So far, Studlydoright has done no wrong in the first two races of his career – a 1 ½-length win at 4 ½ furlongs at Laurel on May 5 and a 1 ¾-length victory in the 5 ½-furlong Tremont Stakes at Saratoga Race Course on June 6.
On Saturday, the Maryland-bred son of Nyquist goes for three in a row against seven rivals in the 6-furlong, $175,000 Sanford Stakes (G3) for 2-year-olds at Saratoga.
Studlydoright. NYRA Photo
Studlydoright seeks a second straight stakes win in the Sanford
“I was tickled to death with the way he ran and the way he finished,’’ trainer Jerry Robb said of the Tremont, a race in which the colt stumbled at the start and overcame an 11-length deficit. “I’m looking forward to going a little bit farther with him. I think the more distance, the better.”
Studlydoright is listed as the 7-2 second choice behind Todd Pletcher-trained Mentee at 6-5. Mentee won at 5 furlongs on June 15 at Aqueduct in his career debut.
John Velazquez has the call on Mentee, a full brother to Fierceness, the 2023 champion 2-year-old colt. In his debut, Mentee led by 5 lengths but was nearly caught by Colloquial before holding to win by a head.
“We were very pleased with the effort,” Pletcher. “I think he got a little bit idle on his own but was able to get the job done in a very fast time. I think the horse that was second is a high-quality horse as well, so I was pleased with his debut and very happy with the way he’s trained since then.”
Mentee leaves from the rail.
“You never prefer the one-hole, but so far he’s been a very good gate horse in the mornings and showed good speed in his debut,” Pletcher said. “Hopefully, he’s able to get away cleanly.”
Mo Plex posted a 10-length victory in his career debut at 5 ½ furlongs against fellow-New York breds on June 20 at Aqueduct. He’s listed at 6-1 and will be ridden by Irad Ortiz, Jr.
The Sanford is race 11 on the card (post time 6:17 p.m. ET) that includes a pair of turf stakes, the $175,000 Kelso (G3) at 1 mile, and the featured $500,000 Diana (G1) at 1 1/8 miles.
For those who bet horse racing …
The picks: 1 Mentee 2 Studlydoright 3 War Tax
The field for the $175,000 Sanford Stakes (G3), from the rail out, with jockey, trainer, odds:
1 Mentee (John Velazquez, Todd Pletcher), 6-5
2 Mr. Squeaky Wheels (Jose Ortiz, Kevin Rice), 15-1
3 Baby Dukes (Jose Lezcano, Butch Reid, Jr.), 12-1
4 Soontobeking (Eric Cancel, George Weaver), 20-1
5 Three Echoes (Flavien Prat, Steve Asmussen), 4-1
6 Studlydoright (Xavier Perez, John Robb), 7-2
7 War Tax (Javier Castellano, Carlos Martin), 15-1
8 Mo Plex (Irad Ortiz, Jr., Jeremiah Englehart), 6-1