Picks for 5-25-2025.

Today's Handicapping – Hawthorne Race Course & Churchill DownsPost Times: Hawthorne – 2:40 PM Central | Churchill Downs – 12:45 PM Kentucky Time

I handicapped two tracks today — Hawthorne Race Course and Churchill Downs. Here's a quick breakdown of what I looked at and where I had to make some estimates.

Hawthorne Race Course

Pretty straightforward day at Hawthorne. There were only five horses I had to estimate times on — the rest of the data was solid and available.

• Race 5: 3 horses had estimated times.

• Race 7: I had to estimate times for horses #1 and #4.

• Race 8: Estimates were needed for horses #1 and #7.

Not too much guesswork involved here, which makes me feel confident about these races.

Churchill Downs (Louisville, KY)

Churchill was a little more challenging, especially Race 5, which was a maiden race. That one had several horses with estimated times, averages, and speed ratings — so not as much hard data to go on. I’m a bit less confident in that one.

• Race 6: Horses #2, #5, #7, and #11 had estimated times.

• Race 7: Estimated times were needed for #4, #8, and #9.

• Race 10: Horses #2, #4, #5, #7, and #11 were all based on estimated times.My top four picks in Race 10 were also based on those estimates — so keep that in mind when betting.

Even the favorites can stumble, so always bet responsibly. Good luck out there — let’s cash some tickets!