Week three of the 2021 racing season at Saratoga Race Course beginning July 28 will contain 8 stakes races, 5 of which are graded.
The highlight is expected to be the Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap at the sprint distance of 6 furlongs, but the richest race will be the Grade II Jim Dandy for three-year-olds at one mile and an eighth. Both will be run on Saturday. The full week offers stakes races at a wide array of distances, surfaces, ages and gender.
The biggest race of the week will be Saturday’s Grade II Jim Dandy at a mile and an eighth for three-year-olds. The race is named after the winner of the 1930 Travers – Jim Dandy - who pulled off one of the most famous upsets in racing history. The longest shot in a small field of four, Jim Dandy defeated Triple Crown winner Gallant Fox and multiple Saratoga winner Whichone. Taking advantage of a sloppy track that he relished and a speed duel between the two favorites, Jim Dandy bounded up along the rail to an astonishing winning margin of 8 lengths at odds of 100-1. Legend has it that the win was such a windfall for the bookmakers and so devastating a loss for the betting public that many fans left immediately for the train station to return south to New York City. Attempting to save the remainder of the race meet the suddenly flush bookmakers sent people to intercept the dejected fans before they boarded the train. With promises of free meals and free drinks all night at local establishments many bettors did return to town to drown their sorrows. The phrase heard for many years of “that was a Jim Dandy of a night!” paid homage to the Travers winner and the circumstances that ensued. The gambit of the bet takers was successful as once Monday rolled around the New York City bettors had forgotten their losses and faced a fresh week of betting challenges.
Traditionally a prep race for the Travers’ Stakes to be later in the meet (eleven runners have won both), the $600,000 purse assures a quality field and this year the expected favorite is Belmont Stakes winner Essential Quality. The Godolphin homebred has won 6 of 7 lifetime races, with his only loss coming in a good effort in the Kentucky Derby. Widely considered the best three-year-old in the country – wins in the Jim Dandy and Travers would assure his spot as champion three-year-old of 2021.
The Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap also on the Saturday card is a top-notch Grade I affair. This sprint at 6 furlongs offers a purse of $350,000 and is named after racing icon Alfred G. Vanderbilt Jr., the former Chairman of the Board of the New York Racing Association and owner of Champion racehorse Native Dancer. This race is a handicap race with runners carrying different weights to make the race competitive among all runners. The expected high weight and race favorite is Whitmore an 8-year-old gelding who won last year’s Breeders’ Cup Sprint and was named Champion Sprinter of the Year. Whitmore was second in this race last year and despite being second in two of his three starts this year seems to have maintained his form. A winner of 15 races and $4.4 million, Whitmore is a fan favorite and is taken to find the winner’s circle here as he seeks to make it to the Breeders’ Cup sprint again to defend his title.
Saturday will also feature the Bowling Green, a grade II run on the grass at the marathon distance of one mile and three-eighths. The Bowling Green is expected to produce a large field with nominees including last year’s winner Cross Border and stakes winners Arklow, Colonel Liam, Channel Maker and Gufo.
Before the big Saturday races, Wednesday features a sprint handicap at six furlongs for fillies and mares. The Honorable Miss is named after the stretch running stakes winner of the mid 1970s who had a penchant for beating males with her tremendous closing kick. This year the expected high weight and favorite is Kimari, a filly trained by Wesley Ward who has won 6 of 10 races, including one at Saratoga and notably has been second twice at Royal Ascot.
Wednesday also has the New York Sire Stakes series named after famed musician Cab Calloway. At a mile on the grass for New York breds the race is expected to produce a competitive field.
Thursday again features horses bred in New York with the John Morrissey – a handicap at 6 ½ furlongs offering a purse of $100,000.
Friday’s stakes race is a restricted stake named after Curlin at a mile and one-eighth. This race is restricted to aspiring three-year-olds who have not won a stakes race at over a mile in 2021. Despite its restricted status, the Curlin has produced Travers runners in the past.
SUNDAY completes the week with another stakes for three-year-olds - the Amsterdam. This race is at 6 and ½ furlongs and will draw from the same pool of entrants as the Curlin.
