Laurel Park set for rare Wednesday card
The Biz
February 2, 2026
If the Wednesday and Thursday cards at Laurel Park look oddly familiar to you, that’s because they are. They’re the repurposed cards originally drawn to be run Saturday and Sunday at Laurel but canceled after the region got belted with snow, ice, and frigid temperatures.
Wednesday’s action is especially intriguing, with a 10-race program that’s highlighted by a pair of stakes.
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And it includes, after Friday’s card was abandoned after one race, a $9,822 carryover in the late Pick 5, which commences in the sixth race. Both the early and late Pick 5 wagers at Laurel have a takeout of 12%.
Trainer Gary Capuano, off a stellar 2025 in which he won at a 34% clip in Maryland (38-for-112) and won six stakes, holds a strong hand in the Spectacular Bid, in which he has entered three of the eight, including Heft winner Hollywood Import.
Capuano also has logical contender Sweet Shenanigans (4-1) in the Xtra Heat, though the favorite is the Ethan West-trained shipper Unfaithful Rose (3-1).
The video above highlights handicapper John Piasske’s take on the late Pick 5. Some highlights:
Race 6: John is singling #8 Itsamonstamash (9-2) in this second-level allowance, and if she wins, it’ll be a graveyard smash. The Jerry Robb trainee ran second last-out versus similar on a funky-playing racing strip, but two back she had an excellent outing when a hard-trying second behind the very talented Takthemoneyhoney in the Politely. A repeat of that wins here.
Race 7: John’ll use three in this one-mile, maiden special weight contest, with #4 Virginia Gentry (6-1) of particular interest. The Mike Trombetta-trained Paynter gelding made a bit of a middle move in his debut before emptying out but owns the right to improve here and gets Lasix on for the first time (as do most of his rivals). John’s got 4-7-8 on the ticket.
Race 8: In the Xtra Heat for sophomore fillies, John is spreading out, using 1-2-6-7. Notably, that excludes both the favorite, Unfaithful Rose, whose speed figs look different on the BRIS scale that he uses than on the Beyer figs, and Sweet Shenanigans. It does include, among others, the West Virginia shipper #2 Won Ton (5-1) for trainer Jeff Runco and the Brittany Russell-trained #6 Tap Into Grace (5-1), most recently second in the Blue Mountain at Penn National in November. After running away with Maryland’s leading trainer honors in 2025 (109 wins to Jamie Ness’s 86), Russell suffered through a winless-in-Maryland January.
Race 9: John has the 3-7-8 in the Spectacular Bid for sophomores going seven furlongs and is most intrigued by #8 Close the Gate (9-2). The John Salzman, Jr. trainee rallied into second against maiden claiming rivals in his debut, then moved up a notch to face better maiden claimers, and won off by almost 10 lengths. He should be running late.
Race 10: In this never-won-two claimer to close the card, John has 2-4-6. The favorite is #2 Ecumenical (9-5) for trainer Hugh McMahon. He was third in latest in a roughly run contest but finds a congenial spot here.
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