Tag: Saratoga

Life Is Good rolled up a 112 Beyer Speed Figure and a 5 1/2-length victory in last month's John A. Nerud Stakes. He's the 6/5 morning line favorite to win one of the biggest older horse races in the country: The Whitney. (Image: NYRA Photo)

The Whitney: The Summer Proving Ground for Older Horses

You almost get the feeling that with Life Is Good and Olympiad heading the marquee for Saturday’s Grade 1 Whitney at Saratoga, this 1 1/8-mile race sets up as more than one of the top older horse dirt races in the country. It sets up as a something-to-prove test. Because […]

Classic Causeway led this cavalry charge in last month's Belmont Derby. He is one of seven horses from that race in Saturday's Grade 1 Saratoga Derby. (Image: Coglianese Photos)

Classic Causeway Can’t Run Away And Hide in Saratoga Derby

This time, Classic Causeway won’t be sneaking up on the Grade 1 Saratoga Derby field as a 26/1 afterthought. That untested turf question mark is now an exclamation point. And thus, we have the biggest storyline for Saturday’s Saratoga Derby, the second leg of the New York Racing Association’s Turf Triple. […]

Matareya captured June's Grade 1 Acorn Stakes by 6 1/4 lengths. The 3-year-old filly comes into Saturday's Grade 1 Test Stakes unbeaten in four 2022 starts. (Image: AC Photo/NYRA.com)

Passing This Test Means Beating the Formidable Matareya

The aptly named Grade 1 Test Stakes applies to six of the seven 3-year-old fillies in the field. And it’s a test that — according to Matareya — none of the six are likely to pass. That’s due to Matareya, the leader in this class. She brings her 4-for-4 record […]

Wit and Jose Ortiz will move to grass for Friday's Grade 2 National Museum of Racing at Saratoga. (Image: Francesca Le Donne Photo/NYRA.com)

With Precedent and Pedigree, Wit Brings His Next Act to the Grass

As Todd Pletcher sees it with Wit, the turf pedigree is there. As he sees it through recency bias, moving him to grass has a good precedent. And as Pletcher sees it through recent history, why not? The Hall of Fame trainer moves his 3-year-old multiple graded stakes winner to […]

Epicenter showed a new closer dimension winning the Grade 2 Jim Dandy Saturday. The victory puts the colt atop the 3-year-old class -- for now. (Image: Chelsea Durand/NYRA Photo)

Epicenter Answers the Question: Who’s The Best 3-Year-Old Today?

The shifting, quaking earth under the 3-year-old division slid once again Saturday, when 6/5 favorite Epicenter put away Zandon, Tawny Port and Early Voting, winning the Grade 2 Jim Dandy at Saratoga by 1 ½ lengths. Put aside for the moment that Epicenter passed the $2 million mark in career […]

Jackie's Warrior won last year's Amsterdam by 7 1/4 lengths. He's the prohibitive favorite to win his fifth Grade 1 and fifth Saratoga outing at the Vanderbilt Handicap. (Image: NYRA Photo)

Jackie’s Warrior is a Blue-Chip Horse for the Blueblood Vanderbilt

Since Jackie’s Warrior is understandably attracting all the attention in Saturday’s Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Stakes, trainer Steve Asmussen is searching for more superlatives to describe his star sprinter. He’s officially out of superlatives. And even after looking at Jackie’s Warrior’s resume, Asmussen realizes simple is best. “He’s 4-for-4 […]

Epicenter hasn't run since finishing second in the Preakness Stakes May 21. He is the 3/2 favorite to win the Grade 2 Jim Dandy Stakes at Saratoga. (Image: Jim McCue/Maryland Jockey Club)

Epicenter, Early Voting, Zandon: This Jim Dandy Lives Up to Its Name

The first thing that stands out about Saturday’s Grade 2 Jim Dandy Stakes at Saratoga is the “Grade 2” class prefix that comes along for the ride. There is no truth-in-advertising here. Not with this year’s 1 1/8-mile Jim Dandy, which figures to answer more questions than who’s hot going […]

Early Voting worked out at Saratoga last week in preparation for Saturday's Grade 2 Jim Dandy Stakes, the fourth race on this week's Cross Country Pick 5. (Image: Coglianese Photos/Janet Garaguso)

Jackie’s Warrior, Zandon, Early Voting Head Cross Country Pick 5

The return of Jackie’s Warrior to Saratoga and the return of Triple Crown veterans to the track highlight this week’s Cross Country Pick 5. This week’s Cross Country Pick 5 is light on the stakes. Only two make this week’s wager: the Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Stakes and the […]

Undefeated Corniche's first of two Grade 1 wins came in last fall's American Pharoah Stake at Santa Anita Park.He returns for his first race in nearly eight months in Friday's Grade 2 Amsterdam Stakes at Saratoga. (Image: Benoit Photo)

Champion Corniche Returns for Sophomore Debut in Amsterdam

Todd Pletcher wants to paint a like-father, like-son picture with Corniche. This explains one reason why he chose Friday’s Grade 2 Amsterdam Stakes as the sophomore’s season debut. Last year’s Champion 2-Year-Old hasn’t run since going gate-to-wire in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile last fall at Del Mar. That victory put […]

NYRA stewards ruled Saratoga's seventh race on the inner turf course Sunday a "No Contest" after a mechanical failure to the gate tractor. (Image: Saratoga Springs Photo)

NYRA Declares Saratoga Race No Contest After Gate Tractor Failure

New York Racing Association stewards ruled Sunday’s seventh race at Saratoga a No Contest due to a mechanical issue with the starting gate tractor. That mechanical issue created a delay in removing the gate once the field started the race. The outriders communicated to the jockeys there was a problem. […]

Clairiere (left) finally outdueled Malathaat in the Grade 1 Ogden Phipps last month. It was the first time Clairiere beat her rival in five starts. The two duel again in Sunday's Grade 2 Shuvee Stakes at Saratoga. (Image: Chelsea Durand/NYRA.com)

It’s Malathaat vs. Clairiere Part the Sixth at the Shuvee Stakes

Clairiere and Malathaat share the same sire (Curlin) and the same breeder (Stonestreet Stables), so it’s only natural the two 4-year-old fillies share the same stage for the sixth time in Sunday’s Grade 2 Shuvee Stakes at Saratoga. As rivalries go, this one took a while. But these two ride […]

Secret Oath turned in a dominant performance in the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks May 6. She has never lost to another filly in five races, a streak she puts on the line in Saturday's Grade 1 CCA Oaks at Saratoga. (Image: Coady Photography)

CCA Oaks Provides Another Glimpse of Secret Oath vs. Nest

There are actually five horses in Saturday’s featured Grade 1 CCA Oaks at Saratoga. But do not let yourself get bogged down by numbers. Let yourself get bogged down by details. Because this year’s CCA Oaks marks only the third time in the last 25 years the top-two finishers from […]

Jack Christopher destroyed his Woody Stephens competition by 10 lengths last out. He is the 3/2 second choice to win the Grade 1 Haskell Stakes. That's the fourth leg of this week's Cross Country Pick 5. (Image: Coglianese Photos)

All-Stakes Cross Country Pick 5 Features the Haskell, UN, Caress

The Grade 1 Haskell Stakes, its Grade 1 turf undercard United Nations, and a salty Grade 3 filly turf sprint finale at Saratoga headline this week’s New York Racing Association Cross Country Pick 5. This week’s Cross Country Pick 5 features stakes races coming from Monmouth Park, Saratoga, and Canada’s […]

The much-traveled Caravel goes for her third victory in four races under Brad Cox's tutelage in Saturday's Grade 3 Caress Stakes at Saratoga. Last month, she won the Grade 3 Intercontinental at Belmont Park. (Image: NYRA Photo)

Caravel’s Winding Road Leads Her Back to Saratoga’s Caress Stakes

This time last year, Caravel was about to win the Grade 3 Caress Stakes for owner/trainer Elizabeth Merryman. Coming out of that victory, her third consecutive score, Caravel was about to go to Bobby Flay. The celebrity chef and racing aficionado bought a majority share of the filly before that […]

In Italian enjoys the spoils of her victory in Saturday's Grade 1 Diana Stakes. The filly provides an example of trainer Chad Brown's new emphasis of developing standout turf runners. (Image: Janet Garaguso Photo)

Chad Brown Talks Turf Dynasty, Where His Star Sophomores are Headed

One day after Chad Brown racked up the Diana Stakes superfecta, he discussed his barn’s new MO acquiring horses, where Preakness Stakes winner Early Voting is running next and what’s next for his other two standout sophomores: Zandon and Jack Christopher. You’ll see Early Voting next in the July 30 […]

In Italian broke the Saratoga track record for 1 1/8 miles, winning the Grade 1 Diana Stakes. She led a 1-2-3 Chad Brown parade in Saratoga's first Grade 1 of 2022. (Image: Coglianese Photos)

In Italian Speaks Universal Language of Setting Saratoga Track Record

In Italian was Chad Brown’s fourth of four entries into Saturday’s Grade 1 Diana Stakes at Saratoga. At 8/1, she was the longest shot of Brown’s four-headed Diana armada, charged with being the rabbit for undefeated Bleecker Street or Rougir. Run fast, set a blistering pace for the closers to […]

Bleecker Street comes into the Grade 1 Diana Stakes at Saratoga perfect in seven races. Included in that was this victory in the Grade 1 New York at Belmont Park. (Image: Coglianese Photos/Susie Raisher)

Brown Shows Four of a Kind in the Hunt for Diana Title No. 7

The Diana Stakes are the first of 19 Grade 1 stakes at Saratoga and it’s clear that Chad Brown is wasting no time playing for keeps in defense of his Saratoga training title. Brown is flooding the Diana zone. He’s sending four of the six 4-year-olds and up into the […]

Andiamo a Firenze, a three-quarters brother to multiple graded stakes winner Firenze FIre, is one of the ones to watch in the Grade 3 Sanford Stakes at Saratoga. That race concludes this week's Cross Country Pick 5. (Image: SR Photo/NYRA.com)

Saratoga’s First Grade 1, Deep Allowances, Head Cross Country Pick 5

Saratoga’s first Grade 1 of its 2022 Summer Meet opens this week’s New York Racing Association Cross Country Pick 5. The weekly sequence includes races from not only the Spa, but also from Ellis Park and Monmouth Park. Interestingly, those latter two tracks offer wagering options not available at Saratoga. […]

Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint winner Twilight Gleaming captured her last race -- the Mamzelle Stakes at Churchill Downs -- at night. She is a strong favorite to win Friday's Coronation Cup at Saratoga. (Image: Coady Photography)

Twilight Gleaming Casts a Bright Light on Her Coronation Cup Rivals

Twilight Gleaming owns victories on four different tracks in two countries and two continents, none of the tracks happening to be Saratoga. Now, the reigning Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint champion will attempt to rectify that oversight in Friday’s Coronation Cup. The $150K Coronation Cup sends its 3-year-old fillies 5 […]