The Travers (Grade 1)- $1,250.00 Purse
SAR- For Three Year Olds
One Mile and One Quarter on the Dirt
August 29, 2026

For years, the Travers has been one of the biggest races of the year, attracting the best three year olds in virtual racing to SAR for a large purse. That will continue this year, but you have to wonder if this will be the last year that the Travers runs as we know it now. That’s not meant to be a negative, but the big news in racing earlier this month about the creation of the Thoroughbred Championship Series changes the landscape of the triple crown pursuit. Presumably, the importance of the PRK will be much less with this new arrangement of bringing together six races for a large championship prize. The Travers will be the fifth of six races, so not only will it see its importance grow to even new heights, being the race that comes right before the eventual championship will make it a “can’t miss” event. Now, before we get ahead of ourselves, as we all know that’s all going on in the real world, and no one knows how it will play out in our racing world. Understandably, it is something the game has to do their due diligence with, and we will see how it all plays out. For this year’s race, we have a field of ten and all of the top names that you would expect to see are going to be here, giving it the potential to be an amazing race. The Travers was won last year by Extreme Jet, the KYD and BEL winner from that year. Mb Stables earned his fourth straight win in this race, and his sixth out of eight. It will be a tough pursuit to end that streak, but anyone who does will certainly go wild at the end!

1- Gogh Wild (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by T Gaffalione)- It was five months ago when Gogh Wild truly burst onto the scene, scoring a win in a dead heat in the FL Derby. Without that, he would have never have been able to make history. A month later came an impressive, wire to wire, victory in the KYD, etching his name among some of the greats of the game and two weeks later, he’d win the PRK as well. This left all of us wondering if this would be the year that we would finally have our TC winner, and it could happen right here at the Spa. He would have a solid race, but it would not quite be good enough for a win, as he settled for third. Still, his summer was one for the ages for us all. Quantum Pursuit got him again in the Haskell, and perhaps there is a rivalry developing between these two now and they’ll go at it again, with Gogh Wild more than capable of getting the upper hand on him and the rest of these.

2- Decima Tech (The Sidley Stud, ridden by P Lopez)- Seeing The Sidley Stud’s entry had me double checking for another horse he owns, but he is taking a different path with Bold Intruder right now. Enter Decima Tech, a gelding that picked up a win in what will also be one of those Thoroughbred Championship Series races next year in the real world: the Grade 2 Dandy, right here at the Spa. He was not able to get into the KYD, but he did pick up a nice victory in what I’ll always consider a consolation race for those not making it: the Grade 3 Peter Pan at AQU. While he’s been in some great races, he hasn’t faced as much as the elite at one time as he will here as even when he ran in the Dandy, many of these chose the Haskell. Having said that, I believe he will step up and show he can run with them.

3- Hurts (Royalty Stables, ridden by J L Ortiz)- Last year at this time, Hurts picked up a big win here in the Grade 1 Hopeful, which was a part of the three victories that he earned here at SAR. He remained strong after he left, getting two more wins as a two year old, but not in the BC Juvenile, where he ran third. This made him one of the biggest names to watch at the start of the year, and after winning the Fountain Of Youth and the AR Derby, he was established as the post time favorite for the KYD. In that, he showed he was strong, but like the BC, settled for third, and he would run in the same spot in the Haskell last time out as well. He has done plenty to make his trainer proud to this point, but we’re always hoping for more and more, and a win in the Travers would go a long way in that, and it would also show that he can beat Gogh Wild and Quantum Pursuit.

4- People Batty (Night Rider Stables, ridden by D Davis)– Our first three horses have all picked up big wins at some point against their peers here as three year olds, but we also have a group of horses that have the potential to do that for the first time. People Batty would fit into that category, as he his winless as a three year old. His two year old campaign didn’t show much early, but he would respond well to a geld and go on to win the Grade 2 LA Futurity in mid-December. He’s had some positive moments this year, and can hang with the best horses here, as he did run fifth in the KYD. After the PRK, Night Rider Stables took a different path with People Batty, running him in the OH and WV Derby and while he did disappoint at TDN, he nearly won the WV Derby, settling for second after losing the headbob at the wire. Don’t get me wrong, the WV Derby is a nice race with a nice purse, but no one else here was a part of it, as most chose the Dandy or Haskell. The potential is there with this one, but other horses seem to be better alternatives.

5- Weaponize (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by F Pennington)- Weaponize looks like he might have a tough time in the Travers, as he has not done much at all in three of his last four races. The trainer has not backed down from placing him against the best, but he was beaten by a combined ten lengths in the BEL and the Haskell, and by four more in the SA Derby. Want to support a likely longshot? Look at the PRK and believe that happens again. That’s the one race where he was strong, finishing third an running within a length of Gogh Wild. So, that talent is there with this one, but he has not unleashed it regularly. Until that happens, it’s understandable why he keeps getting chances in races like this as long as the trainer is content with the risk/reward element in paying all those nomination fees.

6- Quantum Pursuit (Mb Stables, ridden by J R Velazquez)- No matter what he does for the rest of his career, Quantum Pursuit will always be considered a spoiler. Here in June, the anticipation for a TC was high as Gogh Wild looked to do what many feel is impossible, but that would not be how the BEL played out. Prior to that fateful day here in June, Quantum Pursuit was just beginning to hit his best stride. He did not have much of a two year old season, and broke his maiden in January. Then came a streak of three straight top two finishes in preps, including second in the BG Stakes. In the KYD, he got left behind early, something that does not typically happen to him, and it never worked out. After resting up on PRK day, he was his normal self out of the gate, breaking well in the BEL and thwarting Gogh Wild’s TC plans. A month later, it was a wire to wire victory in the Haskell for good measure. Poised to have a great race here, as I do read something into the fact that Mb is only sending one to this race as showing his confidence in Quantum Pursuit to continue the roll he is on.

7- Cherokee Monster (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by M Franco)- The rest of the starting gate could seem to not be as impressive, but they’ve had their moments as well. For Cherokee Monster, he followed up a good looking juvenile campaign by looking solid in preps. He spent a lot of his time at OP, hitting the board in three out of four races there. His top performance in that stretch was in April at the AR Derby, where only Hurts was better than him, but he also beat some pretty good horses such as People Batty and eventual Kings Plate winner, Open Invitation. In June, he came from off the pace to win the OH Derby, then would cash a fourth place check in the Haskell. He won’t attract as much interest as his stablemate, but if you’re looking for a winner from posts 7-10, he’s the best bet.

8- Knowing Spirit (Ajm Stables, ridden by A R Rodriguez)- This Kamikaze colt was purchased by the trainer for $185.00 in March, and it was at that time where he started to get greater opportunities. Three weeks after the sale, he was entered into the Grade 3 Ruby Stakes at TP in what would be his graded debut. Impressively, he was not intimidated by the strength of the field, and would score the win, albeit in a dead heat, to punch his ticket to the KYD. The late runner proved that the Ruby Stakes was not a fluke, with another strong late run that resulted in a sixth place finish. That would be the last time we saw him in a TC race, but six weeks later he was taking on Cherokee Monster in the OH Derby, running second to that rival in a photo finish. Now, if that’s where his past performances ended, I am feeling better about him and calling him a wild card in this field. I just don’t like how he ran in the Haskell, with a flat looking effort and being beaten by four lengths. In particular, looking at the race line between him and fellow closer Cherokee Monster, the latter was two lengths better from a mile onward. Could that be a throw out? Absolutely, it can be! And, feel free to bet accordingly especially if his odds climb up there.

9- Big Dog (John Henry, ridden by S X Bridgmohan)- He’s not the big dog in this division yet, as he is just beginning to become a force in this division. Big Dog has made just six starts in his career, but has been able to win half of them while hitting the board five times. In March, he broke his maiden at TAM, then remained there to win at an allowance at the track as well. It would be after that where he got his first stake opportunity, the $125.000 Pegasus Stakes in mid-June, and he ran second. A month later, he got a nice looking win, in wire to wire fashion, at the Grade 3 IND Derby, and while there is no one else in this field that also ran there, several of them took part in at least one TC race. However, they were the ones that finished in the bottom half of those fields, though it has certainly earned him this chance to show what he can do against the better TC runners.

10- Resurgent (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by E J Wilson)- Began racing in ungraded races in December with a flat effort in the $100.00 Gun Runner, but that would not stop him from running at that level for a while. Ultimately, he began to look better and better, and he eventually got that stake win in March, coming at the Big A for the $135.00 Gander. After that, he began to run for higher purses, but never actually went onto the KYD prep trail unless you want to consider the Gun Runner part of that. In June, a win in the Grade 3 Marine Stakes at WO prompted the trainer to try the Grade 2 Dandy with him. Resurgent would be up for the challenge, finishing third, two lengths behind the winning Decima Tech. He always seems to run competitively wherever he goes, and has also been stretching out his distance without much issue. He’s the more reliable of the two D J C runners here.

Prediction: 6-1-2-3

— NS

Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES