Kentucky Derby Winner Sovereignty Returns to the Racetrack in the Jim Dandy Stakes

Sovereignty was untouchable during the Triple Crown season. The Kentucky Derby winner is beginning the second half of his three-year-old campaign this Saturday in the Jim Dandy Stakes. It’s a return to the venue where he won the Belmont Stakes, Saratoga Race Course.

The Florida Derby runner-up was the second choice on the First Saturday in May. Journalism had the lead at the start of the home stretch, but Sovereignty had more gas in the tank, powering his way to the wire and into the Winner’s Circle beneath the Twin Spires.

Bill Mott and the Goldophin connections ultimately decided to skip the Preakness and end a quest for a Triple Crown. Journalism won in Sovereignty’s absence, setting up an epic rematch in the Belmont. There wasn’t a muddy track as an excuse at Saratoga. It was deja vu all over again as Sovereignty powered past Journalism to win the third leg of the Triple Crown.

This time, Sovereignty won’t have Journalism to pass down the home stretch. The Preakness winner kicked off his summer campaign with an impressive win in last week’s Haskell Stakes. There is another familiar foe in this small, five-horse field.

Baeza ran third in both the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes. The West Coast shipper has posted impressive speed figures, but hasn’t had enough to take down Sovereignty. The Graveyard of Champions could provide the ideal setting for an upset.

In last year’s Jim Dandy, Fierceness was looking for some vengeance after getting knocked off in the Derby. He got it by taking down Sierra Leone (Breeders’ Cup Classic Champ) and Seize the Grey (Preakness Champ). Baeza could make a similar move this Saturday, but I wouldn’t bet on it.

Sandman is a beautiful horse that has followed a similar path to the previously mentioned horses, yet has only hit the board once since his Arkansas Derby win, a third-place finish in the Preakness. Hill Road could be a price horse worth watching, even though Chad Brown’s colt faded down the stretch in the Belmont.

Similar to the Haskell, the favorite is going to be hard to beat. This is Sovereignty’s race to lose. Even if he’s not at top form, he should be able to take care of business at Saratoga. You’ll want to tune in to see if he can set up another exciting rematch with Journalism by dominating the field this Saturday.

Post Positions, Odds for the Jim Dandy Stakes

A Grade II stakes race with a $500,000 purse, the Jim Dandy is race 10 on Saturday’s card. You can watch all of the Saratoga Saturday coverage on Fox. Post time for the 1 1/8 miles trek is scheduled for 5:41 PM ET.

Post	Horse	Odds	Jockey	Trainer
1	Baeza	3-1	Hector Berrios	John Shirreffs
2	Sandman	5-1	Jose Ortiz	Mark Casse
3	Mo Plex	8-1	Manny Franco	Jeremiah Englehart
4	Hill Road	10-1	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	Chad Brown
5	Sovereignty	3-5	Junior Alvarado	Bill Mott

Join KSR Plus! With a KSR Plus membership, you get access to bonus content and KSBoard, KSR’s message board, to chat with fellow Cats fans and get exclusive scoop.

Another Winner Fined for Whipping

Sovereignty’s win in the Kentucky Derby came at a cost for Junior Alvarado. The jockey was suspended for two racing days and fined $62,000 after he gave Sovereignty the whip 8 times under the Twin Spires, two more than the limit set by HISA. Now, Journalism’s jockey is facing a similar punishment.

The stewards at Monmouth Park ruled that Umberto Rispoli whipped Journalism eight times in the Haskell Stakes win. Since it was his first whip violation since 2023, the punishment is not as harsh. He will serve a one-day suspension and must pay a $6,000 fine, which is 10% of his take-home pay from the victory.