Northfield: $25K Guaranteed All-Stakes Pick 4 Analysis for August 10

One of the richest cards of the year at MGM Northfield Park will take place Saturday (Aug. 10) when the track will offer up a quartet of six-figure races and a pair of Ohio Sire Stakes. On the betting front, there are a number of guaranteed wagers including the $25,000 all-stakes Pick 4 that we’ll examine below.

Race 8: $100K Tom Aldrich Trot

(2) IT’S ACADEMIC is the 3-5 morning line favorite for a reason. The 7-year-old has earned more than double any of his competitors at $2.4 million lifetime and won this race last year. Some may get turned off by his poor Cashman performance last time when he was on the lead, but the competition that afternoon was worlds better and speed wasn’t good that day as only four of the 16 winners won on the lead and three of those were favorites. He’s an obvious single.

Race 9: $100K Myron Charna Pace

This is far and away the most difficult race to handicap in the sequence. (5) ACT FAST is the morning-line chalk and the most accomplished, but he’s winless in four starts over the track. (8) SEAFIRE has a much better record (4-2-2-0) here at Northfield and comes to town from Scioto in stellar form, but he starts from post eight, which wins at a paltry 3.4%. (1) LITENINGONTHEBEACH could be an interesting play at 10-1 on the early line. His early speed plays well on this oval and notice that he’s adding Lasix back. The bottom line is I expect this race could get wild and this is my one spread leg.

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Race 10: $100K Courageous Lady

(3) ODDS ON PLATINUM has won three of her last five races with the only losses coming against It’s A Love Thing, perhaps the top 3-year-old pacing filly in the sport. While you don’t see it in her PP lines, she handles the half-mile tracks just fine and should be trying to control the action. (8) SEASIDE DIVA is perfect in three starts here and has won eight of nine starts in 2024. The eight hole isn’t of that much concern because trainer Ron Burke brings his horses to race; notice she’s first-time Lasix!

Race 11: $300K Carl Milstein Memorial

Everything is in the eye of the beholder and I see this race as a lock for (2) WISH YOU WELL. He’s a different horse than he was when last on a half-mile track and I believe he’ll show enough early speed to stick close to the leaders. He easily could’ve won the Adios last time with clearance a bit earlier and something tells me he’ll be on the move much earlier tonight. For those playing horizontal exotics, I’m most intrigued by (1) Timeisonmyside, who has good form and an inside post, (5) Janelle Granny, who recently returned from a month on the sidelines with a nice effort at Scioto, and (6) Storm Shadow, who has been keeping company with some of the best 3-year-olds in North America.

$1 Ticket: 2 / 1-6,8,9 / 3,8 / 2 = $16