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Nyquist, Exaggerator to meet in Haskell Stakes at Monmouth Park
This year marks the 49th running of the betfair.com Haskell Invitational, and the race features Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist squaring off against Preakness winner Exaggerator in an unexpected showdown. Though there’s not a Triple Crown winner competing like American Pharoah did last year, the Nyquist-Exaggerator matchup makes for must-see racing. Derby third-place finisher Gun Runner also lines up in the million-dollar race.
There is a lot on the line for the six 3-year-olds who have entered Sunday’s race. Not only are they competing for the winner’s share of a $1-million purse but the winner also receives a berth in the Nov. 5 Breeders’ Cup Classic. Get the scoop on Nyquist, Exaggerator and the other Haskell contenders below.
The betfair.com Haskell Invitational is hosted by Monmouth Park and contested over a distance of 1 1/8 miles on the dirt. It is restricted to 3-year-olds and often attracts horses that competed in the Triple Crown races in the spring. Triple Crown winner American Pharoah won the race last year, giving his trainer Bob Baffert a record eighth Haskell victory.
Contenders
1. Nyquist (6-5 odds)
Jockey: Mario Gutierrez
Trainer: Doug O’Neill
Owner: Reddam Racing
Career record: 9 starts - 8 wins - 0 seconds - 1 third
Career earnings: $5,119,200
Earnings per start: $568,800
Pedigree: Uncle Mo – Seeking Gabrielle, by Forestry
Color: Bay
Running style: Stalker/pacesetter
Notable achievements and interesting facts: Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist was undefeated until he tired to finish third in the Preakness after setting a quick pace in the slop. He sat out the Belmont and makes his first start since the Preakness here. Nyquist has won five Grade 1 (highest level) races and was named champion 2-year-old last year.
2. Sunny Ridge (20-1)
Jockey: Nik Juarez
Trainer: Jason Servis
Owner: Dennis Drazin
Career record: 7 starts - 3 wins - 2 seconds - 0 thirds
Career earnings: $544,752
Earnings per start: $77,822
Pedigree: Holy Bull – Lignum Vitae, by Songandaprayer
Color: Bay
Running style: Stalker/closer
Notable achievements and interesting facts: If you had $40,000 on June 21, 2015, you could have claimed Sunny Ridge in his career debut. He won that race and has since won a pair of stakes, including the Grade 3 Withers Stakes on the Triple Crown trail, and finished second in two more graded stakes. The New Jersey-bred has strong ties to the state and his connections have long targeted this race, though Sunny Ridge enters off a nearly five-month layoff.
3. Awesome Slew (15-1)
Jockey: Paco Lopez
Trainer: Eddie Plesa Jr.
Owner: Live Oak Plantation
Career record: 4 starts - 2 wins - 0 seconds - 1 third
Career earnings: $65,820
Earnings per start: $16,455
Pedigree: Awesome Again – Slewfoundmoney, by Seeking the Gold
Color: Bay
Running style: Stalker
Notable achievements and interesting facts: Florida-bred Awesome Slew has made just four starts in his career and enters the Haskell off a third-place finish in the local prep for the race, the Pegasus Stakes. Monmouth Park-based trainer Eddie Plesa Jr. is looking for his first win in the track’s signature race.
4. Gun Runner (4-1)
Jockey: Florent Geroux
Trainer: Steve Asmussen
Owner: Winchell Thoroughbreds, Three Chimneys Farm and Besilu Stables
Career record: 7 starts - 5 wins - 0 seconds - 1 third
Career earnings: $1,168,300
Earnings per start: $166,900
Pedigree: Candy Ride – Quiet Giant, by Giant’s Causeway
Color: Chestnut
Running style: Stalker/pacesetter
Notable achievements and interesting facts: Gun Runner enters the Haskell off a win in the Matt Winn Stakes at Churchill Downs last month. He finished third in the Kentucky Derby behind Nyquist and has wins in the Louisiana Derby and Risen Star stakes to his credit. Trainer Steve Asmussen won this race in 2009 with filly Rachel Alexandra.
5. American Freedom (3-1)
Jockey: Rafael Bejarano
Trainer: Bob Baffert
Owner: Gar y and Mary West
Career record: 4 starts - 3 wins - 0 seconds - 0 thirds
Career earnings: $246,100
Earnings per start: $61,525
Pedigree: Pulpit – Gottcha Last, by Pleasant Tap
Color: Bay
Running style: Stalker/pacesetter
Notable achievements and interesting facts: Lightly raced American Freedom will be making his fifth start in less than four months in the Haskell after his career debut in April. He most recently won the Iowa Derby and also has a stakes win at Pimlico to his credit. Trainer Bob Baffert has won the Haskell five times in the last six years and eight times overall, including the 2015 edition with Triple Crown winner American Pharoah.
6. Exaggerator (5-2)
Jockey: Kent Desormeaux
Trainer: Keith Desormeaux
Owner: Big Chief Racing, Head of Plains Partners, Rocker O Ranch, et al.
Career record: 12 starts - 5 wins - 3 seconds - 1 third
Career earnings: $2,971,120
Earnings per start: $247,593
Pedigree: Curlin – Dawn Raid, by Vindication
Color: Dark bay or brown
Running style: Closer
Notable achievements and interesting facts: Exaggerator finished a fast-closing second in the Kentucky Derby and won the Preakness before being eased in the Belmont Stakes. He is stabled at Saratoga and plans originally called for him to run in the Jim Dandy there one day prior to the Travers before a surprise Haskell announcement on July 27. Exaggerator is trained and ridden by brothers Keith and Kent Desormeaux, respectively.
