Saratoga Report #5

Three Stars of the Week

– 1st Star: Stopchargingmaria (KY) – Let’s face it…they aren’t going to be talking about this Alabama Stakes winner for years to come like some of the other historic winners, but Stopchargingmaria was better than the rest on Saturday and earned a Grade 1 victory.  The 3 year old filly division is extremely weak this year, but perhaps Stopchargingmaria has found her stride enough to test Untapable in a race next time out.  Either way Stopchargingmaria has dominated her rivals at the Spa.

– 2nd Star: Main Sequence (KY) – Two race in the United Stats, two grade 1 wins!  Sunday’s dramatic come from behind victory in the Sword Dancer was just the latest flash of brilliance out of Main Sequence, who is quickly shooting up the ranks of turf horses in America.  The consistent running he has shown most likely will earn him a trip to the Breeders Cup, where he will test his game against the best in the world.

– 3rd Star: Farhaan (KY) – Even though it was only an ungraded Stakes win for him on Sunday in the Alydar, it kind of had a man against boys type of feel to it.  Farhaan’s level of improvement is starting to really show, and you would think a shot against graded company is next.  He’s bred to run all day, and has now won three out of his last four races.

Flop of the Week

– Alpha (KY) – Going into Sunday Alpha had won four out of five at the Spa, winning some of the biggest races the track runs each year, but he  faded badly to finish third in the Alydar Stakes this time out.  The long layoff could have been part of the reason for the dull performance, or perhaps the older horse is starting to lose a step or two.  He’ll have to run much better next time out to be competitive at the level he needs to be.

Trainer Standings

Rank	Trainer Name	Sts	1st	2nd	3rd	Total $	Per Start $	Win%	Top3	Top3%
1	Todd A. Pletcher	95	22	20	10	$2,193,127	$NaN	23%	52	55%
2	Chad C. Brown	65	14	11	11	$1,191,553	$NaN	22%	36	55%
3	William I. Mott	53	10	6	7	$1,173,207	$NaN	19%	23	43%
4	H. Graham Motion	46	9	6	7	$1,037,227	$NaN	20%	22	48%
5	Bruce R. Brown	42	8	2	13	$467,660	$NaN	19%	23	55%
5	Michael J. Maker	33	8	5	4	$441,696	$NaN	24%	17	52%
7	Rudy R. Rodriguez	51	7	7	10	$428,557	$NaN	14%	24	47%
7	George Weaver	30	7	3	7	$420,580	$NaN	23%	17	57%
7	Bruce N. Levine	31	7	4	4	$342,951	$NaN	23%	15	48%
10	Anthony W. Dutrow	22	6	3	2	$698,617	$NaN	27%	11	50%
10	James A. Jerkens	16	6	1	2	$658,104	$NaN	38%	9	56%
10	Linda Rice	39	6	3	4	$588,313	$NaN	15%	13	33%
10	Claude R. McGaughey III	31	6	3	6	$573,249	$NaN	19%	15	48%
10	Thomas Albertrani	37	6	7	3	$566,893	$NaN	16%	16	43%
10	David Jacobson	53	6	11	9	$458,361	$NaN	11%	26	49%
10	Gary C. Contessa	57	6	6	8	$439,607	$NaN	11%	20	35%

Jockey Standings

Rank	Jockey Name	Sts	1st	2nd	3rd	Total $	Per Start $	Win%	Top3	Top3%
1	Javier Castellano	154	43	27	20	$3,101,198	$NaN	28%	90	58%
2	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	171	35	33	22	$3,135,437	$NaN	20%	90	53%
3	John R. Velazquez	153	27	27	18	$2,643,069	$NaN	18%	72	47%
4	Jose L. Ortiz	144	22	13	20	$1,492,621	$NaN	15%	55	38%
5	Joel Rosario	138	21	19	24	$2,172,334	$NaN	15%	64	46%
6	Rajiv Maragh	94	17	9	14	$1,628,206	$NaN	18%	40	43%
7	Cornelio H. Velasquez	83	14	9	9	$955,591	$NaN	17%	32	39%
8	Junior Alvarado	97	13	19	9	$1,680,873	$NaN	13%	41	42%
9	Luis Saez	114	12	15	12	$1,325,637	$NaN	11%	39	34%
10	Jose Lezcano	94	11	14	17	$1,068,230	$NaN	12%	42	45%

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