Colonial Downs Picks: Best Bets on Arlington Million Day, 8/9/2025

Key Takeaways:

• Race 5: Optical (8-1) and Barbadian Runner (9-2) both bring late-running styles that should thrive against a fast early pace.
• Race 6: Decadent (5-1) is 2-for-2 with versatile style and proven layoff ability; Dancing Magic (6-1) may bounce back second off the layoff with a return to off-the-pace tactics.
• Race 10: Spanish Eyes (9-2) has the setup and stamina for a breakthrough at a price; Beach Bomb (4-1) has Grade 1 back class and the tactical versatility to sit the right trip.

Saturday, August 9, is the flagship day of racing at Colonial Downs: Arlington Million day. Though Colonial is a new phase in the race’s history, the Grade 1 Arlington Million has been a fixture in racing for four and a half decades, ever since John Henry won the first-ever million-dollar Thoroughbred race at Arlington Park in 1981. After Arlington closed in 2021, the race was contested at Churchill Downs for one year, and then found its home over the turf track at Colonial Downs.

The Arlington Million day card features seven stakes races. Three are graded stakes on the turf course: in addition to the Million, there is the Beverly D. Stakes (G2) for fillies and mares aged three and up, as well as the Secretariat Stakes (G2) for sophomore milers. Other stakes include the Petramalo Mile for sophomores on dirt, the Tyson Gilpin for sophomore filly dirt sprinters, the Andy Guest for filly and mare turf sprinters, and the Van Clief for open turf sprinters.

The 12-race card kicks off with first post time at noon Eastern Daylight Time. You can watch and wager on the races all day long at FanDuel, and get up-to-the-minute news analysis for racing at Colonial Downs, Saratoga, Del Mar, and tracks all over the country on FanDuel TV.

Keep in mind: even though the weather on Saturday is expected to be mostly clear, there is rain in the forecast for Friday, and those predictions can shift as race day gets closer. Make sure to check the weather as well as the scratches before you place your bets, just to make sure the pace setup and class balance remain what you expected them to be, or so you can adjust your bets accordingly.

These are three best picks for Arlington Million day undercard races at Colonial Downs on Saturday, August 9:

Colonial Downs Best Bets

Race 5 - Petramalo Mile, one mile on the dirt - Optical, Barbadian Runner

FanDuel odds: 8-1 and 9-2

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Not only are the one-turn dirt miles at Colonial Downs tending to play well for late-running horses generally, there is no shortage of early pace entered in this particular one-turn mile race, meaning a late-running horse who does well on extended one-turn trips can be in a good spot. That makes Optical (8-1) an interesting price play. He has class to make up, of course, as his only wins have come in maiden and starter company. Though he has never been up for a tag, it was a starter he qualified for based on his auction price. He rallied into a modest pace to finish second in a seven-furlong allowance over the local course last out—but both of his wins have come at the one-turn mile at Churchill Downs, and he has a couple of other good money efforts over that trip as well. He can run well from anywhere in the pack, and with Start Mo Up, Flood Zone, Roar of the Beat, Light Forever, and Rolando all usual suspects on or near the pace, a trip like he worked last out over the local course—with jockey Axel Concepcion, a high-percentage rider who returns to the saddle—makes Optical a threat.

Another horse who can take advantage of the pace setup is Barbadian Runner (9-2). He is a stakes winner at a one-turn mile, since he rallied from a few lengths off a modest pace in the Miracle Wood at Laurel back in February to get up by a nose. Though he missed by two lengths as the favorite in a race restricted to horses sired or bred in Maryland or Virginia, that was only seven furlongs, and he got a modest pace for the distance. This time, he gets sharper fractions to rally into, an extra furlong, and a clean post position toward the outside.

Race 6 - Tyson Gilpin Stakes, seven furlongs on the dirt - Decadent, Dancing Magic

FanDuel odds: 5-1 and 6-1

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Decadent (5-1) cedes experience to the rest of the field, as she makes only her third start in the Tyson Gilpin, but her two starts make her interesting. She has yet to lose – and has tried both an extended sprint and a route, both a frontrunning style and rallying from the clouds, both a sloppy track and a dry one. In short, it looks like she can do a little bit of everything—and versatility serves well in a potentially chaotic field of 11. A question is how this Kenny McPeek trainee comes off a layoff since early March, but that allowance win March 1 also came off of a layoff, so she has already shown that she can come off of a break and fire sharp. If she can once again pick up where she left off, this is a logical distance and class level for her to take the next step forward.

Dancing Magic (6-1) set the pace and weakened late last out, but it was her first start since February. Now she has that fitness underneath her, and her form last year suggests she has plenty more room to step forward in her second start off the lay. She faded after setting the early pace in that return, but looking back to her races during the fall and winter, she runs well—and can even win—rallying from off the pace. She won the Gasparilla Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs, her only try so far at this seven-furlong trip, in late-running fashion. The versatility (she broke her maiden at Hawthorne last year on the lead) is appealing, but with plenty of other early gas in here, reverting to that running style from her Gasparilla win makes her a live mid-priced contender.

Race 10 - Beverly D. Stakes (G2), 1 3/16 miles on the turf course - Spanish Eyes, Beach Bomb

FanDuel odds: 9-2 and 4-1

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For a six-horse race going 1 3/16 miles on the lawn, just a sixteenth shorter than the Arlington Million distance, there sure is a lot of early pace in the Beverly D. That’s great news for Spanish Eyes (9-2), a lightly-raced four-year-old who just might have found the right spot for her graded-stakes breakthrough. She does need to take a step up, since neither of her United States starts have come back terribly fast from a speed figure perspective. But, she does seem likely to be ignored in the wagering despite the fact that she stands to get the best trip. With morning-line favorite Be Your Best, Charlene’s Dream, and even Beach Bomb frequently showing early pace, Spanish Eyes will be happy to tuck in a couple of lengths behind them and make her run. She has the stamina to get the distance, and her second-place finish over soft turf in the German Oaks (G1) last year shows that, if the turf still has some give in it after rain on Friday, that she should thrive in the conditions. Add to that the fact that this Brendan Walsh trainee gets red-hot Colonial Downs rider Ben Curtis in the irons, and there is a lot of longshot appeal.

Even though Beach Bomb (4-1) is one of the horses who can show speed, she has been showing a more tactical style in recent starts, something that could help given the presence of Be Your Best and Charlene’s Dream. Jockey Luis Saez, who returns to the saddle for the Beverly D., rode her in pace-tracking fashion last out in the New York (G1)—a tougher race at Saratoga—and they missed by only a half length. That was a tougher race over the same distance as the Beverly D., and also showed Beach Bomb can show good form over rain-affected ground. If he can work a similar kind of ride this time, it could be the winning trip.

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