Horse Racing Betting News This Month | Haskell, Travers, Saratoga, Goodwood Cup, Breeders’ Cup Futures | July, 2026

Rowan Wardby Rowan Ward
Updated: July 7, 2026

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The Triple Crown season is over, so in July, focus in racing shifts to summer meets like Saratoga and Del Mar. Saratoga opened fourth of July weekend with overseas shippers winning both the Belmont Derby and the Belmont Oaks, and Phileas Fogg winning the Suburban in blowout fashion. But, that’s just the beginning, with major Grade 1 races and Breeders’ Cup preps coming at rapid-fire all summer long.

There is still a lot of emphasis on the three-year-old dirt-route set. The Haskell and the Travers are the truly top races in the division, though races like the Jim Dandy and even the Iowa Derby, Indiana Derby, and other regional three-year-old races can be places where new faces join the picture. Those races are worth watching in order to help look for betting value in spots like the Travers, Pennsylvania Derby, or even older-horse clashes like the Jockey Club Gold Cup at Saratoga and the Goodwood Stakes at Santa Anita, both of which often draw three-year-olds whose connections are not afraid to try top older horses.

Make sure you’re ready for the summer action: if you’re new to betting horse racing or just need a refresher, check out our guide to how to bet on horse racing. And, make sure you’re getting a convenient and trustworthy betting experience with our guide to the best horse racing betting apps.

The biggest betting storylines this month

  1. How will Golden Tempo get through the summer? Golden Tempo was riding high off of wins in the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes five weeks later, and the original plan was that he would run in the Jim Dandy and then the Travers. However, he got sick and missed ten days of training, meaning he will not make it to the Jim Dandy on August 1. Trainer Cherie DeVaux still plans to run him in the Travers on August 29, so watch to see when he finally returns to the work tab.
  2. Haskell, Jim Dandy lead three-year-old picture. In the Haskell on July 18 at Monmouth, both Preakness winner Napoleon Solo and late Kentucky Derby scratch The Puma are slated to return to action against a field slated to also include beaten Kentucky Derby favorite Further Ado, who got back on track in the Matt Winn. The Jim Dandy, August 1 at Saratoga, should feature familiar Triple Crown contenders like Commandment, Renegade, and Chip Honcho.
  3. Midwestern derbies feature new faces and horses looking for redemption, all of whom could be price plays in bigger races later. Preakness third-place finisher Chip Honcho got the best of Kentucky Derby third-place Ocelli in the Ohio Derby, and both the Iowa Derby and Indiana Derby are on the horizon. Bob Baffert’s Desert Gate will try to return to form in Iowa, while the Indiana Derby features up-and-comers like Our Moneyman and Zihnal ready to prove themselves on the big stage.
  4. The Goodwood Cup features a clash of Europe’s two top stayers. Scandinavia and Trawlerman fought a duel for the ages in the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot, and both are coming back for more in the Goodwood. Scandinavia got the best of Trawlerman at Ascot, and is a well-defined favorite, meaning there could be value on Trawlerman given how close their form is.

Biggest futures, outright and win total moves this month

Many of the summer races that will move the market are on the horizon over the next several weeks. However, a blockbuster edition of the Stephen Foster at Churchill Downs has created a new market leader in the Breeders’ Cup Classic market, and a champion who had been out of the spotlight for a while has reentered the Distaff picture.

Breeders’ Cup Classic

Magnitude has forged his way to the top of Breeders’ Cup Classic futures.  Though Sovereignty is the reigning horse of the year, he has been defeated twice straight, by White Abarrio in the Oaklawn Handicap and then Magnitude in the Stephen Foster. With a victory over reigning Breeders’ Cup Classic champion Forever Young in the Dubai World Cup earlier this year followed by a strong return win in the Foster, Steve Asussen-trained Magnitude has emerged as the market leader, and looks a likely favorite when he returns in the Whitney (G1) on August 8.

Expect the Haskell on July 18 to affect Breeders’ Cup Classic markets as well. Though the race is limited to sophomores, it nonetheless offers a bid to the Breeders’ Cup Classic and horses who win the Haskell often train on to be major factors in that division.

Breeders’ Cup Distaff

Nitrogen remains the top name in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff picture off of her victory in the Ogden Phipps. The waters may get even deeper for her before then, though: her connections are pointing her to run against males in the Whitney (G1) on August 8 at Saratoga. That race is an automatic qualifier for the Breeders’ Cup Classic and she’ll face a deep field that is likely to include Magnitude – but if she wins or even comes close, which is possible if she runs her top effort, then she’ll almost certainly be a heavy Distaff favorite.

Immersive is no longer sliding under the radar. An undefeated champion juvenile who missed the Kentucky Oaks prep season and had not won a graded-stakes race since that juvenile year, she returned to serious form in the Fleur de Lis (G2) on June 27 at Churchill Downs. Though she faced a field of only four, the horses she beat included a pair of well-proven runners in Regaled and Shred the Gnar. That earned Immersive a ticket to the Breeders’ Cup Distaff, a race her trainer Brad Cox has already won three times.

Breeders’ Cup Mile

Breeders’ Cup Mile markets have yet to open, but expect them to be chaotic when they do. Notable Speech, the defending champion, was a defined favorite in the Queen Anne at Royal Ascot, but did not run his best that day. The race was instead won by Ten Bob Tony, a 50-1 outsider. The race awarded Ten Bob Tony a Breeders’ Cup Mile bid though it is not clear yet whether he will go.

The Fourstardave is coming up August 8 at Saratoga. The best summertime turf mile in North America, the Fourstardave offers a bid to the Breeders’ Cup Mile and perennially draws a strong field. The local prep, the Poker, resulted in a dead heat for the win between the resurgent Zulu Kingdom and up-and-coming Mi Bago – trained by Breeders’ Cup Mile-winning conditioners Chad Brown and Mark Casse, respectively, these are horses who could move the market strongly if they take a step forward in the Fourstardave.

Futures market check

Stateside, the most impactful races on the near horizon and the ones with futures markets opening include the major summer three-year-old races, the Haskell and the Travers. Overseas, the turf sprint division may be about to take stronger shape with the July Cup at Newmarket.

Betting trends we’re watching this month

The first major three-year-old dirt route of the summer, the Haskell, happens at Monmouth on July 18. The futures market is a tight one. Two horses are disputing the top of the market: Brad Cox charge Further Ado and Bob Baffert trainee Crude Velocity. Given Bob Baffert’s tendency to take action at the Haskell, expect Crude Velocity to hold favoritism if he goes – the 1 1/8-mile distance is a question but the pedigree is there for a stretch out and Monmouth tends to be one of the kinder tracks for stretching out sprinters. Further Ado got back into winning form in the Matt Winn, but still has to answer the question of if he’s as brilliant anywhere else as he is at Keeneland. Others to watch in the markets include Preakness winner Napoleon Solo, Florida Derby runner-up The Puma, and Preakness runner-up Iron Honor.

Eyes are also already on the Travers, even though that race is all the way out on August 29, near the end of Saratoga. Golden Tempo is the current favorite in early futures, despite the fact that he will miss the local prep on August 1, the Jim Dandy. Kentucky Derby runner-up Renegade, Belmont runner-up Commandment, and talented Bob Baffert charge Crude Velocity are all taking money in the early Travers market. However, expect this to shift after the Haskell and the Jim Dandy, as well as with any impressive winners of races like the Iowa Derby or Indiana Derby who may mark themselves as late bloomers worthy of major races like this.

Off of a game victory in the Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot, Venetian Sun is the market leader going into the July Cup on July 11 at Newmarket, always one of the year’s leading races in the turf sprint division. Though the Karl Burke charge is a well-defined favorite, the second spot in the market is disputed by three horses who are also coming out of excellent efforts in Group 1 races at Royal Ascot. Almeraq got the best of Satono Reve by a nose in the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee on the final day of Royal Ascot and they will clash again here. Mission Central comes out of a head win in the five-furlong King Charles III on opening day of the Royal meeting, but the Aidan O’Brien charge has to prove himself going six furlongs against the best.

What could move odds before next month’s update

Most of the races stateside that could move markets through the month of July will happen at the premier summer meets of Saratoga and Del Mar. Fields for races like the Diana, Coaching Club American Oaks, Bing Crosby, and Clement Hirsch are still coming together, but will doubtless move the Breeders’ Cup markets.

The San Diego during opening weekend of Del Mar, on July 18, is also likely to move markets both for the Pacific Classic later in the summer as well as the Breeders’ Cup Classic and Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile. Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner Full Serrano is expected to contest it, and the possibility that last year’s Preakness winner Journalism may stretch back out there after finishing third in the Met Mile adds to its possibility to influence the market in major summer and fall races.

Previous horse racing betting news updates

  • [June 2026]: Golden Tempo won the Belmont Stakes at Saratoga, Nysos captured the Met Mile, and Nitrogen won the Ogden Phipps to reshape early Breeders’ Cup futures. Attention then shifted toward Royal Ascot markets, the Stephen Foster, and the next wave of summer racing odds movement.
  • [May 2026]: Preakness Stakes futures were wide-open as the top two horses from the Kentucky Derby bypassed the second jewel of the Triple Crown to contest the Belmont Stakes instead. Breeders’ Cup markets were still a couple months from solidifying, though many of the top handicap-division horses had the Stephen Foster (G1) in their sights.
  • [April 2026]: Kentucky Derby futures tightened after final prep races, with top contenders shortening significantly following strong Grade 1 and Grade 2 performances ahead of the May classic.
  • [April 2026]: Preakness Stakes early markets began to form, with trainers expected to decide participation plans shortly after the Kentucky Derby result.
  • [March 2026]: Derby prep season created major odds swings, as late-emerging three-year-olds moved into contention while several early favorites drifted after disappointing prep runs.
  • [February 2026]: Triple Crown futures opened wider than usual, with bettors targeting lightly raced prospects and proven juvenile stakes winners ahead of the spring prep calendar.

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