Maryland Million Sprint features top speedsters
Takethemoneyhoney returns from layoff in Maryland Million Distaff
Precious Avary back for another tilt in Maryland Million Ladies
LAUREL, MD—2023 winner Witty and defending champion Had to Have Him head a strong field in Saturday’s $100,000 1/ST BET Maryland Million Turf Sprint for 3-year-olds and up at 5 ½ furlongs on the Dahlia Turf Course.
Millionaire Witty, a 7-year-old gelding trained by Elizabeth Merryman and owned in partnership with Marc Detampel, has won or placed second in 24 of 38 starts.
A stakes-winner on turf and dirt at Parx, Laurel, Delaware, Pimlico, and Colonial Downs, Witty finished fourth in his most recent start, the six-furlong Laurel Dash on September 12.
“He got checked at the three-eighths, quarter pole, and that really blew his momentum,” Merryman said about the Laurel Dash. “And it was such a slow pace, it kind of cost him a lot. He’s feeling good, sharp, ready to go.”
Jaime Rodriguez rides Witty, the 9-5 favorite on Horse Racing Nation’s morning line, from post 9.
Had to Have Him (4-1 ML, Jevian Toledo, post 4) finished third in this race in 2024 and then won last year. Owned by Gracie Mae Stables and Great Lake Stable, Had to Have Him hasn’t reached the winner’s circle in 2026, but he finished second in his most recent race, the restricted Ben’s Cat Stakes, half a length behind Witty.
“Had to Have Him is as good as you can get right now,” said trainer John Salzman Jr. “He’s training as good as he’s ever trained. I’m not going to lie to you, [this year’s campaign] was probably my fault. He hasn’t made much money this year, but I laid out the same plan as I did last year, and I was hoping it would all work out. The [Van Clief Stakes at Colonial on August 1] came up super, super tough, and this horse is a bleeder. It was a hundred-and-something degrees, and I was more worried about my horse than running and shipping down there.”
Salzman said that wet weather forced Had to Have Him to miss the Laurel Dash and a workout last Saturday. “He’s coming off a layoff, but it was for no apparent reason other than being mismanaged a little bit by me. I look for a big effort.”
Whenigettoheaven (2-1 ML, Paco Lopez, post 8), a resilient 7-year-old gelding owned by Kenneth Ramsey, makes his fourth appearance in the Maryland Million Turf Sprint, finishing third in 2023 and second last year. He won a restricted handicap at Colonial Downs on August 15.
“We had a frustrating start to the season with him,” said trainer Nolan Ramsey. “Just a couple of bad trips that didn’t go his way. I looked at [this race] on paper, and everything lines up for him. He’s coming into this race fresh; he couldn’t be training any better. I don’t love the post position, but I think he’s quick enough to get out and get over. From a pace perspective, I think the race sets up for him.”
Tidewater, second in this race in 2023, returns, along with Boastfully Irish, Elon, Katie’s Notion, Jessica’s Eyes, World On Fire, Blame the Tux, and Notion in Motion. Cactus is on the Also Eligible list.
*Maryland Million Sprint features top speedsters
Lewis Family Racing Stable’s Celtic Contender won this race in 2024 and looms as a strong contender in the $100,000 Fair Hill Training Center Maryland Million Sprint for 3-year-olds and up at six furlongs.
The 5-year-old son of Irish War Cry was listed at 3-2 on the morning line. Forest Boyce rides from post 7 for trainer Hamilton Smith.
Celtic Contender earned a 100 Beyer Speed Figure in his seasonal debut, a high-level allowance race at Laurel on March 28. He was second in stakes races two and three starts back and most recently won an allowance at Colonial on August 23.
“He ran a huge race that day,” Smith said. “He did it well within himself and dug in.”
Smith admitted that Celtic Contender “had a little stone bruise and a little pressure in a leg” since his last start, but “there was nothing to it, and we got that dissipated. He’s been on schedule all along.”
Daniel Crowley and Non Stop Stable’s Haileysfirstnotion (8-5 ML, Emanuel Rosario, post 8) finished third in last year’s Sprint. The ultra-consistent gelding has hit the board in 14 of 15 starts, including a win in Delaware’s restricted New Castle Handicap on September 11. The son of Great Notion is trained by Gary Capuano.
David Staudacher’s Suremeanttobe (9-2 ML, Mychel Sanchez, post 4) finished behind Celtic Contender in two races at Colonial Downs over the summer, but that form was flattered when he finished a close second with a 95 Beyer Speed Figure in an $80,000 claimer at Belmont on October 4. Top trainer Michael Maker claimed him after that race, and Suremeanttobe has four wins at Laurel Park.
Salzman Jr. entered Bird and Grady’s multiple stakes-placed Close the Gate (30-1 ML, Joe Rocco Jr., post 6), but said Wednesday morning he’s “not 100% sure” whether he’ll start.
Rising Sun Racing Stables and Annette Eubanks’s Band Camp (8-1, Paco Lopez, post 3), who finished second in this race in 2024, has won his last two starts for trainer Danny Eubanks.
And Sum, Top Manipulator, and multiple stakes-placed Bold Diversion also entered. All the Hardways, S S Sinatra, and Circle P are on the Also Eligible list.
*Takethemoneyhoney returns from layoff in Maryland Million Distaff
Handicappers concerned about layoff lines will note that Takethemoneyhoney, the 6-5 morning-line favorite in the $100,000 Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred Maryland Million Distaff for fillies and mares at seven furlongs, hasn’t raced since winning the restricted Conniver Stakes on March 7.
Those same horseplayers will also recognize that the 5-year-old mare won her second start after a 227-day layoff and was beaten by a head in last year’s Willa On the Move Stakes after a 195-day break.
“She just has her issues,” trainer Mike Moore said. “She gets her five, six races, and she’s great, but then she needs a little break, and that’s what we had to do again this time. She’s doing well, and we expect her to run well.”
Takethemoneyhoney, owned by Kasey K Racing Stable, Michael Day, and Final Turn Racing Stable, has an impressive record of 7 wins and 3 second-place finishes in 10 starts. She has won five times at Laurel, including three stakes races.
Eric Rizer’s Slewperstitus (4-1 ML, Jevian Toledo; post 10) has also never finished off the board in her career. Slewperstitus, the winner of last year’s Maryland Million Lassie, captured the Weather Vane Stakes at Laurel on September 19.
“That was her first time against open [stakes company at Laurel],” said trainer Robbie Bailes. “It was a really tough race, and she put everything together. I thought she ran the biggest race she’s run since we’ve had her. She’s been a trainer’s dream. Every time she goes out there, she gives it all she’s got. She’s training really well. She hasn’t missed a step.”
Onyx Ten (12-1 ML, Paco Lopez, post 9) defends her Distaff title. A homebred owned by Frank Sample, Onyx Ten is trained by Gary Capuano and exits a solid runner-up effort in the restricted Tax Free Distaff Handicap at Delaware on September 11.
Salzman Jr. might blame himself for Had to Have Him’s 2026 campaign, but he is very pleased with his handling of Bird and Grady’s Rerun Table (20-1 ML, Joe Rocco Jr., post 6), a 3-year-old filly who has won three of her last four starts, including a restricted allowance here last month. In her only loss during that span, she finished a close second to Slewperstitus in a first-level allowance on May 30.
“That’s probably the best-managed filly on the grounds,” Salzman Jr. said. “I’ve picked every spot, worked my way through every condition, and I think I’ve done everything perfect. She is a running machine. Every time you lead her over there, she runs.”
Stakes-winners Divine Intentions, Doc’s Miracle, Irish Jig, and Kissedbyanangel also entered, along with Celtic Harp, Violet’s Charm, and Divine Seeker.
On Wednesday morning, Trainer Butch Reid said that Divine Seeker will scratch.
*Precious Avary back for another tilt in the Maryland Million Ladies
“This is her fifth Maryland Million,” trainer Tim Shaw said proudly as he discussed Smith Farm and Stable’s Precious Avary’s chances in the $125,000 Andor Farm Maryland Million Ladies for fillies and mares at 1 1/16 miles on the All Along Turf Course.
Seventh in the Lassie in 2022, she won the Ladies in front-running fashion the following year, finished a close second in the race in 2024, then tired to place eighth in last year’s edition.
Precious Avary has started three times this year, all in sprint races.
“We just got in a bad cycle of weather and long races that didn’t fill, or long races that got taken off the turf, and we wound up in sprints,” Shaw said. “By now, I would hope she would have five, or six, or seven starts.”
Shaw entered Precious Avary in a race at the Meadowlands on October 3, but was forced to scratch the mare after she suffered a cut.
“We don’t have the benefit of a prep race, but I’ve done my best in the morning to make sure she has enough bottom on her,” Shaw continued. “I think she’s as good as she’s ever been. She likes to run long on the lead, and I think [after] these 5 1/2-furlong races, she’s just going to be cruising out there.”
Precious Avary is 10-1 on the morning line, and Eliseo Ruiz rides from post 8.
Mopo is the 9-5 morning-line favorite. Owned by Maury Povich’s Mopo Racing, the 4-year-old filly by Great Notion won Laurel’s restricted Jameela Stakes at six furlongs on June 20. She’s won twice around two turns, and she finished third in her most recent start, a restricted stakes race at Delaware at 1 1/16 miles on September 12. Phil Capuano trains Mopo, who breaks from post 10 under Paco Lopez.
Rizer and Bailes team up with Nick’s Notion (2-1 ML, Forest Boyce, post 2), the runner-up in the restricted All Brandy Stakes at Colonial on August 15. Three weeks later, Nick’s Notion won a restricted handicap there and recently placed fourth in the All Along Stakes at Laurel on September 26.
“She’s doing really well,” Bailes said. “She hasn’t missed a step the last couple of months, and we look forward to running on Saturday. We gave her some time off over the winter, and she’s come back bigger and stronger. She tries hard, and Forest Boyce fits her like a glove.”
Juniper Juice finished second in this race last year. Stakes-winner Beautiful Blome makes her turf debut. They entered alongside Ecliptical Gina, Lendalfoot, Old Bay, Weekend Wife, and High View. Gold Digging Broad is on the Also Eligible list.