Churchill Downs Picks in Saturday’s $1 million Stephen Foster Stakes. (G1)

A stacked field of seven top handicap stars will face off in Saturday’s $1 million Grade 1 Stephen Foster Stakes at Churchill Downs. #4 Sierra Leone (5-2), one of four Grade 1 winners in the lineup, has been named the morning-line favorite in this talent-packed race.

But if you're not locked in on the favorite, there are some intriguing ways to bet both with and against Sierra Leone in this marquee matchup.

#1 First Mission (4-1) looks poised for a big effort in his third start off the layoff. Trained by Brad Cox, the five-year-old was a clear winner of the Oaklawn Handicap (G2) in his most recent outing and has been training sharply over this surface since. The Godolphin homebred, a Grade 2 winner at Churchill Downs, is set to improve on his fourth-place finish in this race last year, where he faded late as the 4-5 favorite. Expect him to be involved from the break under Luis Saez.

#2 Mindframe (7-2) continues to impress with each start and appears to have a high ceiling for trainer Todd Pletcher. The lightly raced son of Constitution recently defeated a strong field going seven furlongs at Churchill and could take another step forward as he stretches out to two turns in just his third career start. If the classic-placed Maryland-bred secures a good early position, he’ll be a major threat late under Irad Ortiz Jr.