2024 Saratoga summer meet to offer 71 stakes worth $20.75 million

by Pat McKenna

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) today announced the stakes schedule for the 2024 summer meet at Saratoga Race Course, which runs from Thursday, July 11 through Monday, September 2.

Highlighted by the 155th renewal of the Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers on August 24 and the Grade 1, $1 million Whitney on August 3, the 40-day meet features 19 Grade 1 races as part of 71 stakes worth $20.75 million in total purses.

Following the four-day opening week, racing will be conducted five days a week, Wednesdays through Sundays, apart from closing week, when the 2024 summer meet will conclude on Labor Day.

Saratoga Live, the acclaimed television show produced by NYRA in partnership with FOX Sports, will return for its 9th season to provide expansive on-site daily coverage of the summer meet to a nationwide audience on the networks of FOX Sports.

The meet’s stakes action kicks off on the July 11 Opening Day card with the Listed $175,000 Schuylerville at six furlongs for juvenile fillies. The action continues Friday, July 12, with two stakes for sophomore fillies in the Listed $150,000 Coronation Cup at 5 1/2 furlongs on turf and the restricted $135,000 Wilton at one-mile on dirt ahead of the meet’s first Grade 1 contest on Saturday, July 13, the $500,000 Diana for older fillies and mares going nine-furlongs on the turf. The July 13 card will be supported by an additional pair of $175,000 Grade 3s in the Sanford for juveniles sprinting six furlongs and the Kelso at one-mile on turf for older horses.

The Grade 3, $175,000 Quick Call presented by Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation, a sophomore turf sprint, closes out Opening Weekend on Sunday, July 14.

The following Saturday, July 20, will feature the Grade 1, $500,000 Coaching Club American Oaks at nine furlongs on the main track as sophomore fillies take center stage, headlining a card that also offers the Grade 3, $175,000 Lake George for sophomore fillies traveling one-mile on the grass.

Week 3 kicks off on Wednesday, July 24 with the Grade 2, $200,000 Honorable Miss Handicap at six furlongs for fillies and mares, one day before the Grade 3, $200,000 Caress for fillies and mares sprinting 5 1/2 furlongs on the turf. The Grade 2, $200,000 Amsterdam for 3-year-olds at 6 1/2 furlongs follows on Friday, July 26 ahead of a strong card slated for Saturday, July 27 that features the Grade 1, $350,000 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap at six-furlongs for 3-year-olds and up and the Grade 2, $500,000 Jim Dandy at nine-furlongs for sophomores. Closing out Jim Dandy weekend on July 28 is the Grade 2, $250,000 Bowling Green at 1 3/8 miles on the turf for older horses.

The Listed $135,000 De La Rose, a restricted event for older filly and mare turf milers, is slated for Wednesday, July 31, as part of Whitney Week leading into the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Sale on August 5-6 and the Fasig-Tipton New York-bred Yearling Sale on August 12-13.

The Grade 2, $250,000 Glens Falls for older filly and mare turf marathoners is set for Thursday, August 1, before Whitney Weekend kicks off on Friday, August 2, with the Grade 2, $500,000 National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame for sophomore turf milers and the Grade 2, $400,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Oaks Invitational at 1 3/16-miles on turf for sophomore fillies, which has been elevated from Grade 3 status last year.

Whitney Day on Saturday, August 3, features a trio of Grade 1 events, led by the $1 million Whitney at 1 1/8 miles for older horses, offering an automatic berth to the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Classic on November 2 at Del Mar.

Completing the Grade 1s on Whitney Day will be the seven-furlong $500,000 Test presented by Ticketmaster for sophomore fillies and the $600,000 Saratoga Derby Invitational, at 1 3/16-miles on turf for sophomores. Whitney Day will also include the Grade 2, $300,000 Troy for older turf sprinters, which has been elevated from Grade 3 status last year, and the Listed $135,000 Fasig-Tipton Lure, a restricted event at 1 1/16-miles on turf for older horses.

Whitney weekend concludes on Sunday, August 4, with the Grade 3, $200,000 Adirondack at 6 1/2-furlongs for juvenile fillies and the Listed $150,000 Birdstone for older marathoners traveling 1 3/4 miles.

The 155th running of the Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers, the historic 10-furlong test for sophomores, headlines a lucrative card slated for Saturday, August 24. The marquee day of racing will feature four additional Grade 1 contests in the $750,000 Resorts World Casino Sword Dancer, a 1 1/2-mile turf route for 3-year-olds and up that offers a “Win and You’re In” berth to the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Turf; the $500,000 Ballerina Handicap, a seven-furlong sprint for fillies and mares awarding a “Win and You’re In” berth to the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint; the $500,000 Forego at seven furlongs for older horses; and the $500,000 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial for sophomores sprinting seven furlongs.

Travers week kicks off on Wednesday, August 21 with the Listed $135,000 John’s Call, a restricted event for older turf marathoners and continues on Thursday, August 22, with the Grade 2, $300,000 Ballston Spa at 1 1/16-miles for older turf fillies and mares. The Friday, August 23 card will offer the Grade 1, $500,000 Personal Ensign at nine-furlongs for older fillies and mares along with the Listed $150,000 Smart N Fancy for older filly and mare turf sprinters.

New York-breds will take center stage on Sunday, August 25, for New York Showcase Day, featuring six stakes for state-breds worth a combined $1.25 million.

The card is headlined by the $250,000 Albany, a nine-furlong test for sophomores. Also featured are five $200,000 stakes in the Fleet Indian for sophomore fillies; the West Point Handicap presented by Trustco Bank for 3-year-olds and up on turf; and the Yaddo Handicap for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up on turf. Also featured are a pair of six-furlong sprints for juveniles in the Funny Cide presented by Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital and the Seeking the Ante for fillies.

New York-breds will also be highlighted at the Spa with four handicaps each boasting a purse of $125,000, including the Johnstone Mile [August 7] for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up; the John Morrissey [August 8] at six furlongs for 3-year-olds and up; the Evan Shipman [August 9] at one-mile for 3-year-olds and up; and the six-furlong Union Avenue [August 9] for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up.

Among the other Grade 1 races at the Spa will be the $150,000 A.P. Smithwick Memorial on July 17 which will be contested at an increased distance of 2 3/8-miles, and the $150,000 Jonathan Sheppard Memorial at the same distance on August 14 for steeplechasers; the $600,000 Alabama on Saturday, August 17; and the $500,000 Fourstardave Handicap, a Breeders' Cup “Win and You’re In” qualifier for the Mile, on Saturday, August 10, to be held on the same card as the Grade 2, $200,000 Saratoga Special and the Listed $150,000 Galway.

Closing Weekend of the Saratoga meet will feature a pair of Breeders’ Cup “Win and You’re In” events in the Grade 2, $500,000 Flower Bowl [Filly and Mare Turf] for older fillies and mares traveling 1 3/8 over the turf on Saturday, August 31; and the Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup [Classic] at 10 furlongs for 3-year-olds and up on Sunday, September 1.

The August 31 card also includes the Grade 1, $300,000 Spinaway for juvenile fillies, part of the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Dozen series, as well as the Grade 3, $200,000 Prioress for sophomore filly sprinters. The September 1 card will be supported by the Listed $150,000 Bernard Baruch at 1 1/16 miles on turf for older horses.

Closing Day on Monday, September 2, will feature the Listed $150,000 Harvey Pack for older turf sprinters and the prestigious Grade 1, $300,000 Hopeful for 2-year-olds going seven furlongs to conclude the 2024 Saratoga meeting.

The complete stakes schedule for the 2024 summer meet is available at https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/stakes-schedu....