Saratoga Season Wraps Up On a High

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – In a summer like no other at Saratoga Race Course –words that are appropriate most every year–which concluded Monday, there was noteworthy change that blended nicely into the tradition that make America's most important race meet so popular.

To wit:

• A year ago, the main story of the meet, was the number of catastrophic injuries – 14 – which horses suffered in training and competition. With even more strict safety measures in place, there was single racing fatality and one in training during the meeting.

• Though it technically was not part of the Saratoga season, the Belmont Stakes at Saratoga Festival, June 6-9, held upstate for the first time due to the reconstruction of Belmont Park, kicked off racing at the earliest date in the oh-so long history of the sport in the city. The New York Racing Association returned to Aqueduct for a month before the summer meet launch on July 11.

• A second Belmont Stakes at Saratoga Festival will take place next June and if NYRA receives approval from its board and the state, it may conclude its Belmont-at-Aqueduct meet at Saratoga on the Fourth of July weekend.

• Despite the loss of a full program on Aug. 9 that was cancelled because of heavy rain from Tropical Storm Debby, and all four grass races on the Aug. 3 Whitney Day program, the second-biggest day of the season, NYRA's attendance and handle were a near match to the 2023 totals. The handle of $803,806,964 was up nearly one percent from last year's $799,229,288. Total paid attendance surpassed 1 million again, but was down a small fraction from 2023.

• During the rainy 2023 season, NYRA moved 65 races off the turf. This year, 44 were moved.

• With a remarkable performance, trainer Chad Brown won his fourth-straight title and seventh overall. His 45 wins doubled the runners-up, Mike Maker and Todd Pletcher and was one short of the record he set in 2018.

• Irad Ortiz, Jr. captured his third-consecutive riding title and sixth overall with 52 victories.

• Klaravich Stables, one of Brown's principal clients, retained is owner's title with 18 wins from 61 starts.

• Saratoga's marquee race, the $1.25 million Travers Stakes on Aug. 24, more than lived up to lofty expectations. In a dramatic finish, Fierceness (City of Light) held off the filly star Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) in what turned into a showdown of the leaders of the 3-year-old divisions.

• Jockey Flavien Prat smashed the meet record for stakes victories with 18 and finished second to Ortiz, Jr. with 45 wins. The previous stakes record of 15 was shared by Joel Rosario, Ortiz, Jr. and John Velazquez. Forty percent of Prat's wins were in stakes.

• Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, who had a frustrating season, received a gift on his 89th birthday on Monday's card with a victory in the first race. It was his 266th Saratoga victory, fifth all-time.

NYRA president David O'Rourke said that the combination of the calendar and staging of the Belmont Stakes appeared to have some impact on the way the way the season unfolded in its opening weeks

“It's a unique year with the Belmont being here,” he said. “It's one of the early Labor Day years, and next year will be even more so. So we had a little bit more in July. Could there have been a little bit of a demand pull forward from Belmont? Yeah, probably.”

Still, the stats were strong and grew as the season progressed.

“When I was looking at the attendance numbers, and I probably heard it more than the reality of what the data says, we weren't really off that much. It seemed like the weekends were possibly even a little stronger.

Across Union Ave. from the main gate, King's Tavern co-owner Jason Fitch said he noticed a Belmont Stakes-related change of atmosphere.

“It was definitely a different feel this year,” Fitch said. “I not saying that the Belmont stole the thunder, but our opening weekend usually feels like a celebration. Everyone is excited. There's a buzz around town, but talking to a lot of locals, and our staff, that quote, unquote buzz, wasn't really as powerful as it usually is for opening weekend. I don't think we really felt the excitement until it was probably Whitney weekend, two or three weeks in.”

That said, Fitch noted business at King's and the City Tavern, which he co-owns with his brothers, was strong throughout the summer.

O'Rourke said moving some of the Belmont Park events upstate is a novelty that is temporary and definitely not a long-term plan.

“Scarcity is really something that drives demand and interest,” he said. “We need to leverage Saratoga for the Belmont specifically, while we rebuild the Belmont plant. I think what we're doing now in terms of vibe, Saratoga is a great vibe. It was hot in the beginning, it rained in the middle, and it's been beautiful for the last few weeks. I think the racing has been excellent. The Travers was one of the cooler ones that I've experienced.”

Saratoga's safety turnaround from one season to the next is dramatic. The one racing fatality occurred on the grass in the GIII Saranac Stakes on Aug. 30. According to NYRA stats, 2,879 horses had competed in 369 races at Saratoga before The Big Torpedo was injured.

“That's a credit to Dr. Sarah and her staff. I think is evidenced by industry-wide numbers, racing is moving in the right direction. The results are in the stats.”

Sarah Hinchliffe is the Director of the NYRA Veterinary Dept., which is staffed by 10 veterinarians and two veterinary technicians.

“Safety is something that every stakeholder in the game has leaned into,” O'Rourke said. “We'll get asked about the tracks all the time, but it's the vets and most importantly, the trainers, who care for the horses. Everyone's leaned in, everyone's on board, and we're seeing positive things.”

As part of its safety program, NYRA took races off the grass early in the season, which helped preserve the courses for heavy use in the last couple of weeks. Rather than move some grass stakes to the dirt due to rain it postponed them a week.

Brown grew up in nearby Mechanicville and developed his interest in racing during family visits to the track. He won with his very first Saratoga starter, Star Player (Tale of the Cat) in the first race on the opening day of the 2008 season. He won his first meet title in 2016.

This summer, Brown won six Grade I stakes – Diana, Fourstardave, H. Allen Jerkens Memorial, Personal Ensign, Test and Hopeful – and a total of 13 graded stakes.

“It's definitely the best meet we've ever had,” Brown said. “When it's all said and done, there may be a meet or two that we've won a couple more races, but we've never had a meet with this many important wins. Just the quality of races, the diversity of the races, just so many big races.

“I honestly didn't see it coming. I thought we'd have a solid meet, but not really a meet for the ages, which this was. For me, or any stable, it would be hard to the top a meet with this much quality, this many quality wins at the top end.”

Brown credited his team and had his assistants hold the championship trophy at the presentation following the fifth race.

Prat had a Saratoga season to remember with this record for stakes. He won seven Grade I races, five of them for Brown.

Thorpedo Anna was a very big story at the meet. Despite a poor start she easily won the GI Coaching Club American Oaks. Rather than run the three-time Grade I winner back in the GI Alabama against fillies, trainer and co-owner Kenny McPeek decided to try her against males in the Travers. She and Fierceness put on quite a show and McPeek said she came out of the race fine.

“She's freaking amazing,” he said. “She shines like a new penny. She's eaten up every night.”

McPeek said that Thorpedo Anna will stay in Saratoga to prepare for the GI Cotillion at Parx on Sept. 21 and probably will return to Saratoga afterward to get ready for the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff.

Fierceness entered the meet as a big question mark for Pletcher and Repole Stable. He won the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile and was the 2-year-old champion last year. His victory in the GI Florida made him the favorite for the GI Kentucky Derby. He ended up 15th, beaten two-dozen lengths. Pletcher decided not to run him in the GI Belmont Stakes and brought him back on July 27 in the GI Jim Dandy, which he won by a length. Pletcher scuttled his original plan to skip the Travers and Fierceness jumped back into contention for another title with his win by a head.

“Anytime you fortunate enough to win the Travers,” Pletcher said, “it's a good Saratoga.”