King: Laurel Park pick four for Saturday, Sept. 22, 2018

Here is a look at an all-turf, all-stakes pick four that precedes the De Francis Memorial Dash at Laurel Park on Saturday.

Race 6

The All Along Stakes appears to be among the most competitive of the stakes at Laurel. Adding to the somewhat cloudy handicapping picture is that a couple of runners in the lineup – Lift Up and Mythical Mission – are cross-entered in the Noble Damsel on Saturday at Belmont Park.

Provided she stays in the race, 5-1 shot Lift Up (1) is my choice to win the All Along. She is well drawn in post 1, is suited to the 1 1/16-mile distance on the grass, and has shown she can close to win behind slow splits – which Timeform’s Pace Projector anticipates.

Others who merit use include Stormy Victoria (7), Celestial Insight (11), and My Impression (10).

Race 7

Tombelaine (7) seems to want firm or “good” turf, and with partly cloudy weather Saturday, perhaps the Laurel course will dry out enough to give him the ground he desires. That was not the case in his prior start, where he was outrun in the Troy when racing on soft going at Saratoga.

Tombelaine possesses tactical speed, and having already won at three-quarters of a mile on turf, he rates on top over Dubini (9) and Oak Bluffs (6), two other contenders but horses accustomed to running shorter distances on the lawn.

Race 8

Hello Don Julio (4) is classier than a quick glance at his last two races – losses in allowances – might suggest. He faced graded-quality foes in those New York contests, and especially last out, when second at Saratoga on July 21 to Call Provision, he held his own. That sharp form makes this speedball the one to catch and beat.

Renown (9) – who won this race, the Laurel Turf Cup, in 2016 and was third in it last year – seems to be his primary foe. He turned in his best race over the last couple of years when third in the John’s Call at Saratoga on Aug. 22, perhaps indicating he is ready to get back to steadily reproducing his form of old.

Race 9

Smiling Causeway (10) and Compelled (7) stand out based on their grass form sprinting this year. Both are stakes winners in 2018 that are capable of running lofty Beyer Speed Figures. Moreover, they are graded stakes-placed in turf sprints this year, with the former running second in the Grade 2 Royal North at Woodbine and Compelled finishing third in the Grade 2 Monrovia at Santa Anita.

The tickets

Using the horses noted above, a 50-cent pick-four ticket of 1,7,10,11 with 6,7,9 with 4,9 with 7,10 costs $24.