Saratoga Picks | Galway Stakes 2024

Godolphin’s British homebred Star of Mystery will look to double up on local stakes scores in Saturday’s Listed $150,000 Galway, a 5 1/2-furlong Mellon turf sprint for sophomore fillies, at Saratoga Race Course.

The Galway is slated as the Race 12 finale on Saturday’s stacked program headlined by the Grade 1, $500,000 FanDuel Fourstardave in Race 10. Also featured on the lucrative card are the re-scheduled Grade 1, $600,000 Saratoga Derby Invitational in Race 6, the Grade 2, $200,000 Saratoga Special in Race 8, and the re-scheduled Grade 2, $300,000 Troy in Race 9. First post is 12:35 p.m. Eastern.

Star of Mystery, who has faced males in each of her six outings this year, makes a quick return after taking the Grade 3 Quick Call presented by Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation over this same Saratoga course and distance on July 14. The rallying effort under returning rider Flavien Prat registered a field-best 106 Beyer Speed Figure.

Trained by Charlie Appleby, who has won three stakes here this summer, the Kodiac bay has trounced males on three occasions this year, having also taken the six-furlong Al Wasl in her seasonal debut and the five-furlong Group 2 Blue Point Sprint versus elders, both in January at Meydan Racecourse.

Star of Mystery [post 5, Flavien Prat, 122 pounds] has hit the board in 10-of-11 outings through an 11-5-4-1 record that includes a close second in the Group 1 Al Quoz Sprint in March at Meydan and a third in the Grade 1 Jaipur presented by Resolute Racing against elders in June during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival at Saratoga Race Course.

“It will be interesting for her to go against only 3-year-old fillies this time,” said Appleby’s traveling assistant Chris Connett. “She’s been going up against the boys, and older boys, in her last few runs. She’s proven herself worthy of that in the Quick Call and ran well in the Jaipur. The Galway is a nicely placed race for her to use as a stepping stone to a race at Keeneland and then hopefully the Breeders’ Cup [Turf Sprint].”

The Galway could be used as a bridge to position Star of Mystery for the Grade 2 Franklin on October 13 at Keeneland. Connett said he was pleased to see a more relaxed filly heading to the gate in the Quick Call.

“She can be a bit [high-strung] and as we saw here and in Dubai in the winter, she can have a tendency to be ‘on the edge of OK’ and she showed that before the Jaipur,” Connett said. “That being said, the filly we saw before the Quick Call, where she was settled down and had a nice demeanor before the race and in the parade ring was exactly how we had hoped she would be. Another run would just help with that, I believe. It would be four weeks from her last run and a nice breather into Keeneland.”

Out of the Shamardal mare Mistrusting, Star of Mystery is a half-sister to the Appleby-trained 2021 Grade 1 Just a Game and Grade 1 Diana winner Althiqa.

Kairyu [post 8, Tyler Gaffalione, 122 pounds] was gallant in a narrow defeat last out to Twirling Queen in the 5 1/2-furlong Listed Coronation Cup on July 12 here under Jose Ortiz, advancing with purpose through the turn but pinned in behind rivals by Cloudwalker as the field straightened away.

Cloudwalker and Kairyu staged their own battle down the lane with the latter putting her foe away inside the final sixteenth and finishing with good energy to earn place honors.

Trained by Cherie DeVaux for owners Martin Schwartz and her former conditioner Michael O’Callaghan, the Kuroshio bay launched her career in her native Ireland topped by a 1 1/4-length score in the Group 3 Anglesey over soft footing last July at The Curragh.

Kairyu, out of the Lope de Vega mare Vegatina, made her stateside debut for DeVaux with an off-the-board effort in the one-mile Group 2 Appalachian ahead of a closing second to returning rival Pipsy in the six-furlong Grade 3 Soaring Softly in May over good going at Belmont at the Big A.

Woodford Thoroughbreds’ Pipsy [post 3, Irad Ortiz, Jr., 122 pounds] made a memorable U.S. debut in the Soaring Softly where she missed the break and trailed in last-of-10 before closing stoutly to post a half-length score under Flavien Prat.

The Kodiac bay was purchased for $928,489 at the Tattersalls December Mare Sale after having won 2-of-3 starts for her former conditioner Ger Lyons in her native Ireland. She graduated at second asking sprinting six-furlongs over yielding turf in September at The Curragh before taking the five-furlong Legacy over synthetic in October at Dundalk.

Transferred to trainer Will Walden for her sophomore season, the Kodiac bay followed her Soaring Softly score with a pacesetting off-the-board effort in the Listed Tepin when stretched out to one-mile on June 29 at Churchill Downs.

A solid field will feature a number of speed types, including Castleton Lyons’ stakes-winner El Terreno [post 6, Manny Franco, 122 pounds], who enters from a gate-to-wire score on July 13 in the Blue Sparkler sprinting 5 1/2-furlongs over firm Monmouth Park turf.

Trained by Christophe Clement, the Speightstown bay has won 3-of-5 starts in frontrunning fashion with her first two scores coming on synthetic in her October debut at Presque Isle Downs ahead of an optional-claiming score in December at Gulfstream Park.

“She is training very well,” Clement said. “She has a tremendous amount of speed. She will be forwardly placed; she is perhaps our quickest horse out of the gates. The plan is to play catch us if you can.”

Bred in Kentucky by Castleton Lyons and Kilboy Estate, El Terreno is out of the Malibu Moon mare Palma, who is a half-sister to 2009 Grade 1 Wood Memorial winner I Want Revenge.

Gregory Hoffman, R T Racing Stable and Clay Scherer’s Ever So Sweet [post 4, Joel Rosario, 118 pounds], stumbled at the break in the Coronation Cup before setting the pace and landing seventh defeated three lengths.

The Brad Cox-trained daughter of Calyx has posted a pair of frontrunning six-furlong turf wins at the Belmont at the Big A, graduating in September by three-quarter lengths along with a four-length romp against elders on May 26 over next-out allowance winner Kerry.

“Hopefully she is going to break a little bit more cleanly this time,” Cox said. “She kind of stumbled a little bit last time and couldn’t really get away from them and that is her weapon – her speed. So, hopefully she breaks better and can kick away from them and create some separation.”

Rounding out a talented Saratoga field are:

• Graded stakes-placed Amidst Waves [post 9, John Velazquez, 122 pounds] for trainer George Weaver
• Multiple stakes-winner Greavette [post 2, Luis Saez, 122 pounds] for trainer Jamie Begg
• Stakes-placed Baraye [post 7, Gerardo Corrales, 120 pounds] for trainer Wesley Ward
• Two-time winner Golden Degree [post 1, Jose Lezcano, 118 pounds] for conditioner Linda Rice

Halina’s Forte, Value Area, Sunday Girl and She’s Always Rosie are entered for the main-track only.