | Race | Trip | Note |
| #3 BELTANE | Claiming 5k, TIM, 6 1/2F, Fast Dirt, 09/06/26 – 2nd | Bumped start; sent and dueled through fast, pressured fractions on rail; light bump 3/8; entered far turn still in a duel, 6L clear of 3rd; continued dueling under pressure to the top of the lane, then put away pace rival but was collared by a deep closer and had to settle for 2nd. | A simple pace upgrade can be awarded here as he very nearly got the job done despite having dueled through fast, closer friendly fractions throughout (winner, third and fourth place finishers were 9, 8 and 7 lengths off the lead at the 5/16 pole); possibly capable of more if able to ration his speed out more efficiently. |
| Other notes:
– #5 BATTALION LEADER endured a rough start at Timonium last time, but it’s hard to say that was the train for his below par effort; needs more. – After fading, #7 ON THE LEVEL was not ridden through the lane at Colonial last time, exacerbating the margin of defeat; drops in class making debut for Ness today. |
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| Race 5: OC62k/N1X Allowance, 2YO, 5 ½ Furlongs, Turf | |||
| Horse | Race | Trip | Note |
| #9 MONTOUR | MSW, CNL, 5 1/2F, Firm Turf, 08/23/26 – 1st | Broke with field but was then put in tight shortly after and shuffled back to 6th; raced greenly into the turn, then made a steady 3W advance under pressure racing to the top of the lane; loomed with a threatening run upper stretch, then took some time to switch leads in the stretch but eventually did so and surged late for a comfortable score. | He suffered a troubled beginning to this race and then showed many signs of greenness; although sent off at 2/5 and expected to win this race, he still did well to do so under the circumstances and there is seemingly plenty more to come.
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| Other notes:
– As highlighted in the chart comment, #3 PARKRIDGE was bumped very hard ~5 1/2F pole last out, which wasn’t ideal; however, his momentum was not hindered much at all and he sat a picture-perfect trip thereafter, so we should not upgrade the effort; switches surfaces making debut for De Paz today. – #1 ALL NESSED UP received a perfect pace setup on debut at Colonial prior to a fine effort in a stake last time. – #1A METALLICAN won at Timonium on debut despite shaping as though he’ll be much better on a conventional track with longer straights and more sweeping turns; he increased his stride frequency through the short stretch, was never letting the runner-up by and seemed to have more to offer; likable. – Despite having been caught in an often-unideal spot between horses early, #10 FUTILE GESTURE still managed to do best of the speed in a strongly run restricted Jamestown Stakes at Colonial last out; respected right back. |
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| Race 6: Claiming 16k, 3YO+ (F), 5 ½ Furlongs, Turf | |||
| Horse | Race | Trip | Note |
| #7 YO ADRIAN | Claiming 16k, CNL, 5 1/2F, Firm Turf, 09/04/26 – 3rd | Unhurried from gate; chased slow pace from ~7L back in last racing into the turn; held position under patient handling racing to the top of the lane, then came under a ride, shifted off the rail and rallied well down the center but had too much to do. | He did extremely well to hit the board here considering the pace was slow and speed held very well; expecting him to offer more with a stronger pace likely today. |
| Other notes:
– Speed held really well in the fifth race at Colonial on September 04, possibly warranting downgrades for #1 DALE’S BLUFF and #8 FAHNEE, who were always prominent. – Speed held very well and the running order hardly changed in the race that both #4 DIANE LEE and #11 THISISHOWWEDOIT exit at Colonial; while neither runner sat bad trips, maybe take that form with a pinch of salt. – #9 CHITCHATCHITCHAT became worked up in the gate at Colonial last out, then sat a wide trip; seemed like an off day for her; wouldn’t surprise if she today. – Once again, #12 MIDSUMMER MO finished very well into an even pace to just get up at Penn National last time; she shapes as if today’s 5 1/2F trip could be perfect. |
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| Race 7: Ratings Optional Claiming (65-1), 3YO+ (F), 1 Mile, Turf |
| Other Notes:
– #1 KISSEDBYANANGEL’s 1 1/4L defeat at Delaware two-back effort deserves a little extra credit as she was caught up in a speed duel early, and the track was favoring closers; she then sat a wide trip at Timonium last time; might be capable of more now stretching back out. – The chart comment notes that #4 MARGARET P steadied entering the second turn at Timonium last time, but this hardly happened at all, and we can not attribute her poor performance to this; needs more. |
| Race 8: Allowance, 3YO+ (F), 1 1/16 Mile, Turf | |||
| Horse | Race | Trip | Note |
| #8 GRIPEN | Allowance, CNL, 1M, Firm Turf, 08/23/26 – 5th | Pulled hard between foes in behind a very slow pace early; shuffled back to 7th entering far turn, then found herself on the back foot as the pace lifted; 5L down when taken very wide ~5/16 pole; came 5W into the lane, 5L off quickening leaders, then finished well but had too much to do. | Her effort, rallying from 5L down into the criminally slow pace (26.20, 51.23) when on the back foot and widest of all on the home turn, was actually very commendable, and with a more honest tempo today, she may well be able to improve on this debut turf route try. |
| Other notes:
– #4 FIRE’S OUT didn’t have a bad trip on return last time but she did receive a bump when in search of room in upper stretch; in what was a slowly run race, she finished with good energy through the lane and galloped out well, seemingly with more in the tank; a nice prep run, she can step forward today. – Exiting the same race as #8 GRIPEN, #10 BUZZAWAY appeared unsuited by the slow pace (26.20, 51.23), pulling hard while wide early and then getting caught flat footed late on; expecting more from her with a stronger pace forecast today. |
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| Race 9: Ratings Optional Claiming (75-1), 3YO+, 6 Furlongs, Dirt |
| Other notes:
– #4 FASTER GATOR stumbled at the start and was bumped hard between foes last out which left him racing well behind the field early; as a typical speed horse, this was far from ideal and likely had an influence on his overall poor effort. – Although #5 FEAR NOTHING was steadied slightly rounding the first turn at Timonium last time, it was fairly insignificant and absolutely not the reason as to why he performed below par. – #6 OMAR COMIN found himself in a tight spot ~1/4 pole at Colonial last out; however, he was already well behind at this stage, and it didn’t make that much difference to the result; cuts back in trip today. – There was a strong speed bias present at Finger Lakes when #7 GATSBY scored courtesy of a forward trip last out, but that’s not to say he wasn’t still best at 8/5; debuts for Ness today. |
| Race 10: OC35k/SAL28k, 3YO+ (F), 1 Mile, Turf |
| Other notes:
– Not sure what #6 AMBERIA (IRE) was doing at Colonial last time: after tracking a slow pace set by the eventual gate-to-wire winner, she was produced by to come with a run in the lane but hung while drifting/lugging inwards, right up until about 20Y from the wire, when she then decided to straighten out and surge with great energy only to miss; she appeared to be cheating her supporters there and while maybe a touch untrustworthy, she has the potential to improve on that try. – Regardless of what she beat, the way #9 WEATHERBY went about breaking her maiden at Colonial last time was impressive: she tracked the honest pace in 2nd, cruised up to lead when everyone else was under the pump at the top of the lane, then exploded away under a mild hand ride when asked before easing down late; she ran a 63 Beyer but could have way more to offer. |
Horses to Follow
R3: SOUPER CHA CHING (9/5 ML)
Mike Trombetta’s well-bred SOUPER CHA CHING took money on debut at Colonial and really should have scored, but a slow pace and a little traffic forced him to settle for a fast-finishing third instead. The group he now faces in today’s third looks a little tougher than his last, and one probably doesn’t want to take any shorter than the 9/5 morning-line price, but the upside potential he retains is far greater than the other main protagonists and he’s fired a bullet workout since his last run; he might simply be better than these.
R7: CITANA (9/2 ML)
CITANA finished just behind next-out stakes winner STARSHIP ATHENA on the turf at Delaware last out in what was a strong effort; she now gets a little class relief while switching from the turf to dirt. Motion doesn’t boast great stats making this surface-switch move, but this gal was a G3 winner over the surface in her native Argentina and has worked lights out on the surface recently.
R8: GRIPEN (15/1 ML)
Although she’s found herself in another tough spot, GRIPEN shouldn’t be dismissed in today’s eighth following a better-than-looks first turf route try at Colonial last time where she had her chance undone by a criminally slow pace. Kingsley brings her weight down to just 112 pounds and at 15/1 on the morning line, she should be worth including on tickets.
