Horse racing fans from throughout the tri-state area will be flooding Monmouth Park in Oceanport this weekend for the track’s biggest race of the year.
About 35,000 people are expected to visit the park Sunday for the Haskell Invitational, which continues to be one of the premier races in the nation, attracting some of the top 3-year-old thoroughbreds.
The race, which is named for Amory L. Haskell, the first president of Monmouth Park, includes a $1 million purse, and should attract somewhere in the area of $11 million in wagers from visitors to the track and simulcast bettors throughout North America.
In the past, the historic race has included notable winners such as Touch Gold, Holy Bull, Skip Away and Serena’s Song, the only filly to win the race.
This year’s field includes a number of strong contenders, although the likely favorite, this year’s Preakness winner Red Bullet, was pulled out due to health reasons. Red Bullet, who has reportedly suffered from minor ailments since its last race, was joined on the withdrawn list by Florida Derby winner Hal’s Hope. However, there are still several strong horses scheduled to run on Sunday, including Captain Steve, recent winner of the Swaps; and Dixie Union, winner of four of his first five races as a 2-year-old.
The favorite at this point is More Than Ready, a horse owned by Rumson resident Jim Scatuorchio. More Than Ready has one win this year, and is trained by Todd Pletcher, who is also the trainer for Impeachment, another horse expected to run in the Haskell.
Also entering the race are Milwaukee Brew, winner of his last four races; Dixie Union; Brave Quest; Thistyranthasclass (a Jersey-bred horse); Commendable, trained by legendary trainer D. Wayne Lukas; Kiss A Native; and Mercaldo, currently the long-shot at odds of 99-1. However, at this point it is not certain if Brave Quest will run in the race. The first race on Sunday has a post time of 1:10 p.m., with the entire day’s events likely to end around 6 p.m.