Delaware Park Picks & Predictions — July 18, 2026
Delaware Park rolls out a full 10-race card on Saturday, July 18, and the weather is about as cooperative as you could hope for a mid-July afternoon on the Mid-Atlantic circuit — overcast skies keeping the heat in check at 84°F. That cloud cover could play a subtle role on the turf courses, where softer light and stable footing tend to keep surfaces consistent throughout the afternoon.
What we've got here is a genuinely varied card — six dirt sprints and routes mixed with four turf tests, spanning maiden claimers all the way up to an allowance closer that has our analysts buzzing. Three of those races are fully open to all TrackWiz readers, and the top picks across the free legs alone give you a real foundation to build on. The back half of the card is where the real money is made, though.
Ten races. Multiple surface switches. A handful of horses posting ratings north of 89. Today's the kind of card where having the right information separates a profitable afternoon from an expensive one.
Best Bets
Race 1
Claiming · 6 fur · Dirt
A wide-open claiming sprint with three horses clustered near the top of the TrackWiz ratings and legitimate pace questions throughout the field — don't sleep on the overlay angles here.
Protege (No. 2) tops our ratings at 84.17 and carries a 20% career win rate — solid numbers for a claiming level that often rewards consistency. Vincent Cheminaud gets the mount, and pairing a capable jockey with an above-average speed figure (55 avg) makes this the most complete package in the field. At 5/1 on the morning line, there's genuine value here if the pace sets up cleanly from a good post.
Seven's Eleven (No. 1) sits right behind Protege in the ratings at 80.32, and a 21% career win rate is nothing to dismiss in claiming company. Angel Cruz knows this oval well, and the inside post could be an asset in a field this size if there's early pressure to track. A place ticket here makes plenty of sense as a safer return.
Keeping It Country (No. 5) rates at 75.14 with a tidy 25% career win rate — that win percentage is tied for the highest in the field among horses with meaningful samples. Emanuel Rosario takes the reins, and at 6/1, this horse is worth including in trifecta and exacta coverage as a live show threat.
Race 2
Starter Optional Claiming · 6 fur · Dirt
Yes I Will looks like a dominant favorite in this Starter Optional Claiming sprint, but the secondary positions are genuinely contested and could offer nice exacta value underneath.
Yes I Will (No. 1) is the class of this field by a wide margin — a TrackWiz rating of 89.27 with a 25% career win rate makes her a confident top selection. Angel Cruz keeps the mount, which is a good sign, and her average speed figure of 54 is consistent with winning at this level. At 3/2 on the morning line, the odds aren't glamorous, but the profile says bet accordingly.
Sugar On Fire (No. 3) rates a solid 69.37 — second-best in the field — and Eddie Dominguez brings strong local presence to the mount. The 10% career win rate is modest, but her speed figures and rating suggest she outperforms that number in terms of competitive effort. At 8/1, she's a value play underneath the favorite.
Ready and Able (No. 6) clocks in at a 61.87 rating with a 54 average speed figure, matching the top closers in this bunch. Teshawn Hazelwood takes the call for trainer Robert A. Werneth, and at 6/1, this horse has the profile of a solid show finisher who keeps things honest in the deep stretch.
Race 3
Maiden Claiming · 7 1/2 fur · Turf
Maiden Claimers on the turf at 7.5 furlongs are notoriously difficult to crack — this full field of non-winners makes it a spread race, but two horses stand significantly above the rest on our ratings.
Plenty On Tap (No. 4) is the standout in this wide field, posting an 87.81 TrackWiz rating — a full two points clear of the second-rated horse. Julio A. Hernandez pilots for trainer Tim Woolley, and the 54 average speed figure is among the best in the field. At 5/2 on the morning line, this is a fair price for a horse that looks meaningfully better than the competition.
Hopeygot (No. 6) rates 85.38 — the second-best score in the race — and Vincent Cheminaud is an excellent turf jockey to have aboard for a 7.5-furlong maiden on the grass. The 7/2 morning line suggests the crowd agrees this is the main challenger, and she's a very reasonable place play in what could be a two-horse race at the top.
Cap'n Cats (No. 5) is a sneaky inclusion at 12/1 with a 64.25 rating — a significant jump above the rest of the mid-pack horses. Angel Cruz takes the mount for trainer Josue Arce, and in a full field with pace questions over turf, a horse with this rating gap over the lower half of the field can absolutely hit the board at a generous price.
The first three races give everyone a solid look at what TrackWiz analysis can do. We open with Protege in Race 1, a claiming sprint where we see value at the 5/1 morning line — don't let that price scare you off. Race 2 brings Yes I Will to the table as the morning-line favorite at 3/2, and with a TrackWiz rating of 89.27, this one has the profile of a horse that earns that chalk status. Then Race 3 shifts to the turf for a 7½-furlong maiden claimer where Plenty On Tap at 5/2 looks like a well-positioned play on a surface that should hold up nicely under today's cloud cover.
The connecting thread across these three free races? Speed figures that grade out comfortably above the field average, and pace scenarios that set each top pick up to run their race without getting buried early. On a day like today, with conditions stable and no major weather concerns, trusting the numbers is the play.
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Bottom line: Delaware Park is putting on a legitimate card today, and the numbers give us real horses to get behind from the jump. Yes I Will in Race 2 and Plenty On Tap in Race 3 are the anchors of the free card. Miguel's Belle is the name to know for the finale. For everything in between — the pace angles, the exotic structures, and the longshot plays our models flagged in the premium races — subscribe to TrackWiz and get the full picture before post time.