Saratoga Report #3

Three Stars of the Week

– 1st Star: HONOR CODE – There is no doubting it now…Honor Code is the number one older horse in American after a thrilling come from behind win in the Whitney Handicap.  Several pundits (including me) felt this horse might not be at his best going two turns, but he proved us wrong as he ran down Liam’s Map late to prevail this weekend.  The ride on Liam’s Map was questionable, however it doesn’t at all discount what Honor Code accomplished.  From here on out the big challenge will be to keep Honor Code healthy, and to get him to the Breeders Cup in the best shape possible.

– 2nd Star: CAVORTING – Cavorting loves Saratoga!  Last year she captured a Grade 2 Stakes victory at Saratoga, and now this year she returned to win the Grade 1 Test Stakes.  It’s obvious that one turn races are her thing now, and she’s proving to be very classy at this distance.  Her win in the Test couldn’t have looked much easier as she coasted by horses in mid-stretch to win going away.  In the past they’ve had trouble keeping her healthy, but if they can get her to the Breeders Cup she might fit in well with Filly and Mare Sprint Division.

– 3rd Star: BAY OF PLENTY – The Alydar Stakes on Sunday was supposed to be all about the return of Palace Malice, but Bay of Plenty was able to steal the show in front running fashion.  He basically dominated this field of tough older horses on the front end and never looked back.  This was his fifth win in nine stats, and his first stakes win as well.  After a performance like this you would have to think a race like the Woodward will now be on the schedule for this talented individual.

Flop of the Week

– TAKE CHARGE BRANDI – The 2 Year Old filly of the year returned for the first time since January in the Test Stakes on Saturday and looked good for the first half of the race, but faded badly to finish dead last.  The good news is she’s perfectly healthy, but the bad new is she didn’t look anywhere near the same as she did last year.  Her second start off the layoff will tell us a lot as she could have just been short this time out.

Trainer Standings

Rank	Trainer Name	Starts	1st	2nd	3rd	Earnings	Win %	Top 3	Top 3%
1	Todd A. Pletcher	62	19	9	5	$1,936,818	31%	33	53%
2	Chad C. Brown	58	14	6	8	$1,135,118	24%	28	48%
3	William I. Mott	44	8	12	6	$797,683	18%	26	59%
4	Kiaran P. McLaughlin	19	7	5	2	$811,034	37%	14	74%
5	Christophe Clement	29	5	2	4	$701,032	17%	11	38%
5	John P. Terranova, II	13	5	1	1	$252,110	38%	7	54%
7	David Jacobson	31	4	3	6	$230,180	13%	13	42%
7	Michael J. Maker	29	4	3	4	$214,897	14%	11	38%
7	Claude R. McGaughey III	17	4	3	2	$925,690	24%	9	53%
10	Rudy R. Rodriguez	27	3	5	7	$235,416	11%	15	56%
10	Gary C. Contessa	34	3	7	3	$213,692	9%	13	38%
10	Steven M. Asmussen	22	3	4	2	$358,885	14%	9	41%
10	H. Graham Motion	26	3	4	2	$293,641	12%	9	35%
10	Joe Sharp	12	3	0	2	$159,875	25%	5	42%
10	Thomas Albertrani	31	3	2	3	$207,882	10%	8	26%

Jockey Standings

Rank	Jockey Name	Starts	1st	2nd	3rd	Earnings	Win %	Top 3	Top 3%
1	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	112	25	10	19	$1,811,303	22%	54	48%
2	John R. Velazquez	92	22	13	5	$2,061,900	24%	40	43%
3	Javier Castellano	122	21	17	15	$2,388,968	17%	53	43%
4	Joel Rosario	93	11	17	7	$1,125,811	12%	35	38%
5	Jose L. Ortiz	97	10	10	11	$937,201	10%	31	32%
5	Luis Saez	95	10	12	11	$888,083	11%	33	35%
5	Junior Alvarado	77	10	9	9	$811,404	13%	28	36%
5	Jose Lezcano	73	10	8	5	$888,782	14%	23	32%
9	Eric Cancel	64	6	6	6	$435,483	9%	18	28%
9	Kendrick Carmouche	57	6	8	3	$475,750	11%	17	30%

Preview to Next Week