The Grade 1, 1 1/8-mile, $1 million Haskell Stakes drew a field of eight 3-year-olds led by Dornoch and Mindframe, the top two finishers in the Belmont Stakes.
The field has six stakes winners, including three Grade 1 winners and another one who placed in a Grade 1. There are three millionaires and three who ran in one of the Triple Crown races, with two who appeared in the Kentucky Derby.
The Haskell is a win-and-you’re-in qualifier for the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic, with the winner receiving an all-expenses paid trip to the Nov. 2 event at Del Mar and a guaranteed berth in the starting gate.
Here is a full-field analysis for the Haskell Stakes with the official track morning-line odds. Monmouth Park’s signature race is scheduled as race 12 of 14 with post time set for 5:45 p.m. EDT.
1. Dornoch, 5-2. Good Magic – Danny Gargan / Luis Saez– 8: 4-2-0 – $1,752,275. Dornoch returns from his Belmont Stakes victory to compete for the division championship for the 3-year-olds. He began his 2024 campaign with a win in the Fountain of Youth (G2) as a heavy favorite. Then Dornoch was fourth in the Blue Grass (G1) and 10th in the Kentucky Derby. After those two races he was ignored in the Belmont and then won it at 17-1 when he raced as part of the early pace. Win contender.
2. Jasper’s Pride, 30-1. Il Postino – Chuck Spina / Jomar Torres – 6: 2-0-2 – $94,639. Jasper’s Pride is one of the two New Jersey-breds in the Haskell field. All six of his races were against state-breds at Monmouth. He ran three times last year, with his best finish being a third in his debut. After the winter off, he got his maiden victory at odds of 17-1 in May. Jasper’s Pride came back a month later to win a first-level allowance for Jersey-breds. In his most recent start, he finished third in his next allowance. Toss.
3. Tuscan Sky, 9-2. Vino Rosso – Todd Pletcher / Javier Castellano – 4: 3-0-0 – $190,500. Tuscan Sky is one of three horses entered in the Haskell by Todd Pletcher. He debuted in January at Aqueduct, winning a six-furlong maiden special weight. The following month he added an allowance victory by two lengths. In the Wood Memorial (G2), Tuscan Sky ran into trouble, never threatened and finished seventh. The blinkers went on in his fourth start, when he won the Pegasus at Monmouth by almost seven lengths to earn a free entry into the Haskell. Pletcher has won this race three times. Win contender.
4. Timberlake, 8-1. Into Mischief – Brad Cox / Flavien Prat – 7: 3-1-0 – $1,173,100. Timberlake went from his maiden victory at Ellis Park to run second in the Hopeful (G1) and then won the Champagne (G1). He ended his 2-year-old campaign with a fourth-place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. On the road to the Kentucky Derby, Timberlake won the Rebel (G2) and was fourth in the Arkansas Derby (G1). He returns from a four-month layoff and has been training at Churchill. Trainer Brad Cox won the Haskell in 2021 and 2022. Win contender.
5. Fierceness, 5-2. City of Light – Todd Pletcher / John Velazquez – 6: 3-0-1 – $1,703,850. Fierceness will make his first start since finishing 15th in the Kentucky Derby. Fierceness was the champion of the 2-year-old division based on his pair of open-length victories in his debut at Saratoga and then in the Breeders Cup Juvenile. He picked up the label of a horse who disappoints when he faces adversity after finishing third in the Holy Bull (G3) as a .20-1 favorite and fading to 15th in the Kentucky Derby as the top betting choice. In his final prep race for the run for the roses, he won the Florida Derby (G1) by more than 13 lengths. Pletcher likes the way Fierceness has been training at Saratoga. Win contender.
6. Just Step On It, 30-1. Accelerate – Louis Linder Jr. / Florent Geroux – 9: 3-2-0 – $121,150. Just Step On It was a $25,000 supplemental nomination to the Haskell. This New York-bred began his career last year running second in a pair of maiden claimers at Del Mar. He was claimed for $32,000 by one of his current owners in Bran Jam Stable and sent east. The son of Accelerate ran a few weeks later for the new barn in a maiden special weight at Parx Racing. He won his next two starts, getting his first win at Aqueduct and then an allowance back at Parx. Last month Just Step On It won a second Parx allowance with a front-end effort going a mile. Toss.
7. Mindframe, 9-5. Constitution – Todd Pletcher / Irad Ortiz Jr. – 3: 2-1-0 – $447,360. Mindframe is a lightly raced Maryland-bred son of Constitution who sold for $600,000 as a yearling. He began his career in March with an almost 14-length victory at Gulfstream Park going seven furlongs. His second start in an allowance at Churchill Downs was equally impressive. Mindframe then was asked to make a huge step up in class in the Belmont Stakes. His inexperience showed when he got the lead in the Belmont Stakes but shied out at the eighth pole to finish second behind Dornoch. Top choice.
8. Sea Streak, 20-1. Sea Wizard – Eddie Owens Jr. / Jairo Rendon – 8: 2-3-1 – $204,110. Sea Streak is a New Jersey-bred who has raced exclusively against open company. He began his career as a 2-year-old in a stakes race at Monmouth and finished second behind Book’em Danno, who is now a Grade 1 winner. Sea Streak had an easy maiden victory at Aqueduct and headed to Florida to run second in an allowance and third in the Mucho Macho Man. On the Kentucky Derby trail, he was seventh in the Holy Bull (G3). Sea Streak returned to Monmouth to win the Long Branch by more than seven lengths but then was fifth in the Pegasus. Toss.
Summary: There are questions that remain about the final make-up of the Haskell field, particularly whether Fierceness will run at Monmouth on Saturday or wait to go in the Jim Dandy (G2) at Saratoga next weekend.
That means at this point the field on Saturday will have four or five legitimate win contenders in Dornoch, Tuscan Sky, Timberlake, Fierceness and Mindframe.
Timberlake offers the best odds at 8-1 on the morning line, but he is coming back from a nearly four-month layoff. Mindframe is the 9-5 favorite and gained valuable experience in his second-place finish in the Belmont.
Mindframe is still the horse who has room to improve. His performance in the Belmont after only two races reinforced that he is a talented 3-year-old. The son of Constitution will have a clear run breaking from the outside and will be the top choice.
