Saratoga Report #2

Three Stars of the Week

– 1st Star: Wicked Strong (KY) – The blinkers make the difference!  After displaying  a solid yet inconsistent late kick early in his career, Wicked Strong put on the blinkers for the Jim Dandy and was able to win on the front end of things.  After steady early fractions he had plenty left in the tank to fend off Belmont winner Tonalist and win the Jim Dandy be almost three lengths.  This race stamps him as a favorite for the Travers now, and also throws his name into the discussion of up and coming three year olds.

– 2nd Star: Coup de Grace (KY) – He was able to win a Grade 3 for the second time of his career when winning the Amsterdam on Saturday, and this time he did with new trainer Larry Jones.  It can be argued that this was the best race of his career, so perhaps the change to Jones moved this horse up.  The race perfectly sets him up for the King Bishop towards the end of the meet, which could be something he’s ready to tackle.

– 3rd Star: Competitive Edge (KY) – What a debut from this one!  Competitive Edge drew in to what was being billed as a “loaded maiden race” but absolutely turned it into a laughing matter winning by almost eleven lengths.  If Todd Pletcher has a better prospect than this in his barn I’d be shocked, because this one has all the signs of being a superstar horse.  The Grade 1 Hopeful on closing day is where he will be pointed next.

Flop of the Week

– Aldrin (KY) – One million dollars…and almost a dead last finish…not what Chad Brown had in mind for a horse that he had highly touted.  One race definitely doesn’t make or break your career, but this was no doubt a disappointing effort.  He also had a slight stumble at the top of the stretch, so something could have went wrong physically as well.  Either way, this was a disastrous start to his career.

Trainer Standings

Rank	Trainer Name	Sts	1st	2nd	3rd	Total $	Per Start $	Win%	Top3	Top3%
1	Todd A. Pletcher	27	10	6	4	$844,533	$NaN	37%	20	74%
2	Anthony W. Dutrow	9	4	2	0	$380,939	$NaN	44%	6	67%
2	William I. Mott	21	4	3	2	$325,584	$NaN	19%	9	43%
2	Michael J. Maker	16	4	4	0	$227,120	$NaN	25%	8	50%
2	George Weaver	11	4	1	1	$157,349	$NaN	36%	6	55%
6	Michael R. Matz	5	3	1	0	$433,843	$NaN	60%	4	80%
6	Christophe Clement	22	3	4	5	$394,017	$NaN	14%	12	55%
6	Chad C. Brown	24	3	4	6	$337,936	$NaN	13%	13	54%
6	H. Graham Motion	16	3	2	1	$293,173	$NaN	19%	6	38%
6	Michael E. Hushion	14	3	1	1	$190,945	$NaN	21%	5	36%
6	Bruce R. Brown	17	3	0	7	$181,566	$NaN	18%	10	59%

Jockey Standings

Rank	Jockey Name	Sts	1st	2nd	3rd	Total $	Per Start $	Win%	Top3	Top3%
1	Javier Castellano	61	13	7	12	$992,711	$NaN	21%	32	52%
2	John R. Velazquez	52	12	6	8	$889,104	$NaN	23%	26	50%
3	Jose L. Ortiz	57	10	5	10	$646,447	$NaN	18%	25	44%
4	Joel Rosario	54	7	10	5	$703,537	$NaN	13%	22	41%
4	Jose Lezcano	37	7	3	7	$465,001	$NaN	19%	17	46%
6	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	64	6	13	11	$904,201	$NaN	9%	30	47%
6	Luis Saez	44	6	10	4	$752,544	$NaN	14%	20	45%
6	Rajiv Maragh	26	6	1	5	$646,694	$NaN	23%	12	46%
9	Rosie Napravnik	19	4	2	6	$328,950	$NaN	21%	12	63%
9	Junior Alvarado	35	4	8	3	$324,174	$NaN	11%	15	43%
9	Manuel Franco	24	4	6	0	$254,556	$NaN	17%	10	42%

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