Following his victory in Saturday’s $1 million, Grade 1 NYRA Bets Haskell Stakes, Dornoch walked off the van early this morning and into Danny Gargan’s barn at Saratoga. The trainer was still walking on air.

“We’re very happy. He came out of the race great and is doing great. We’re very pleased with him,” said the trainer, who was looking forward to his next scheduled start in the Grade 1 Travers Stakes at Saratoga on Aug. 24. “Hopefully, the next five weeks are as good as the last five weeks.”

Even before the colt announced his presence with an impressive win the Grade 2 Remsen Stakes last year, Gargan declared Dornoch to be the most talented horse he’d ever trained in his long career.

“By far he’s the best horse I’ve ever trained,” he said. “He keeps getting better with age. He’s figuring things out. He’s determined. Throughout the year we’ll get to see how good he can be.

“I think he’s a champion. He’s amazing.”

Dornoch, owned by the partnership of West Paces Racing, R.A. Hill Stable, Belmar Racing and Breeding, Two Eight Racing, and Pine Racing Stable, is now clearly the leader in the battle for 3-Year-Old Male divisional honors. He won the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes run at 1¼ miles at Saratoga two starts back and the Travers Stakes will be contested at the same distance and on the same racing strip.

“If he can win the Travers, he can be the 3-Year-Old champion. That would mean the world to me,” said Gargan, who has yet to have an Eclipse Award winner in his barn. “It would mean the world for the horse, because I believe in him that much. Luis (Saez, his regular rider) believes in him that much. This has been Luis’ favorite horse since the first time her rode him as a 2-year-old (in his first race one year ago at Saratoga).”

The ownership group announced it has secured a stallion deal with Spendthrift Farm for Dornoch. With the Haskell victory, Dornoch earned a guaranteed spot in the starting gate for the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar on Nov. 2 through the “Win and You’re In” Challenge Series. Providing all goes well until then, the Classic is likely the colt’s final race before he retires to the farm and his next career.

“They had the deal on him after the Belmont,” said Gargan. “We couldn’t be happier that he’s going to one of the best stallion farms, if not the best farm in the world. We’re blessed with where he’s going to be and how it worked out for him.”

Still, that means that the son of 2018 Haskell winner Good Magic out of the dual Classic producing mare Puca and the full brother to 2023 Kentucky Derby winner and Haskell runner-up Mage will only be in the barn for a few more months.

“Every race with him is precious. With his pedigree, no one is ever expected to run at (age) 4. His pedigree is so big,” said Gargan. “He’s arguably the best bred horse racing right now. We’ve always known there would be the day when he’d have to go be a stallion.”

For now, the plan is stick to the program and hold fast for the next five weeks coming into the Travers.

“We’ve just got to keep everything the same and just maintain,” he said. “We’re looking forward to what comes next.

Incidentally, the inside post position in the Haskell turned out not to be so bad after all. Despite Gargan’s initial stated displeasure with drawing the rail it worked to perfection. Saez and Dornoch took the inside trip to their 1¼-length victory and second straight Grade 1 score.

That has been the post position to Haskell success now for the past three winners – Dornoch, Geaux Rocket Ride, and track and stakes record setter Cyberknife In fact, 11 previous winners in the race’s storied history (the most of any post position) have started from there.

Pletcher Haskell runners, Tapit Trice remain stabled at his Monmouth Park barn

The contingent of trainer Todd Pletcher Haskell runners Mindframe and Tuscan Sky and Monmouth Cup winner Tapit Trice were safely tucked into their stalls Sunday morning with the rest of his division on the Monmouth backside. All were reported to have exited their races in fine shape.

Of Mindframe, who has now finished second to Dornoch in successive Grade 1 efforts, the Hall of Fame trainer told the Thoroughbred Daily News after the race, “I thought he was traveling really well at the top of the stretch. I thought he was in a position to put away the race. I thought he got a little bit lost when he put his head in front. He kind of got to wandering around a little bit again. He was pretty far away from the eventual winner so, maybe we’re thinking about making some changes.

“Tuscan Sky didn’t get away very well. Javier (Castellano) said that as soon as the dirt hit him it was over. He never really recovered.”

Pletcher was extremely pleased with the performance of Tapit Trice, who made a triumphant comeback from a long layoff to begin his 4-year-old campaign. The $1.3 million yearling purchase, owned by Whisper Hill Farm and Gainesway, who was fifth in the 2023 Haskell and had been idle since finishing third in the Travers last August, was a 5-½ length winner of the Grade 3 Monmouth Cup at 1 1/8 miles Saturday.

“We’re very happy. It’s been a little frustrating with him,” said Pletcher. “We gave him some time off after the Travers by design last year and were hoping to get back Kentucky Derby week at Churchill Downs but we had a little setback. That delayed everything.

“We’re happy to get him back. He was in good form (Saturday). That was a good performance. For him, it was probably easier to make a comeback in a race like this (1 1/8 miles) than a six-furlong race, for example. I thought it was an impressive win off the layoff and to finish up the way he did. We’re happy to see him back.”

The Pletcher horses were scheduled to depart Monday morning for their van ride back to Saratoga.

Brad Cox ran three horses on Haskell Day and finished 1-2-3, respectively with champion Idiomatic in the Grade 3 Molly Pitcher, Highland Falls in the Grade 3 Monmouth Cup, and Timberlake, who was on the comeback from a four-month break, in the Haskell. All three departed the Monmouth backside early Sunday morning for the van ride home to his base.

By Lynne Snierson

Monmouth Park Publicity Staff