Named for the horse to defeat 1930 Triple Crown winner Gallant Fox by eight lengths in the Travers Stakes at odds of 100-1, this year’s Jim Dandy at the Spa features some of the best horses in training that we’ve seen in years. It’s all headlined by Kentucky Derby-winning superstar Sovereignty alongside the Derby’s third-place finisher Baeza. They’ll break from the gate at 5:41 pm ET along with three other contenders.

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Let’s Meet the Contenders for the Jim Dandy (Race 10):

#1 BAEZA: Coast-to-coast shipper for C R K Stable and trainer John Shirreffs finds himself back east again for Saturday’s race. He drew into the Derby seemingly on a fluke after a flurry of scratches but proved himself deserving of the spot, putting down two third-place efforts behind Sovereignty and Journalism, respectively, in the Derby and Belmont. Some impressive works at Santa Anita post-Belmont have kept him sharp, but he’ll lose regular rider Flavien Prat, who catches a flight west for the Bing Crosby, and instead returns to Hector Berrios, who held the mount for three starts earlier this year.

#2 SANDMAN: Enter Sandman with blinkers this time, off a 70-day layoff after the Preakness where he closed sharply on Journalism and 19-1 longshot Gosger. Mark Casse has kept him in training here at Saratoga for quite some time and has included the blinkers in his recent workouts, which can be seen on 1/ST TV. Jose Ortiz gets the callback this time and will be looking for his second win aboard the gray.

#3 MO PLEX: Front-running Mo Plex will look to set the pace here with New York stalwart Manny Franco and has never been off the board in eight career starts. He pressed the pace in his last start, the Grade 3 Ohio Derby, to win by two over Kentucky Derby alumnus Chunk of Gold. This modest $45K OBS 2-year-old purchase tries to pull off the upset at a nice price.

#4 HILL ROAD: A promising juvenile last year who rallied for third in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at 61-1 odds, Hill Road from the barn of New York regular Chad Brown will have something to prove against this field. He teams up again with Irad Ortiz, Jr. who’s tearing up the Saratoga meet this year with over 30% wins, including a four-win day Thursday. Saturday’s 1-1/8 miles trip gives him a shorter run at the leaders, which could work in his favor if the pace is faster, given his shortcomings in catching them in the Belmont over 10 furlongs.

#5 SOVEREIGNTY: Bill Mott has selected his spots for this horse with careful acumen, and this particular race is no different. Mott is no stranger to the winner’s circle, having won this race four times in his career, with owner Godolphin taking home the spoils three times, most recently with 2021’s Essential Quality (trained by Brad Cox). He’s almost impossible to beat in his current form and the only horse that could’ve, Journalism, just flew back to the west coast after winning the Haskell. Getting a strong closing rally along with an impossibly short price from Sovereignty is as sure as cornbread crumbles.