After Woodbine had the spotlight yesterday where I was able to get three winners out of the five races, and maybe sway you on the other two, the spotlight shifts to Saratoga for Travers Day. We will take a look at their five (yes, five!) Grade 1 races on the docket for today. We will begin on the turf with the Sword Dancer and end with the Travers, where we could have history with Thorpedo Anna trying to be the first filly to beat the boys in the Summer Derby in over 100 years. You can watch all the action on your local Fox channel beginning at 3 pm, and the first race in this sequence beginning at 3:44 pm Eastern.
Saratoga Race 9 – Sword Dancer Stakes
We begin with the Sword Dancer here as six horses will go a mile and a half on the inner turf course. Favored is the 4 Silver Knott (1/1 morning line) who won the Grade 2 Bowling Green going 11 furlongs last month. He was on the front end in that victory, but he is not the type that will need the lead. But with his stable mate also in this race, I imagine he might be a length or two off the lead and not cancel out himself and the 2 on the front end in a speed duel.
The 2 Measured Time (7/5 ML) who won the Manhattan here at Saratoga back on Belmont Day in June on the front end. He was much the best in that race and should have no problem with the distance here today.
The 1 Soldier Rising (8/1 ML) finished second to Silver Knott in the Bowling Green. She needed that last race and should improve off of that first race in eight months. But she does have a tough Charles Appleby duo to beat here today.
The 6 Grand Sonata (10/1 ML) closed well in the United Nations at Monmouth only to lose by a nose. If a speed duel develops, this horse could be flying at the end.
Personally, I don’t think a speed duel develops and I’ll take the 2 Measured Time beating his stablemate here. Let’s call it 2-4-6-1 and my play is $20 to win on the 2.
Saratoga Race 10 – Ballerina Handicap
Next up at Saratoga is the Ballerina Handicap, where fillies and mares will go seven furlongs on the main track. Favored is the 3 Vahva (1/1 ML) who was bumped around in the Chicago Stakes at Churchill Downs but still won the race as a heavy favorite. She will be a couple of lengths off the lead and race to pounce as they turn for home.
The 4 Society (4/1 ML) will go to the lead here but it will be interesting to see if she will be alone on the lead. There will be other horses nearby, but I don’t think that she will be too far ahead on the lead.
The 5 Scylla (7/2 ML) is an interesting entry here. She’s running the shortest distance of her career since her six-furlong debut at Keeneland over a year ago. But she loves the one-turn one-mile races that she participated in at Churchill and Gulfstream. This is a furlong short than those races, but she could be flying at the end of this race.
The 7 Accede (8/1 ML) just missed in the Honorable Miss last month here at Saratoga, and could be close to the pace as well.
Scylla is an interesting entrant in this race and I think I am going to take her to defeat the favorite here in the final strides. I’ll call this 5-3-4-7 with a $20 win play on the 5.
Saratoga Race 11 – Forego Stakes
Next are the boys in the Forego Stakes going the same distance as the Ballerina. Favored in this field of eight is the 6 Mullikin (8/5 ML) who won the Nerud Stakes at this distance at the beginning of July at Aqueduct. He should be near the pace here down the backstretch looking to make a late move.
The 1 Gun Pilot (3/1 ML) comes back after a two-and-a-half-month break after finishing third in the True North at Saratoga. He draws the rail here looking to bounce back after Baby Yoda (#4, 8/1 ML).
Baby Yoga won the True North two back, but tired in the Vanderbilt last time at Saratoga. We will see if that Grade 2 win was a fluke or if he belongs in this company. He seems to run his best races near the front.
The 8 Cagliostro (9/2 ML) won the Hanshin at Churchill going the one-turn mile almost two months ago. He could have a nice outside stalking trip here to steal this race.
I think Gun Point bounces back, but Cagliostro wins this race stalking off the pace. Iet’s call this 8-1-6-4 and my play is $20 to win on the 8.
Saratoga Race 12 – H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes
We have another seven-furlong race, and this one is for the three-year-olds. A field of 11 will head to the gate around 5:30 pm Eastern time.
The lukewarm favorite is the 8 Book‘em Danno (7/2 ML). Don’t worry about that cross entry into the Charles Town Race last night. He was scratched to run in this Grade 1 race. He has won twice since his return from Saudi Arabia and the Saudi Derby. He won at Saratoga on Belmont Day and then just got up in time at Monmouth in the Jersey Shore Stakes.
The 5 Prince of Monaco (4/1 ML) was last seen on Belmont Day just missing in the Woody Stephens finishing second to Book’em Danno. He did have trouble at the start but made a strong move at the end after a 218-day layoff. He returns today looking for a better start as the Bob Baffert trainee didn’t come here just to run.
The 1 World Record (8/1 ML) is the speed horse on the rail and will look to replicate his performance in the Amsterdam last month. He will have a much larger field to contend with here as well as horses like the 3 Domestic Product (9/2 ML), the 4 Vettriano (20/1 ML) and the 11 Little Ni (10/1 ML) who could be on the front end with him.
The 10 Jefferson Street (12/1 ML) chased World Record in the Amsterdam last time out and might need a meltdown pace to get into the money.
Book’em Danno might be sitting on a huge race, but I think that Prince of Monaco is a dangerous horse that will pass Danno in the stretch. Baffert didn’t bring him east to not win. Let’s call this 5-8-10-1 and my play is $20 to win on the 5.
Saratoga Race 13 – Travers Stakes
Then we have the main event. The Summer Derby is next and they will go a mile and a quarter on the main track. We could have history today as the top three-year-old filly Thorpedo Anna (#1, 3/1 ML).
Thorpedo Anna looks to be the first filly to win this race since 1915. She had the lead in the Kentucky Oaks, but she doesn’t need it. She had trouble in her two Saratoga races, looking a shoe in the Acorn and then hitting the gate at the start of the CCA Oaks and still drew off to win by almost five lengths. But if she goes for the lead, she might get cooked.
The Belmont and Haskell winner Dornoch (#7, 5/2 ML) and the 8 Fierceness (3/1 ML) wlll both go for the lead. Dornoch has shown the heart of a champion while the Jim Dandy winner has a major good race/bad race pattern here. After winning the Jim Dandy, guess what the pattern suggests? Yup!
We could see Unmatched Wisdom (#3, 8/1 ML) on the front end as well, but he was able to get slow fractions in that win against a restricted field. The 5 Batten Down (20/1 ML) who may have hit his ceiling, looks like a horse that needs to be on the front end too.
This is going to set things up beautifully for the 2 Sierra Leone (7/2 ML) who will make his one move on the final turn to the finish, but he has had the habit of lugging in deep stretch. Also don’t sleep on the 6 Honor Marie (20/1 ML) who improved to a fourth place finish in the Belmont and who knows, could get a chance to light the infield tote board like a Christmas tree.
With the fact that Thorpedo Anna has the three-year-old filly title locked up, the colts and geldings side is wide open. I think we get another curve ball here today as I think Sierra Leone will get his winning race here today as he will storm home the winner over Thorpedo Anna. Let’s call this 2-1-7-6 and my play is $20 to win on the 2.
Best of luck everyone and let’s get some more winners home today!
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