The H. Allen Jerkens Memorial draws its name from the legendary New York trainer who earned a well-deserved reputation for springing massive upsets. Among Jerkens’ victims were the distinguished likes of Kelso, Buckpasser, Cougar II, and Forego. Then, there was Secretariat. Two Jerkens also-rans defeated the 20th century’s greatest Thoroughbred: […]
The Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Stakes gives you the venerable Whitmore, the ubiquitous Firenze Fire, and the dynamic Mischevious Alex. Enough sprinting talent to throw in a trifecta box at, say, the Breeders’ Cup Sprint this fall at Del Mar. Except that, a few hours after Saratoga turns that […]
The only race Drain the Clock lost this year came the only time he went two turns. You may have noticed this hiccup, since it came in the Grade 2 Fountain of Youth on the Kentucky Derby trail last winter. But while you paid attention to Triple Crown trail stalwarts […]
As several of his fellow 3-year-olds prepare for Saturday’s Ohio Derby, Collaborate chills in his Gulfstream Park barn, basking in the glow of some long-awaited laurels. Collaborate will likely see some of his sophomore rivals down the line. If he runs like he did in Sunday’s 5 ½-length blitzing of […]
One example of how deep Saturday’s Belmont Stakes card is comes to you via the Grade 1 Metropolitan Handicap, best known as the Met Mile. This is a race that should be on its own, which it was as a Memorial Day staple until 2014 when the New York Racing […]
Looking at the familiar names lining up for Saturday’s Grade 1 Woody Stephens at Belmont Park, it’s tempting to dismiss the seven-furlong sprint as a race for Triple Crown washouts, has-beens, and never-weres. Don’t. Instead, understand that not every horse is bred to go two turns. Understand that the Woody […]
Whatever rust Ny Traffic possessed during a seven-month layoff disappeared in less than 90 seconds on Sunday, when the colt dismantled a Belmont Park allowance field of New York-breds by 6 ½ lengths. The Cross Traffic progeny made his 4-year-old debut nearly seven months to the day after he finished […]
The Carter Handicap is that rare Grade 1 race sitting on an undercard featuring no other Grade 1s. But there it sits, the sixth race on Aqueduct’s Saturday card, almost an afterthought on Wood Memorial Day at the Big A. The $300,000, seven-furlong Carter, however, holds court as the first […]
One of the seven horses entered in Friday’s Smarty Jones Stakes will get his first stakes victory. It won’t be a graded stakes victory, but not one connection will throw this one back. Nor will they throw back the 17 Kentucky Derby qualifying points up for grabs to the top […]
There’s Math Wizard, Multiplier, Tenfold and Mr. Money, which makes Friday’s Grade 2 Charles Town Classic sound like either fifth-period math or an exercise in numbers. In their cases, it’s also an exercise in finding a heretofore elusive path to the winner’s circle. And in all but Multiplier’s case, the […]
Unlike his namesake, Ny Traffic sits under the radar, repeatedly yielding the spotlight to sexier horses and sexier-named trainers. This version of Ny Traffic doesn’t make you late for dinner. And Saturday’s Grade 1 Haskell Stakes at Monmouth Park falls right into Ny Traffic’s lane. There’s Bob Baffert’s Authentic as […]
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