Saratoga’s final mega-card of the summer takes place Saturday, highlighted by the running of the $750,000 Woodward Stakes, which has attracted a competitive field of nine. Four of the nine starters are returning from the Whitney, held over this track on Aug. 3. Tops among them are second-place finisher Yoshida (5/2), who seeks a return to the winner’s circle for Bill Mott.
The other three exiting the Whitney are Vino Rosso (3rd, 7/2), Preservationist (4th, 4/1) and Forewarned (5th, 30/1). Stepping up the class ladder from their 1-2 finish in the restricted Alydar Stakes over this track on Aug. 2 is Tom’s D’Tat (4/1) and Wooderson (12/1). Both are seeking their first graded stakes victory.
Bal Harbour (15/1), Mongolian Groom (15/1), and recent restricted stakes winner Mr. Buff (8/1) round out the field for the 11th and featured Woodward, which goes to post at approximately 3pm, Pacific Time.
Fans of turf racing and not getting stuck with “All” on a Pick 5 ticket will be happy to know that half of Saratoga’s 12-race card on Saturday consists of turf races, and the forecast calls for partly sunny skies and only a 10% chance of rain.
The undercard also features three graded stakes worth a combined $700,000. The Late Pick 5, which raked in over $1.4 million in wagers on the Travers program, takes place over races 8-12. It’s also time to start keeping an eye on the Empire 6, whose jackpot stands at $475,827 heading into the weekend.
If there are no single ticket winners by Sunday, the Empire 6 Jackpot will be paid out on Monday, Sept. 2. Monday’s closing-day program will feature the running of the $350,000 Hopeful Stakes (G1) for the best two-year-olds on the grounds.
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