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I have a router table top that is MDF that I shellac'd. Quite surprised how well it has held up over the years. So if you were not making inserts around the holes, you might consider coating the inside with shellac. It soaks in and hardens the top surface of the MDF and provides some durability. In general though, I might try to sleeve it. Make hollow tubes of a hardwood - say 1" dia with 3/4"holes (on the lathe?). Then drill/glue those into place. (could probably buy aluminum or delrin already to size)
Having said that if Rob Cosman endorses it in MDF then it is likely quite adequate.
I plane on putting a sealer on the entire top and putting a 3/4 edge on it. I have used MDF on several speaker box's and am surprised how hard it can be after a coupe coats of sanding sealer or other type of sealer. Soaks it up and get pretty hard. I thought I would try MDF for the top because of the seasonal movement of Hardwood tops. I have a large maple top that's 2 1/2" thick and it gets out of flat with season changes. I'm wanting something that will stay flat.