Saratoga Closing Day’s Hopeful Picks and Analysis

Stronach Stables’ Green Light Go headlines a competitive field of seven assembled for Closing Day’s 115th $350,000 Runhappy Hopeful (G1) over the main track at Saratoga Race Course today.

The seven-furlong event is the first Grade 1 on the calendar for juvenile males and has been a resume builder for eventual Champion 2-year-olds including Shanghai Bobby and Favorite Trick. 

The Hopeful field from the rail out: Shoplifted (4/1), American Butterfly (15/1), Green Light Go (8/5), Gozilla (5/2), By Your Side (6/1), Inside Risk (30/1), and Basin (5/1).

“He ran well the first time but he had to lead all the way and didn’t have a whole lot of experience. He broke real sharp and it was good to see the horse that ran second came back and ran real big,” Green Light Go’s trainer Jimmy Jerkens said. “I felt really good after seeing that. Key races really mean something, and that horse came back and won a stake on the turf. He’s not beating up on slouches. We’re going into it feeling well.”

The Hopeful is slated as Race 10 on today’s 11-race card, which also features the $250,000 Bernard Baruch (G2) in Race 10. 

Today’s Closing Day card at Saratoga will also be bolstered by a mandatory payout of the Empire 6, which has a carryover of $793,567.46 heading into the 11-race Labor Day finale. The Empire 6 will start with Race 6.

TOP PICK: #3 Green Light Go (8/5)

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