Horse Racing This Weekend: Key Races, Top Horses & Best Bets [Jan. 11, 2026]

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Kentucky Derby Corner

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

• Kentucky Derby Roundup: Strategic Risk, My World impress
• Kentucky Derby pedigree profile: Strategic Risk
• Kentucky Derby pedigree profile: My World
• Horses to follow in 2026: Fully Subscribed
• Horses to follow in 2026: Plutarch
• Horses to follow in 2026: The Padre

Weekend Windup

Jason Beem Horse Racing Podcast

Jason looks ahead to the weekend at Tampa Bay and is joined by Kellie Reilly for our International Radar segment. 

Top horses and best bets for horse racing this weekend

Click to jump to each race listed!

Best Bets for the 2026 Likely Exchange Stakes

Read the full analysis here: How to bet the Likely Exchange Stakes

A field of eight fillies and mares will jaunt one mile on the Tapeta at Turfway in Saturday’s $125,000 Likely Exchange S. What is your best bet?

Likely Exchange Wagers

• $10 win and place #2 Literate ($20)
• $1 trifecta 2 with 3,8 with all ($12)
• $1 superfecta 2 with 3,8 with 3,8 with all ($10)

Top Horses for the 2026 Likely Exchange Stakes

#2 Literate (5-2) was a closing third behind a fine winner in the My Charmer S. on the course in her local bow and could peak while making a third run off the layoff in this affair. The grade-3 winning daughter of Oscar Performance is four-for-nine in her lifetime on the all-weather, and the mare has the closing kick to pass them all in the lane, as well. Kentucky-bred bay will do her best work inside the final furlong beneath Luan Machado as the top selection in the tilt. 

#3 Devassa (12-1) will make her second run since coming to the states, and she could add a lot of value to the exotics with a move forward. A group 2 heroine in Uruguay, the five-year-old daughter of Alcorano was second throughout in an allowance race at Indiana in her U. S. debut and has trained steadily in the interim with eight well-spaced morning moves in advance of her first run on the synthetic. The Paulo Lobo pupil will likely be forwardly placed beneath Walter Rodriguez. 

#8 Trial (7-2) earned a solid 89 Brisnet Speed rating in her latest offering on the stretch out in distance for conditioner Tom Drury, and she will be a logical threat with a similar type of effort. The five-year-old daughter of Runhappy has run some good races on this oval and will be in the mix late with even slight improvement against this group. The bay homebred sat close to a moderate pace in that recent endeavor and has some versatility in her running style while drawing well on the outside of the cast. Irving Moncada has the repeat assignment and will likely have the lass in the second flight in the early going. 

Best Bets for the 2026 Las Cienegas Stakes

Read the full analysis here: Exotics Plays for the Las Cienegas Stakes

Turf sprint standout #1 Queen Maxima will lead a field of nine fillies and mares postward in Sunday’s $100,000 Las Cienegas (G3) at Santa Anita. The 6 1/2-furlong grassy affair down the Hillside Turf Course attracted some nice ones, but the race will go through the Jeff Mullins pupil despite her being assigned a tricky post inside off the group. Who is your best bet?

Las Cienegas Wagers

• $5 trifecta key 1 with 2,4,8 ($30)
• 50-cent superfecta 1 with 2,4,8 with 2,4,8 with all ($18)

Top Horses for the 2026 Las Cienegas Stakes

#1 Queen Maxima was excellent in the first half of 2025 when rolling home to a trio of open-length turf sprint wins, which included a 4 1/4-length romp in the Monrovia (G3) at today’s distance. The chestnut daughter of Bucchero concluded her four-year-old season with a measured score in the Senator Ken Maddy S. at Del Mar and has trained forwardly in the interim. She will never be far back before putting in her winning charge in the early stretch beneath Juan Hernandez. 

#8 Nay V Belle has moved forward nicely since focusing solely on the grass four back and is a logical top-three contender with her best showing on this occasion. Trained by Mark Glatt, the chestnut daughter of Midshipman has never run on the course or at the distance, but she is obviously talented and could prosper in her third run off the break, as well. The Kentucky-bred chestnut possesses a fine turn of foot, and she will be doing her best work late with Umberto Rispoli up. 

#2 Egyptian Mau has won or placed in each of her trio of performances since arriving from South Africa, which includes a nice allowance triumph going down the hill on Oct. 10. The Fire Away six-year-old is lightly raced with just 11 career tries to her credit, and the group-1 placed mare packs quite a punch in the lane for conditioner Neil Drysdale. If the import gets the right pace setup, then she will be a big factor with Mike Smith in the silks. 

#4 Spicybug has some gate presence in a field lacking pace and might find herself forcing the action from the opening bell in this spot. The Michael McCarthy pupil is four-for-five with a third locally, and she also came out on top in her local attempt at this unique distance, too. The six-year-old Speightstown mare will appreciate the class relief after a go in the Matriarch (G1) in her latest offering and will also prosper with the move back to sprinting. Ricardo Gonzalez has the call. 

TwinSpires Jury

The TwinSpires Jury of Darin Zoccali, Ashley Anderson, and Nick Tammaro share selections for stakes action at Fair Grounds, Santa Anita, and Turfway Park.

Best Bets for the 2026 San Vicente Stakes

Read the full analysis here: Betting With, and Against, Buetane in the San Vicente Stakes

A compact field of five will dash seven panels on the Santa Anita dirt in Saturday’s $200,000 San Vicente (G2). Hopeful (G1) runner-up #3 Buetane (6-5) is one of two in the field for Bob Baffert and is the one to beat in his three-year-old bow. Purchased for $1.15 million as a juvenile, the son of good young sire Tiz the Law made good at first asking at Del Mar when registering a 3 1/2-length score on Aug. 3 while being sent off as the prohibitive 3-10 favorite. If Buetane is not your best bet, check out these alternatives.

Buetane – With

• $20 trifecta key 3 with 2,4 ($40)

Buetane – Against

• $3 trifecta 3,4 with 2,3,4 with all ($36)

Top Horses for the San Vicente Stakes

#4 Acknowledgemeplz (5-2) is one of two in the cast for Doug O’Neill, the Bucchero sophomore ran a pair of big maiden races against fine foes prior to finishing unplaced in his route debut in the Los Alamitos Futurity (G2) last time out. The $75,000 purchase will be equipped with blinkers for the initial time in the contest, and if the equipment change aids the Florida-bred, he will be dangerous late in the small group. I expect Kimura to send him from the break and to force the pace throughout. 

#2 So Happy (3-1) was an upset winner at Del Mar in his lone run to date and could be a nice prospect for trainer Mark Glatt. The son of Runhappy brought $150,000 at OBS in March and ran professionally in his unveiling when posting a measured win over a big field. The Kentucky-bred colt was not flattered when the runner-up out of the heat came back to miss the board as a huge favorite in his next appearance, but the bay still has appeal to me and could sit a fine voyage from off the expected contested early pace. Mike Smith retains the mount. 

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