Horse Racing This Weekend: Key Races, Top Horses & Best Bets [Feb. 20]

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Get ready for horse racing this weekend

Discover everything you need to know about horse racing this weekend, including top horses, best bets, tournaments, key races, and many great promotional bonus offers you just can't say no to. 

Come back to find more weekly horse races and promotional offers every weekend.

2026 Kentucky Derby Corner & the 2026 Kentucky Oaks

Come here every week to discover everything you need to know about the 2026 Kentucky Derby. 

• Kentucky Derby pedigree profile: Pavlovian
• Kentucky Derby Maiden Watch: Fair Grounds winners impress
• Kentucky Derby pedigree profile: Al Haram
• Kentucky Oaks Roundup: Bella Ballerina leaps up Leaderboard; only international contest Friday
• Meet the Contenders: 2026 John Battaglia Memorial Stakes
• Tipsheet: 2026 John Battaglia Memorial Stakes
• Kentucky Derby Roundup: Paladin tops the leaderboard
• Tall Tales of the Track – A Case of Mistaken Identity?

Jason Beem Horse Racing Podcast

Jason discusses some topics from Wednesday in racing and looks ahead to weekend racing from Turfway Park. Kellie Reilly joins for our International Radar. 

Top horses and best bets for horse racing this weekend

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Best Bets for the 2026 John Battaglia Memorial Stakes

Read the full analysis here: Tipsheet: 2026 John Battaglia Stakes

An overflow cast of 13 sophomores will run 1 1/16 miles over the Tapeta surface at Turfway Park in Saturday’s $175,000 John Battaglia Memorial S. The 2026 Road to the Kentucky Derby challenge series event will reward the top five finishers with qualifying points on a 20-10-6-4-2 basis. Who is your best bet?

Battaglia Stakes Picks

• #7 Attfield
• #11 Fulleffort
• #1 Street Beast
• #12 Two Out Hero

Battaglia Stakes Wagers

• $15 win and place #7 Attfield
• $4 exacta key box 7 with 1,11,12
• 20-cent superfecta 7 with 1,11,12 with 1,11,12 with all

Top Horses for the 2026 John Battaglia Memorial Stakes

#7 ATTFIELD: Top pick flashed a lot of ability on the grass as a juvenile in the Empire State and seems well spotted for his sophomore debut for Thomas Morley. The chestnut son of Vekoma was a visually impressive winner in the Central Park S. on the Aqueduct lawn in his two-year-old finale and has trained well in the interim. He will be a menace at the top of the lane with Santana retaining the ride. 

Pro: Solid form on the grass last season in NY; class should carry him far.

Con: Main concern is that he might be better suited to the turf.

#11 FULLEFFORT: Second from the Cox barn was a late-running second in the Leonatus here last time and will be a menacing sort late with expected improvement second time off the layoff. The $425,000 son of Liam’s Map gets more ground with which to work with on Saturday, and if he receives a favorable pace set up, then the Kentucky-bred will be a formidable foe inside the final furlong under the guidance of Vincent Cheminaud. 

Pro: Excellent form last fall and comeback effort is something he can build on.

Con: Tends to be well supported, so value might be lacking.

#1 STREET BEAST: Ben Colebrook's trainee bagged the Leonatus S. on the oval in wire-to-wire fashion last time out and rates an obvious chance from the rail. Multiple stakes-winning son of Street Sense has room to improve in his second run of the season with Luan Machado in the irons. 

Pro: Stakes winner both here and at Kentucky Downs; top contender.

Con: Might not be able to dictate terms as easily as he did in Leonatus S.

#12 TWO OUT HERO: Stakes winner from the barn of Kevin Attard ran a trio of very good races as a juvenile, capped by a close third in the Summer (G1) on the Woodbine lawn. The War Front colt was a 12-length victor in his lone run on the all-weather in advance of this tilt, and the $240,000 yearling purchase has trained in solid fashion in the interim, as well. Having regular rider Rafael Hernandez in the silks is a bonus, too. 

Pro: Stakes winner on turf but captured only Tapeta start by 12 lengths.

Con: Hasn’t run since mid-September and drew poorly here.

RELATED: Meet the Contenders: 2026 John Battaglia Memorial Stakes

Best Bets for the 2026 Nodouble Breeders' Stakes

Read the full analysis here: How to bet the Nodouble Breeders' Stakes

A solid group of eight Arkansas-breds will dash six panels on the Oaklawn Park dirt in Saturday’s $150,000 Nodouble Breeders’ S. Who is your best bet for the night?

Nodouble Wagers

• $5 exacta key 4 with 3,7,8 ($15)
• $2 trifecta key 4 with 3,7,8 ($12)
• 50-cent superfecta 4,8 with 4,8 with 3,7 with all ($10)

Top Horses for the 2026 Nodouble Breeders' Stakes

#4 Navy Seal (2-1) can be very good on his best day and gets the slight nod in a mostly well-matched field. Trained by Nancy Knott, the veteran son of Midshipman owns 14 top-three results on the course in his lifetime, and he comes in off the layoff in the dash, which could be a benefit to the gelding that runs well after a refresher. The early pace of the race figures to be honest at the very least, which will give the bay and pilot Julien Leparoux every chance to go clear in the lane.

#8 Touchdown Arkansas (3-1) missed by a neck in a big allowance try in his first appearance since May, and will be a major player with even slight improvement off of that showing. The Bee Jersey chestnut put in a pair of big efforts on the oval in the winter, and the Thomas Van Berg pupil has a good combination of gate presence and a closing kick. The five-year-old will break from an ideal post from the outside of the field, too. Francisco Arrieta will be in the irons. 

#7 One Ten Stadium (12-1) is a stakes victor routing on the surface and has appeal to me as an exotics contender from off the pace in the dash. The seven-year-old son of Race Day was just 3 1/2 lengths back in the event in 2025 and will be challenging for a placing with some improvement off of that result, with Keith Asmussen taking the reins. 

#3 Bohemian Bo (8-5) is a five-time winner on the strip coming off a game allowance tally on the oval in his 2025 finale and has put in five morning drills in the interim. The Thomas Vance pupil has raced just once since June and could clear the field with a clean break from the gate with Walter De La Cruz in the stirrups. 

TwinSpires Jury

Ashley Anderson, James Scully, and Darin Zoccali return for Episode 130 of The TwinSpires Jury, previewing a pivotal weekend on the Road to the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks. 

The panel shares insight, wagering strategy, and top selections for: 

• John Battaglia Memorial 
  • Turfway Park (Saturday) A major Road to the Kentucky Derby prep with 20 Derby points on the line and a stepping stone toward the Jeff Ruby Steaks S. 
• Wishing Well Stakes 
  • Santa Anita (Saturday) The crew’s top picks and value plays from Southern California. 

Plus, don’t miss their weekly Fade of the Weekend, where each analyst identifies one betting favorite they’re willing to stand against. If you’re building Derby futures tickets, attacking multi-race wagers, or looking for sharp opinions before the weekend begins, this episode delivers insight you can use. 

Best Bets for the 2026 Downthedustyroad Stakes

Read the full analysis here: Betting With, and Against, Haulin Ice in the Downthedustyroad Stakes

Multiple Grade 3 heroine and defending champ #8 Haulin Ice (1-2) is the prohibitive morning-line choice in Friday’s $150,000 Downthedustyroad S. at Oaklawn Park. The six-furlong dash on the dirt attracted a field of nine, but the favorite is clearly the one to beat for Saffie Joseph. The Coal Front mare is just shy of $1 million in earnings and will look to surpass that in the dash that she won by six facile lengths last season. 

Haulin Ice – With

• $10 trifecta 8 with 2 with 5,7 ($20)
• $5 trifecta 8 with 5,7 with 2 ($10)

Haulin Ice – Against

• $10 trifecta 2 with 8 with 5,7 ($20)
• $1 trifecta 2,5 with 2,5,8 with 2,5,7,8 ($8)

Top Horses for the Downthedustyroad Stakes

#8 Haulin Ice (1-2) Second in the grassy Abundantia S. at Gulfstream Park in December to conclude her four-year-old season, the gray sports a formidable 8-6-2-0 mark on this strip and will be especially tough to upend with something close to her best performance. The fleet mare will be forcing the tempo from the opening bell with Francisco Arrieta in the silks. 

#2 Hush It Honey (3-1) is the main danger to the favorite and comes in off two allowance wins over open allowance foes for conditioner Randy Morse. The Too Much Bling five-year-old loves this oval with a 6-4-1-0 mark locally in her career, and she shows some nice morning drills in advance of her seasonal bow, as well. Rafael Bejarano will be in the irons. 

#7 Ministry’s Destiny (20-1) is not a likely winner in the affair, but the bay filly cuts back in distance after a nice try going long on the oval most recently, and the four-year-old could peak while making her third run off the shelf, as well. The daughter of Hamazing Destiny is stakes-placed on the oval and at the distance, and the filly has a versatile running style with Tyler Bacon staying in the silks. 

#5 Caliente Star (12-1) for the initial time off the shelf in the heat. The Tapiture four-year-old faced stakes foes in her final four races as a sophomore and could move forward while making a second appearance since June. The versatile lass has trained well leading up to the tilt and will have Luis Saez in the irons. 

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RELATED: Tournament Talk: Upcoming horse racing tourney's, weekend recap & big winners