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Saratoga Report #3

Saratoga Report #3

Cross Traffic Wins the Whitney Handicap
Cross Traffic Wins the Whitney Handicap

Three Stars of the Week

– 1st Star: Cross Traffic (KY) – The tough luck horse of the year finally got his first stakes victory in the Whitney Handicap Saturday, and it was impressive!  After taking the field through decent fractions, and weaving in and out down the stretch, Cross Traffic was a convincing three-quarter length winner in the end.  Whether he could stretch out to nine furlongs was in question coming into this one, as well as if he was classy enough, but he left little doubt on Saturday.  The win vaults him to the top of the older male division, and puts him right into the mix of Breeders Cup Classic contenders.  Just another horse to add to Todd Pletcher’s growing list of supers stars!

– 2nd Star: Justin Phillip (KY) – If you love horse racing, then you had to LOVE seeing Justin Phillip finally get his first Grade 1 victory Sunday in the Vanderbilt Handicap.  The horse also became a millionaire with the win, and may have put himself at the top of the list when it comes to sprinters, along with his stable mate Fast Bullet.  The race set up perfectly for his fast closing style, and for the victory he earned a beyer speed figure of 109.  He’s been as honest as they come for four years now, so this was a well deserved victory.  The Breeders Cup Sprint will now be the goal for the old pro, where he should be very competitive.

– 3rd Star: Saginaw (NY) – Speaking of horses you should love, Saginaw is definitely another one to put on that list.  The amazing New York bred horse has now won 21 of 40 races, including a perfect five for five on the year!  The win also gives Saginaw $974,690 in total earning, so it’s easy to see that he should become a millionaire with his next race.  While he’s never won a graded stakes, Saginaw is still a joy to watch.  Maybe a test against out-of-state competition is in order for his next race.

Flop of the Week

Fort Larned (KY) – Hard to figure out this one…the former Breeders Cup Classic winner has had an EVENTFUL 2013.  After losing the his jockey in the first race of the year, and a brutal performance in the Oaklawn Handicap, Fort Larned was fantastic in winning the Stephen Foster at Churchill Downs last time out.  So all systems looked to be set on go for the Whitney, but instead he was a well beaten fifth.  Who knows where they will go from here, or what we can expect from him for the rest of the year.

Trainer Standings

Rank Trainer Name Sts 1st 2nd 3rd Total $ Win% Top3 Top3%
1 Todd A. Pletcher 43 16 3 6 $1,929,862 37% 25 58%
2 Chad C. Brown 42 11 6 8 $897,716 26% 25 60%
3 Michael J. Maker 34 7 4 8 $409,174 21% 19 56%
3 David Jacobson 34 7 2 5 $316,828 21% 14 41%
5 Steven M. Asmussen 23 6 5 2 $608,922 26% 13 57%
5 William I. Mott 37 6 7 4 $518,232 16% 17 46%
7 George Weaver 13 5 2 1 $386,738 38% 8 62%
7 Kiaran P. McLaughlin 26 5 4 2 $365,086 19% 11 42%
9 Claude R. McGaughey III 12 4 1 4 $285,500 33% 9 75%
9 Dominic G. Galluscio 14 4 3 0 $152,775 29% 7 50%
11 Christophe Clement 25 3 3 9 $286,460 12% 15 60%
11 Rudy R. Rodriguez 34 3 6 5 $228,405 9% 14 41%
11 Dale L. Romans 16 3 2 2 $216,912 19% 7 44%
11 Albert M. Stall, Jr. 10 3 1 1 $193,794 30% 5 50%
11 Michael E. Hushion 11 3 2 1 $187,366 27% 6 55%
11 Nicholas P. Zito 25 3 3 3 $182,419 12% 9 36%
11 Wesley A. Ward 14 3 2 2 $171,225 21% 7 50%
11 Michael R. Matz 5 3 0 0 $160,216 60% 3 60%
11 Mitchell E. Friedman 9 3 0 1 $122,555 33% 4 44%

Jockey Standings

Rank Jockey Name Sts 1st 2nd 3rd Total $ Win% Top3 Top3%
1 Joel Rosario 127 25 24 20 $2,047,630 20% 69 54%
2 Javier Castellano 124 22 22 22 $1,746,612 18% 66 53%
3 John R. Velazquez 93 16 11 16 $1,874,385 17% 43 46%
4 Jose Lezcano 96 12 11 14 $1,257,502 13% 37 39%
5 Junior Alvarado 60 10 5 3 $725,877 17% 18 30%
6 Luis Saez 89 9 7 9 $743,048 10% 25 28%
6 Cornelio H. Velasquez 68 9 6 8 $554,572 13% 23 34%
8 Rosie Napravnik 81 7 13 9 $668,016 9% 29 36%
8 Irad Ortiz, Jr. 90 7 11 13 $597,067 8% 31 34%
10 Jose L. Ortiz 68 6 6 6 $467,146 9% 18 26%
10 Rajiv Maragh 68 6 5 12 $414,042 9% 23 34%
12 Joseph Rocco, Jr. 49 5 2 0 $411,278 10% 7 14%
13 Robby Albarado 32 4 5 3 $337,389 13% 12 38%
13 Alex O. Solis 38 4 2 2 $278,275 11% 8 21%
13 Jose L. Espinoza 42 4 4 3 $230,112 10% 11 26%
16 Mike E. Smith 5 3 0 1 $462,800 60% 4 80%
16 Edgar S. Prado 45 3 9 7 $424,883 7% 19 42%
16 David Cohen 45 3 3 5 $210,411 7% 11 24%
19 Alan Garcia 16 2 1 1 $127,115 13% 4 25%
19 Paco Lopez 8 2 1 1 $108,130 25% 4 50%
19 Abel Lezcano 34 2 0 2 $95,207 6% 4 12%

Preview to Next Week

– Wednesday – The NYSS Cab Calloway Division Stakes – 3 Year Olds – 1 Mile (Turf) – Purse: $100,000

– Thursday – The NYSS Statue of Liberty Division Stakes – 3 Year Old Fillies – 1 Mile (Turf) – Purse: $100,000

– Friday – The National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame Stakes (Grade 2) – 3 Year Olds – 1 1/16 Miles – Purse: $200,000

– Saturday – The Fourstardave Stakes (Grade 2) – 3 Year Olds and Upward – 1 Mile (Turf) – Purse: $500,000

– Sunday – The Adirondack Stakes (Grade 2) – 2 Year Old Fillies – 6 1/2 Furlongs – Purse: $200,000

– Sunday – The Saratoga Special (Grade 2) – 2 Year Olds – 6 1/2 Furlongs – Purse: $200,000

– Monday – Coronation Cup – 3 Year old Fillies – 5 1/2 Furlongs (Turf) – Purse: $100,000

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