A First Look at the 2012 Haskell Invitational

There were eight grade one stakes run for three year-olds in the first half of 2012, ending of course with the Triple Crown races. The second half of that season begins on Sunday, July 29, with the 45th running of the Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park.
 
 
The chart shows that there were six different winners of those grade one stakes and of those six, three of them are considering the Haskell. For three year-olds that want to continue their campaigns on a dirt surface while going a distance of ground the big decision is to run in the Haskell on July 29, or the $600,000 Jim Dandy, which is a grade two, on July 28.  Both of those races prepare horses for the Midsummer Derby, the Travers (G1) at Saratoga on Saturday, August 25.
 
Bob Baffert committed to the Monmouth Park race before the 
Preakness was run. Regardless of Bodemeister’s performance he was going to skip the Belmont Stakes and wait for the Haskell. Of course, Bodemeister had two gutsy second place finishes in the first two legs of the Triple Crown behind I'll Have Another.
 
Baffert loves to send his three year-olds to Monmouth Park. He has already won the Haskell five times with Coil in 2011, Lookin at Lucky in 2010, Roman Ruler in 2005, War Emblem in 2002, and Point Given in 2001. So, Baffert will be going for his third consecutive victory with Bodemeister.
 
It will be interesting to see if Baffert’s March health scare in Dubai will change his training strategy.  Last year he made it clear that, “I can't win the Haskell without eating at Max's Hot Dogs on day of race. Just had lunch at Max's Hot Dogs on Jersey Shore. Best hot dog in the world.”
 
Grade one winners Gemologist and Union Rags are considering the Haskell. Gemologist won his first five starts for WinStar and Todd Pletcher before his disappointing 16th place finish in the Kentucky Derby.  Union Rags will be facing yet another rider change since John Velazquez broke his collarbone at Churchill Downs.  It was Johnny V.’s  gutsy rail ride that got the Belmont Stakes victory for Union Rags.
 
The first Monmouth Park prep race for the Haskell happened on Father’s Day. Le Bernardin held off a hard charging Easter Gift to win the Pegasus (G3) by a neck. Both horses now seem headed to the Haskell. Le Bernardin’s trainer Kiaran McLaughlin said, “It was a great win and an excellent ride by Mike Luzzi.  The Haskell is obviously a race we’ll look at after we see how he comes out of this.”
 
Easter Gift had won both of his prior starts and Nick Zito was very pleased with his horse’s progress, “We’ll definitely have to think about the Haskell after his race today.  He handled two turns just fine and came running at the end.  I thought it was a very good race and something we can build off of.”
 
Trainer Ken McPeek is also considering the Haskell for Unstoppable U after he ran close to Paynter in the Belmont Stakes before fading to finish sixth in what was only his third career start.
 
The Long Branch Stakes on July 8 is Monmouth Park’s last prep race for the Haskell. The $100,000 event is run at a mile and a sixteenth.
 
The connections of Union Rags and Gemologist have to make the Jim Dandy or Haskell decision. We know where Bodemeister will be on July 29, and the three of them are going to have to meet at some point, but will it be at Monmouth Park or in Saratoga for the Travers? 

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