Saturday is the biggest day of the year at Monmouth Park with a 14-race card topped by the $1 million Haskell Stakes (G1) for 3-year-olds
There’s also plenty of action elsewhere on the program that features four graded stakes, topped by the $600,000 United Nations (G2), New Jersey’s premier grass race.
This year’s U.N. drew an attractive field of 12, giving bettors lots of options to consider.
Let’s look at several of the top contenders in the 1 3/8 miles stakes contested around three turns.
Get Smokin won this race last year and returns to defend his title. Trainer Mark Casse is using the same game plan as last year: prep Get Smokin in the Eclipse Stakes (G2) on the synthetic surface at Woodbine.
We’re not sure it will work again. Get Smokin, 8-1, has had a great career, earning over $2.1 million. However, the suspicion remains that at age 8, he has lost a step. The pacesetting gelding held on by a nose last year. That lost step will likely be costly this time around.
Limited Liability (4-1) also returns from last year’s U.N. where a poor break cost him good early position, and he ran fourth.
This will be his third start of the season, and he has been loudly knocking on victory’s door, losing by a neck in the McKnight Stakes (G3) at Gulfstream Park and by a head in the Elkhorn Stakes (G2) at Keeneland.
This looks like an ideal spot to kick that door open.
Redistricting (the slight 7-2 favorite) sports some snazzy speed figures and he owns a recent victory over the course in the Monmouth Stakes. Stamina for the distance is the concern here. The Monmouth Stakes was only 1 1/8 miles and Redistricting has yet to prove he can successfully go farther.
On the positive side, Chad Brown, his trainer, is one of the sport’s turf masters -- so you never know.
Corruption (8-1), Casse’s other runner here, will definitely benefit from the added distance, and the class relief, after finishing fourth in the Manhattan Stakes (G1) at Saratoga at 9 furlongs.
Post time for the U.N. Stakes is 5:09 p.m. ET.
1 Corruption (Javier Castellano, Mark Casse), 8-1
2 Tawny Port (Florent Geroux, Miguel Clement), 20-1
3 Redistricting (Flavien Prat, Chad Brown), 7-2
4 Limited Liability (Frankie Dettori, Shug McGaughey), 4-1
5 Grand Sonata (Irad Ortiz, Jr., Todd Pletcher), 6-1
6 Vote No (Samy Camacho, Kelsey Danner), 10-1
7 Rebel Red (Luis Saez, Cherie DeVaux), 9-2
8 Starting Over (Umberto Rispoli, Brittany Russell), 12-1
9 Major Dude (John Velazquez, Todd Pletcher), 15-1
10 Get Smokin (Fernando De La Cruz, Mark Casse), 8-1
11 Lord Eddard Stark (Edgard Zayas, Joe Orseno), 30-1
12 Hush of a Storm (TBD, Brad Cox), 20-1
Dorth Vader (4-1) looks for another stakes win in the $500,000 Molly Pitcher (G3) for fillies and mares.
The Odgen Phipps (G1) stakes at Saratoga remains a puzzle for most handicappers. Dorth Vader pulled off the upset in the slop at 8-1 while highly regarded Randomized (9-2) and Leslie’s Rose (12-1) struggled in the muck.
All three meet for a rematch here in the Molly Pitcher.
Did the wet track carry Dorth Vader to victory, or did she simply take advantage of a golden opportunity while her rivals floundered.
We’ll go with the premise that she was both lucky and good. Will her luck hold?
Perhaps, but let’s take a swing at a price with Majestic Oops (6-1). She has never been better, riding a three-race winning streak for trainer Dan Ward.
This is her home track for the summer, and she has already posted a local win in the Lady’s Secret Stakes.
This will be a class test for Majestic Oops, but she has earned the right to try with so many question marks surrounding her more heralded rivals
Journalism will be heavily favored later on the card in the $1 million Haskell. Just a Touch – at 3-5 on the morning line -- might give him a run for the lowest win price Saturday in Monmouth’s graded stakes.
Third last time out in the Metropolitan Handicap (G1) at Saratoga, Just a Touch has the perfect blend of early speed to control the pace or take a stalking position. That’s often the winning ticket at Monmouth.
On class and speed figures, Just a Touch should dominate against seven underwhelming rivals in the Monmouth Cup.
Classic Catch (5-2) looks like the main competition following a pair of solid but not winning allowance efforts.
Sacred Wish (5-2) looks to rebound in the $300,000 Matchmaker (G3) for fillies and mares on the turf. Things haven’t gone swimmingly for Sacred Wish since the Pegasus World Cup Filly & Mare (G2) back in January where she rallied to miss by only a neck.
It’s been two losses since then, including the Distaff Turf Mile (G2) at Churchill Downs where she hopped at the start, brushed the gate and ran seventh.
This is an ideal rebound spot for the Grade 1 winner of the Matriarch Stakes last December. She ran second in last year’s Matchmaker, so she already has a feel for this course.
Segesta (3-1) had traffic trouble turning for home in the Just a Game (G1), costing her position and momentum. This is a substantial class drop.
The writing team at US Racing is comprised of both full-time and part-time contributors with expertise in various aspects of the Sport of Kings.
