Saratoga Picks | Birdstone Stakes 2024

Michael A. Foster’s dominant dirt marathoner Next looks to continue his divisional supremacy and defend his title in Sunday’s Listed $150,000 Birdstone, a 1 3/4-mile main track test for older horses, at Saratoga Race Course. 

The Birdstone is slated as Race 2 on Sunday’s 10-race program that co-features the Grade 3, $200,000 Adirondack in Race 9. First post is 1:10 p.m. Eastern.

Trained by Doug Cowans, the 6-year-old Not This Time gelding enters on a five race win streak, dating to last year’s running of the Grade 2 Brooklyn in June at Belmont Park. Next successfully defended his title in that event when winning by 9 1/4 lengths last-out on July 5 at Belmont at the Big A, and looks for a similar feat in the Birdstone, which he won by 11 3/4 lengths in July 2023 here at Saratoga. 

“He is ready to go, looking sharp,” said Cowans. “This horse leaves me with confidence no matter where I run him. We just hope that the horse can ship up there well, and nothing odd goes wrong, gets up there in good order, and we’ll feel really confident about it.” 

Next has worked back once since his Brooklyn conquest, covering five furlongs in 1:00.80 on July 24 over the Turfway Park synthetic. 

“He’s going to go with one work into the race, which will be 11 days from the race. There just wasn’t enough time to squeeze two works,” said Cowans. “It wasn’t ideal, but it’s just the way it happened. We made it a little bit of a longer work since it was further out. It says five-eighths but he breezed a bit further, and we decided after we will go with that.”

Next certainly looked fit enough in his last effort, netting a final time of 2:13.68 for the 11 furlongs at the Big A, registering a career and field-best 109 Beyer Speed Figure in victory. 

“I was a little scared breezing him back since it would have to be a very short breeze and maybe put him on edge going one mile and three quarters,” said Cowans. “So I rolled it out the way I did.” 

Next began his career mainly on turf for conditioner Wesley Ward and won the one-mile War Chant at Churchill Downs as a sophomore. In April 2022, Cowans haltered him for $62,500 out of a distant ninth-place effort sprinting on the Keeneland main track. 

He made his marathon debut in the Cape Henlopen the following September at Delaware Park, where he crushed the off-the-turf stake by 18 1/4-lengths. In total, he has hit the board in 9-of-10 efforts since being claimed, notably taking the Grade 3 Greenwood Cup by a widening 25 lengths in September at Parx Racing, and the Isaac Murphy Marathon by 11 1/4 lengths on May 1 at Churchill Downs.

Next, out of the dual stakes-placed Awesome Again mare Bahia Beach, boasts a record of 21-11-0-1 with in excess of $1.1 million in earnings. 

Regular rider Luan Machado will ride from the outermost post 5 carrying a field-high 124 pounds. 

John Holleman’s Masqueparade was fourth last-out in the Grade 2 Brooklyn, defeated 14 3/4 lengths by Next. Trained by Rob Atras, the Upstart bay was previously a close third when cutting back to 10 furlongs in the Grade 2 Suburban at Saratoga, finishing three-quarter lengths back of Crupi, who is entered in Saturday’s Grade 1 Whitney at Saratoga for Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher. 

The Suburban, contested on June 8 during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, was Masqueparade’s most promising effort since a determined head victory over Classic Causeway in the 12-furlong Temperance Hill in March at Oaklawn Park when in the care of conditioner Robertino Diodoro. He then moved to the Atras barn to finish a distant third to Next in the Isaac Murphy.

Masqueparade, who sold for $180,000 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, won the Grade 3 Ohio Derby as a sophomore for conditioner Al Stall, Jr. and subsequently was claimed for $80,000 by Holleman in September at Churchill Downs. He has banked $859,976 in earnings through a 21-5-2-5 record.

Manny Franco will look to engineer a winning trip from post 2 carrying 120 pounds. 

Gold Square’s graded stakes-placed Slip Mahoney [post 1, Luis Saez, 120 pounds] is a new face to the marathon ranks, stretching out in distance in his second start for conditioner Chad Summers. In his debut for Summers, the 4-year-old Arrogate gelding was eased in the stretch of the 1 1/16-mile Battery Park on July 7 at Delaware Park. 

Last year, Slip Mahoney placed in the one-turn mile Grade 3 Gotham in March at Aqueduct Racetrack and won the 1 3/16-mile Bourbon Trail in September at Churchill Downs for dual Eclipse Award-winner Brad Cox. 

Thorndale Stables and trainer Jeff Hiles’ graded stakes-placed Time for Trouble [post 4, Flavien Prat, 118 pounds] was second to Next in last year’s Birdstone before running at shorter distances in his seven following starts. The 7-year-old English Channel gelding stretches back out on short rest after a second as the favorite in the nine-furlong Deputed Testamony on July 28 at Laurel Park. 

Rounding out the short Saratoga field is the graded stakes-placed Nimitz Class [post 3, Eric Cancel, 120 pounds] for trainer George Weaver. The 5-year-old Munnings dark bay boasts a strong 25-11-4-1 record with $764,280 in earnings, and is yet to travel longer than nine furlongs. Most recently, Nimitz Class sprinted seven furlongs and finished fifth to next-out Grade 2 True North-winner Baby Yoda.