Haskell Invitational boasts the Preakness and Belmont Winners

Weekend Stakes Races: Grade I Diana at Saratoga and Grade I Haskell Invitational at Monmouth

Race-days: Diana on 8/1/2009 and Haskell on 8/2/2009

Race-times: Diana at 5:14 pm est. and Haskell at 6:15 pm est.

Both the winner of the 2009 Preakness Stakes, Rachel Alexandra, and the winner of the 2009 Belmont Stakes, Summer Bird, will enter the gate for this Sunday’s Grade I Haskell Invitational.

A day before, on Saturday, some of the best female horses in the United States will take the track at Saratoga for the Grade I Diana.
Both the Haskell and Diana make up this weekend’s best stakes action.

Let’s take a look at both races.

Saratoga – Race 9

Grade I Diana Stakes

$500,000

For Fillies and Mares Three Years Old and Upward

1 1/8 miles on turf

It’s going to be tough to beat Forever Together in this race, but I’m going to give it a shot with the front running Quiet Meadow. The Chad Brown trained miss should get an easy lead as she is much faster early than the other front runner in here, Criticism, and Saratoga’s turf course has been favoring speed. She can get the lead and pull of a major upset. Forever Together is just too good to keep out of the top two even though her odds are going to be very, very short for this. The eight time winner can close from the clouds or sit three to four lengths off. Caribbean Sunset showed an incredible turn of foot in her last and might be rounding into top form for trainer Christophe Clement. She can be close to the pace if need be but her style is to make a huge run.

1. Quiet Meadow
2. Forever Together
3. Caribbean Sunset

Monmouth – Race 13
Grade I Haskell Invitational
$1,250,000
For Three Year Olds

Monmouth’s signature summer race will be run this Sunday and look who has shown up? Both Rachel Alexandra and Summer Bird will enter the gate for this prestigious Grade I. I actually won’t pick either Triple Crown race winner and instead put the Todd Pletcher trained Munnings on top. Munnings has never gone this far, but he likes to run up front and should be on his toes after sprinting brilliantly in his last two. He’s deserving of a win wager. For second, Summer Bird is the choice. The Belmont winner showed signs of brilliance in the Arkansas Derby. It all came together in the Belmont. He should be even better in this. Rachel Alexandra should be good enough for third, but my hope is that she fails completely because I’m looking for the home run. I’m going to throw Atomic Rain into the mix. The son of Smart Strike was recently purchased by Godolphin and should be much, much better in this than he ever has been before

1. Munnings
2. Summer Bird
3. Atomic Rain