Saratoga Report #1

3 Stars of the Week

– 1st Star: Questing (GB) – In a division where things look wide open, Questing may have taken a big step towards putting her name at the top of the list.  She is now two for two since switching to dirt, and Saturday she crushed Zo Impressive and the rest of the field in the TVG Coaching Club Oaks.  I’m not ready to call her the best three-year old filly yet, but she could be well on her way.  Seeing a Questing vs. Grace Hall match up would be interesting.  Questing’s beyer came back as a 98, and Grace Hall’s Delaware Oaks beyer was a 102.  I don’t think beyers are the end all be all in racing, but I think it does show you that these two are in a very similar class.  Regardless of where or when she races next, Questing is a horse we’ll all be watching from now on!

– 2nd Star: Bern Identity (KY) – One of the best things about Saratoga is the strong two-year old racing, and on Sunday Bern Identity was impressive winning the Sanford Stakes.  Trainer Kelly Breen believes this horse may be limited on how far he wants to run, so the Breeders Cup Juvenile Sprint might be the long-term goal with him.  Still, at this point you have to rank him amongst the top two-year olds running right now.  However, as we all know, it’s still VERY early.

– 3rd Star: Kauai Katie (KY) – Speaking of two-year olds, Kauai Katie gave us what could have been the best performance of the week at Saratoga.  I have rated her as the third star because it was only a maiden special weight, but Kauai Katie looks like she will be a force to be reckoned with.  She won by twelve lengths, and her final running time was over a full second faster than the other 2-year-old maiden race ran that day.  Her beyer came back as a 100, which is 14 points better than My Miss Aurelia ran in her opening race last year.  You would think a stakes towards the end of the Saratoga meet is where she’ll pop up next.

Flop of the Week

– Rose Junction (KY) – Rose Junction capped off what had to be a frustrating week for Todd Pletcher.  Apparently none of the horses got the message that Pletcher is supposed to dominate at Saratoga.  While the tide will most likely turn for Pletcher, the last place finish for Rose Junction in the Sanford stakes is puzzling.  He basically just failed to fire down the stretch.  Perhaps he laid a bit to close to the pace, or perhaps something is wrong with the horse.  It will be interesting to see how he rebounds from this race.

Trainer Standings

Rank	Trainer Name	Sts	1st	2nd	3rd	Total $		Win%	Top3	Top3%
1	Anthony W. Dutrow	5	3	2	0	$168,800		60%	5	100%
2	Chad C. Brown	14	2	3	1	$137,777		14%	6	43%
2	Christophe Clement	6	2	0	1	$121,281		33%	3	50%
2	George Weaver	7	2	0	2	$112,860		29%	4	57%
2	Eddie Kenneally	5	2	1	0	$108,747		40%	3	60%
2	Steven M. Asmussen	8	2	3	0	$81,334		25%	5	63%
2	Rudy R. Rodriguez	8	2	1	1	$66,285		25%	4	50%
8	Todd A. Pletcher	22	1	4	6	$231,976		5%	11	50%
8	Kelly J. Breen	1	1	0	0	$220,000		100%	1	100%
8	Kiaran P. McLaughlin	5	1	0	1	$195,154		20%	2	40%
8	Wesley A. Ward	9	1	2	2	$124,400		11%	5	56%
8	William I. Mott	9	1	2	1	$113,306		11%	4	44%
8	Richard E. Dutrow, Jr.	5	1	1	1	$93,014		20%	3	60%
8	Philip M. Serpe	5	1	1	1	$71,650		20%	3	60%
8	Dale L. Romans	8	1	0	1	$62,772		13%	2	25%
8	David G. Donk	4	1	0	1	$60,290		25%	2	50%
8	Richard A. Violette, Jr.	3	1	0	1	$58,650		33%	2	67%
8	H. James Bond	4	1	0	0	$54,754		25%	1	25%
8	Mark A. Hennig	2	1	0	0	$52,306		50%	1	50%
8	Albert M. Stall, Jr.	2	1	0	0	$52,230		50%	1	50%
8	Timothy A. Hills	1	1	0	0	$51,000		100%	1	100%
8	Dominic G. Galluscio	4	1	0	1	$48,150		25%	2	50%
8	Linda Rice	5	1	0	0	$47,210		20%	1	20%
8	Richard E. Schosberg	3	1	0	1	$45,100		33%	2	67%
8	James T. Ryerson	2	1	0	0	$40,460		50%	1	50%
8	Bruce N. Levine	3	1	0	0	$39,374		33%	1	33%
8	Dominick A. Schettino	1	1	0	0	$39,000		100%	1	100%
8	Larry Rivelli	1	1	0	0	$36,000		100%	1	100%
8	Michael J. Trombetta	2	1	0	1	$31,500		50%	2	100%
8	Jason Servis	2	1	1	0	$30,200		50%	2	100%
8	Michael E. Hushion	2	1	0	0	$25,132		50%	1	50%
8	Roy S. Lerman	2	1	0	0	$24,127		50%	1	50%
8	Justin Sallusto	1	1	0	0	$22,200		100%	1	100%

Jockey Standings

Rank	Jockey Name	Sts	1st	2nd	3rd	Total $		Win%	Top3	Top3%
1	Ramon A. Dominguez	25	10	4	3	$476,682		40%	17	68%
2	Jose Lezcano	27	6	7	3	$349,934		22%	16	59%
3	Joel Rosario	29	4	2	7	$325,746		14%	13	45%
3	Cornelio H. Velasquez	19	4	0	3	$199,728		21%	7	37%
5	Rosie Napravnik	31	3	3	3	$438,066		10%	9	29%
5	Javier Castellano	33	3	6	8	$362,385		9%	17	52%
5	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	20	3	0	1	$251,892		15%	4	20%
5	Edgar S. Prado	15	3	0	0	$127,719		20%	3	20%
9	Junior Alvarado	20	2	2	2	$155,253		10%	6	30%
10	Rajiv Maragh	23	1	2	2	$154,731		4%	5	22%
10	Julien R. Leparoux	20	1	5	2	$96,438		5%	8	40%
10	Alan Garcia	12	1	0	2	$85,962		8%	3	25%

Preview to Next Week

– The Lake George Stakes (Grade 2) – Wednesday – 3 Year Old Fillies – One and One-Sixteenth Miles (Turf) – Purse: $200,000

– The Quick Call Stakes – Thursday – 3 Year Olds – Five and One-Half Furlongs (Turf) – Purse: $100,000

– The Curlin Stakes – Friday – 3 Year Olds – One and One-eighth miles – Purse: $100,000

– The Diana (Grade 1) – Saturday – Fillies and Mares 3 Year Olds and upward – One and One-eighth miles (turf) – Purse: $600,000

– The Jim Dandy (Grade 2) – Saturday – 3 Year Olds – One and One-eighth miles – Purse: $600,000

– The Amsterdam (Grade 2) – Sunday – 3 Year Olds – Six and One-half furlongs – Purse: $200,000

– The Caress – Monday – Fillies and Mare 3 Year Olds and upward – Five and One-half furlongs (turf) – Purse: $100,000