New Jersey and New York share a rare distinction in the horse racing world.
They command center stage at the same time.
Saturday’s $1 million Haskell Stakes at Monmouth Park draws the eyes of the entire industry to both the Empire and Garden states.
There’s an unusual twist enhancing that dynamic, based on recent developments.
Here’s how it breaks down.
New Jersey sports the horse racing venue
Monmouth Park gains its highest profile of the season by enticing the nation’s preeminent 3-year-old thoroughbreds to its Oceanport facility.
It applies a time-tested strategy of flooding its NJ horse betting card with superior stakes races to corner the lucrative gambling market for one day.
The Haskell, with a post time of at 5:45 p.m. ET, caps a day of several stakes races and a program worth $3,272,250. That is far and away the industry’s top total for this day, as Monmouth Park seeks to corner the lucrative gambling market with an appealing lineup.
Monmouth Park is headed for a much-needed monster day – its biggest of the campaign.
New York provides the Haskell headliners
What will happen in the main event, meanwhile, loops in the New York angle.
That’s because Dornoch and Mindframe, who staged an exhilarating stretch duel in the June 8 Belmont Stakes at Saratoga, were tabbed for a New Jersey rematch.
Dornoch prevailed in New York at a whopping 17-1 odds, surprising both Mindframe, who finished second, and race favorite Sierra Leone, who took third.
Dornoch’s biggest race occurred at the right time, giving Belmont’s historic $2 million payout.
What better scenario could have unfolded here? Dornoch and Mindframe, head-banging again at 1 1⁄8 miles, as opposed to the 1 ¼-mile oval at Saratoga. Can Dornoch secure two major triumphs in just over a month.?
Monmouth Park draw sparks drama
And then a bizarre thing happened.
After the post-position draw, with Dornoch assigned the rail and 5-2 odds, trainer Danny Gargan indicated his horse might be pulled in favor of the $500,000 Jim Dandy at Saratoga on July 27.
We may not know until Saturday, after the Jim Dandy draw, which race Gargan selects.
Gargan was apparently reacting to Dornoch’s 10th-place finish in the Kentucky Derby, in which he could not recover from the dreaded rail post that afflicts most Derby participants. A rail horse hasn’t won the Kentucky Derby since 1986, as the 20-horse field often shuffles the rail horse back.
But there is something Gargan may have overlooked. Geaux Rocket Ride captured the 2023 Haskell Stakes from the rail. In an eight-horse field, compared to 20, the rail is not going to be a prominent disadvantage here.
Furthermore, Dornoch is a lead-seeking type and there is no real early speed to his immediate outside. It would appear positioning should not become a problem for Dornoch here. Early Thursday reports suggested Gargan will select the Haskell after all, but we must wait and see.
Dornoch may have advantage at Haskell
There’s another, more subtle angle here. Call it “New York karma.” Dornoch’s two biggest triumphs – the Remsen and Belmont Stakes – came at Aqueduct and Belmont Park. He trains in Saratoga, which is in the midst of its summer-long meet.
Dornoch is pointed to the $1.25 million Travers Stakes at Saratoga on Aug. 24. If Gargan selects the Jim Dandy over the Haskell, Dornoch will thus run on the same surface three consecutive races. That’s a significant advantage.
On the other hand, the Jim Dandy field is likely to be bigger, possibly tougher, and yield a smaller reward. The purse is $500,000 vs. the $1 million for the Haskell.
This situation is fluid.
If Dornoch runs, the Haskell opposition will include Jasper’s Pride, Tuscan Sky, Timberlake, Fierceness, Just Step On It, Mindframe and Sea Streak. Tuscan Sky has an impressive 1 1⁄16-mile victory over the track in the Pegasus Stakes on June 15.
| Post Position | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Morning Line |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dornoch | Danny Gargan | Luis Saez | 5/2 |
| 2 | Jasper's Pride | Chuck Spina | Jomar Torres | 30/1 |
| 3 | Tuscan Sky | Todd Pletcher | Javier Castellano | 9/2 |
| 4 | Timberlake | Brad Cox | Flavien Prat | 8/1 |
| 5 | Fierceness | Todd Pletcher | John Velazquez | 5/2 |
| 6 | Just Step On It | Louis Linder Jr. | Florent Geroux | 30/1 |
| 7 | Mindframe | Todd Pletcher | Irad Ortiz Jr. | 9/5 |
| 8 | Sea Streak | Eddie Owens Jr. | Jairo Rendon | 20/1 |
History has been made at past Haskell Stakes
The race has been run since 1968, with a veritable Who’s Who of racing royalty gracing the winner’s circle.
Eleven winners of the Haskell have gone on to win championship honors at the Eclipse Awards as best 3-year-old colt or filly. Five have also been named horse of the year in the year they won the Haskell. They are:
- Champion 3-year-old colts: Wajima (1975), Holy Bull (1994), Skip Away (1996), Point Given (2001), War Emblem (2002), Big Brown (2008), Lookin at Lucky (2010), American Pharoah (2015), Authentic (2020)
- Champion 3-year-old fillies: Serena’s Song (1995), Rachel Alexandra (2009)
- Horses of the Year: Holy Bull (1994), Point Given (2001), Rachel Alexandra (2009), American Pharoah (2015), Authentic (2020)
The all-time day at Monmouth Park occurred in 2015. That’s when American Pharoah, racing’s first Triple Crown winner in 37 years, was entered in the Haskell.
A crowd of 60,983, the largest ever in the track’s now 154-year-old history, watched him win the big race. Fans began lining up at midnight, some 18 hours before the race, and watched morning workouts.
There was a New Jersey-New York link there too. American Pharoah’s previous race had been triumphant at the Belmont, sealing the Triple Crown sweep.
What the Haskell Stakes means to Monmouth Park
Monmouth, like most industry establishments, has taken another lead first established by Belmont Park several years ago. Belmont officials sought an alternative to attendance at their Belmont Stakes being impacted by whether or not a Triple Crown was at stake.
So Belmont formed its own massive day around the Belmont Stakes. Officials created a terrific, talent-laden card with several million dollars in purses. Belmont day is the biggest individual horse-racing program this side of the Breeders’ Cup in the United States. It no longer matters whether a Triple Crown is possible. Belmont Park is going to have a monster day for the Belmont Stakes.
Monmouth Park unveils its own version of the idea.
It has staggered several high-level stakes races throughout a 14-race card that begins at noon.
The $300,000 Watchmaker Stakes unfolds at 1:52 p.m. And then it’s the $500,000 Molly Pitcher at 2:24 p.m.
Later, it’s a boom-boom-boom presentation of the $400,000 Monmouth Cup Stakes at 4:38 p.m., the $600,000 U.N.Stakes at 5:09 p.m. and the $1 million Haskell at 5:45 p.m.
Monmouth, just like Belmont Park, is going to have a huge day.
New Jersey and New York share many things, including bridges and professional sports teams. Now they have a common recipe for success.
