Saratoga Report #5

Three Stars of the Week

– 1st Star: Princess of Sylmar (PA) – There is no questioning who the best three-year old filly is now…Princess of Sylmar is above and beyond them all!  Saturday’s Grade 1 Alabama win was another dominating effort, as she won by almost three lengths, but it might as well have been twenty considering how she was seemingly geared down towards the end of the race.  What happens next for Princess of Sylmar is a bit touchy, as she is not Breeders Cup nominated.  There are talks of shutting her down for the year, or maybe running the Cotillion at Parx in September.  No matter what happens next, Princess of Sylmar has left little doubt that she is a super star.

– 2nd Star: Big Blue Kitten (KY) – This was the horse that kicked off the Ramsey Grade 1 hat trick on Saturday, and he did it in stylish fashion!  Using his normal come from behind tactics, Big Blue Kitten stormed from 10th around the far turn and was able to get up without much drama in the end as he won by a length on the wire.  It was a nifty ride by jockey Joe Bravo, considering the pace was much slower than expected.  He’s now won ten of seventeen lifetime starts, including back to back Grade 1 victories.  The Ramsey’s have plenty of options for the Breeders Cup, and Big Blue Kitten may have earned a chance to go there in November.

– 3rd Star: Caroline Thomas (KY) –  It was a roughly ran renewal of the Lack Placid Stakes on Sunday, and in the end it was Caroline Thomas that was declared the winner as Nellie Cashman was disqualified and placed third for interference in the stretch run.  The “win” was Caroline Thomas’ first win of the year, and also the first Graded stakes win of her career.  The fact the she was ran well was a surprise to many as she was coming off a very poor effort last time out in an ungraded stakes here at Saratoga.  She returned $25.20 for a two dollar win ticket, and was the third longest price on the board.

Flop of the Week

– Boisterous (KY) – This was a flop that is difficult to explain.  After winning two graded stakes in a row, and four out of his last six, Boisterous was a complete no-show in the Sword Dancer Stakes on Saturday.  He went off as the favorite, but was cam up empty when it was time to run.  Boisterous came into the race as a rising turf star, but he’s left us with a few question marks now.  Definitely one to keep an eye on next time to see if he’ll recover.

Trainer Standings

Rank	Trainer Name	Sts	1st	2nd	3rd	Total $		Win%	Top3	Top3%
1	Todd A. Pletcher	79	29	6	12	$3,135,016		37%	47	59%
2	Chad C. Brown	64	20	10	11	$1,835,406		31%	41	64%
3	David Jacobson	53	11	5	7	$575,643		21%	23	43%
4	Steven M. Asmussen	42	9	9	6	$813,026		21%	24	57%
4	Michael J. Maker	61	9	8	11	$589,524		15%	28	46%
6	William I. Mott	60	8	8	5	$712,459		13%	21	35%
6	George Weaver	28	8	4	5	$595,943		29%	17	61%
6	Dominic G. Galluscio	31	8	7	3	$375,765		26%	18	58%
9	Kiaran P. McLaughlin	41	7	7	4	$630,336		17%	18	44%
10	Rudy R. Rodriguez	53	6	10	7	$398,355		11%	23	43%
11	Christophe Clement	39	5	6	13	$480,765		13%	24	62%
11	Bruce N. Levine	37	5	7	5	$368,033		14%	17	46%
11	Anthony W. Dutrow	16	5	3	2	$283,245		31%	10	63%

Jockey Standings

Rank	Jockey Name	Sts	1st	2nd	3rd	Total $		Win%	Top3	Top3%
1	Javier Castellano	217	43	41	40	$3,591,070		20%	124	57%
2	Joel Rosario	207	38	38	30	$3,036,717		18%	106	51%
3	John R. Velazquez	162	34	18	26	$3,358,134		21%	78	48%
4	Jose Lezcano	148	19	22	23	$1,926,451		13%	64	43%
5	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	165	18	16	29	$1,513,731		11%	63	38%
6	Jose L. Ortiz	131	17	12	17	$1,112,991		13%	46	35%
7	Cornelio H. Velasquez	115	15	13	12	$936,068		13%	40	35%
8	Junior Alvarado	109	14	10	6	$1,055,293		13%	30	28%
9	Rosie Napravnik	107	13	17	11	$1,074,036		12%	41	38%
10	Joseph Rocco, Jr.	92	12	8	1	$847,631		13%	21	23%
11	Luis Saez	156	10	16	18	$1,091,843		6%	44	28%
12	Rajiv Maragh	115	8	10	19	$675,891		7%	37	32%
13	Jose L. Espinoza	61	6	4	4	$331,309		10%	14	23%
14	Alex O. Solis	63	5	8	9	$474,189		8%	22	35%
14	Abel Lezcano	66	5	3	3	$268,608		8%	11	17%

Preview to Next Week

– Wednesday – The Albany Stakes – Three Year Old New York Breds – 1 1/8 Miles – Purse: $150,000

– Thursday – The New York Turf Writers Steeplechase (Grade 1) – Four Year Olds and Upward – 2 3/8 Miles (Hurdles) – Purse: $150,000

– Friday – The Ballerina Stakes (Grade 1) – Fillies and Mares Three Year Olds and Upward – Seven Furlongs – Purse: $500,00

– Saturday – The Ballston Spa Stakes (Grade 2) – Fillies and Mares Three Year Olds and Upward – 1 1/16 Miles (Turf) – Purse: $250,000

– Saturday – The King’s Bishop Stakes (Grade 1) – Three Year Olds – Seven Furlongs – Purse: $500,000

– Saturday – The Test Stakes (Grade 1) – Three Year Old Fillies – Seven Furlongs – Purse: $500,000

– Saturday – The Travers Stakes (Grade 1) – Three Year Olds – 1 1/4 Miles – Purse: $1,000,000

– Sunday – The Personal Ensign Invitational (Grade 1) – Fillies and Mares Three Year Olds and Upward – 1 1/4 Miles – Purse: $600,000

– Monday – The Saratoga Dew Stakes – Fillies and Mares Three Year Olds and Upward New York Breds – 1 1/8 Miles – Purse: $100,000