Book’em Danno back to Saratoga for G2 Alfred G. Vanderbilt

Atlantic Six Racing’s multiple graded stakes-winning millionaire Book’em Danno returns to the scene of his two most prominent victories to date when he takes on Saturday’s Grade 2, $400,000 Alfred G. Vanderbilt, a six-furlong sprint for 4-year-olds and up, at Saratoga Race Course.

Trained by Derek Ryan, the New Jersey-bred son of Bucchero enters from a strong 1 1/4-length victory in the Grade 3 True North sprinting 6 1/2 furlongs on June 7 here. Ridden to victory by Paco Lopez, who returns to the irons for the fourth consecutive start, Book’em Danno stalked the pace in fourth and improved position at every point of call to be within 1 1/2 lengths of the prominent Mullikin at the stretch call. Book’em Danno arrested the lead from Mullikin in the final 100 yards and completed the course in 1:14.64. He earned a 102 Beyer Speed Figure for the effort.

“Everything is going good and he’s training great,” Ryan said. “This is a little short for him, but he’s doing good and Paco knows him now. He’ll keep him close and hopefully he’ll be able to get the job done again.”

Book’em Danno makes his fourth start this campaign, which began with a win in a restricted handicap in March at Colonial Downs and a neck fourth in the Grade 1 Churchill Downs on May 3 in a four-way blanket finish between the victorious Mindframe and the dead-heating runners-up Banishing and Nysos. Mindframe exited to win the Grade 1 Stephen Foster at the Louisville oval, while Nysos was a next-out winner of the Grade 3 Triple Bend at Santa Anita Park for Hall of Fame conditioner Bob Baffert.

“He’s never missed a beat and we’ve hooked some bears along the way,” Ryan said. “If you look at that last race at Churchill, that horse came back and won the Stephen Foster and Baffert’s horse came back and won in California, so it was a key race. He’s a nice, correct, sound horse and he’s just a runner. He’s a freak.”

The afternoon pairing of Lopez and Book’em Danno began this year with the aforementioned handicap score at Colonial, and Ryan said Lopez has worked hard to earn the mount aboard the talented dark bay.

“He had worked him as a 2-year-old a couple of times. Irad [Ortiz, Jr.] has so many commitments, so I wanted to be able to keep the same rider on him all the time,” Ryan explained. “He’s [Lopez] been hard on me to ride him all winter and he even took a day off to come and work him at Tampa one Sunday morning, so I said, ‘well, if he wants to ride him that bad, we’ll put him on him!’”

Book’em Danno has been a model of consistency across his 14 lifetime starts, led by a Grade 1 triumph at the Spa last summer under Irad Ortiz, Jr. when annexing the seven-furlong Woody Stephens presented by Mohegan Sun by a half-length over Prince of Monaco on the heels of a narrow loss to Forever Young in the Group 3 Saudi Derby last February at King Abdulaziz Racecourse.

His stellar sophomore campaign was supported by additional stakes scores in Tampa Bay Downs’ Pasco and Monmouth Park’s Jersey Shore, and a strong third-place finish in the Grade 1 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial here with a performance that garnered a career-best 104 Beyer.

Book’em Danno has banked over $1.3 million in total purse earnings through a 14-8-3-1 record. He is out of the unraced Ghostzapper mare Adorabella, who also produced dual stakes-winner Girl Trouble.

Lopez looks to engineer a winning trip from post 5.

WinStar Farm’s Grade 1-winner Mullikin [post 4, Jose Ortiz] was also a Grade 1-winner at the Spa last summer, taking the seven-furlong Forego in August as part of a four-race win streak.

Trained by Rodolphe Brisset, Mullikin began his streak with a pair of allowance-level scores in Kentucky ahead of a breakout win in the Grade 2 John A. Nerud last July at Belmont at the Big A. He followed with a stellar 5 3/4-length trouncing of the local Grade 1 Forego, setting the pace under regular rider Flavien Prat and easily kicking clear in the turn to deliver Brisset his first Grade 1 victory.

Brisset, who previously worked as a private trainer for WinStar Farm, said Mullikin is a special horse in his barn.

“He means a lot for the whole team. He’s a lovely horse. They all get spoiled, but maybe him a touch more,” Brisset said, with a laugh. “My wife always gets carrots for him, and she always makes sure he gets his carrots before anyone else. It’s full circle with him. When I was with WinStar, he was my favorite two-year-old, and then they sent him back to us even after we were done at WinStar. He needed a little patience, but he’s obviously paying us back for it.”

This year, Mullikin has put forth two strong efforts as he searches for his first win since the Forego. He was a 1 1/4-length fifth in the Churchill Downs, and was second by the same margin in the True North to his familiar foe Book’em Danno. The efforts garnered a respective 95 and 100 Beyer.

Brisset said he is looking forward to another Saratoga start for Mullikin.

“He won the Grade 1 last year and ran a pretty big number last out, so he likes it there,” Brisset said. “I would love to have a fast track for him, and it would be his first race this year where he would have a normal track. We’re looking forward to having him on a fast track.”

Mullikin made his final preparations for the Vanderbilt with a half-mile breeze in company with Green Light on Sunday at Keeneland, covering the distance in 46.60 seconds.

“He worked pretty fast, maybe a tick faster than what we were looking for, but the track got some moisture on it overnight and he did it easy on the bridle,” Brisset said. “He came out of the work very well, so we are all good. We will ship on Tuesday.”

The third of three Grade 1-winners in the field is Qatar Racing and Mrs. Fitriani Hay’s Nakatomi, who looks to rebound from an even fifth as the favorite in the True North where he tracked in that position throughout and failed to menace.

Trained by Wesley Ward, the 6-year-old Firing Line chestnut seeks to defend his title after taking this event by 1 1/2 lengths over returning rival Skelly in last year’s edition when it offered Grade 1 status. He went on to finish second in the Grade 2 Phoenix at Keeneland and sixth in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Sprint to close out his campaign, and returned in April to make his only other start this year with a neck second to Dark Saffron in the Group 1 Dubai Golden Shaheen at Meydan Racecourse.

Nakatomi, who was third in the 2023 Breeders’ Cup Sprint, will emerge from post 8 in rein to Emisael Jaramillo.

Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott sends out the pair of Baby Yoda [post 7, Dylan Davis] and Damon’s Mound [post 3, Junior Alvarado] in search of his third win in this event.

Pantofel Stable, Wachtel Stable, Gary Barber and Jerold Zaro’s popular Baby Yoda boasts a field-best 114 Beyer for a 6 1/2-furlong allowance victory in 2021 here, and matched his highest number since [102] when taking an optional claiming tilt going the same distance last out on June 13 at Belmont at the Big A.

Baby Yoda returns to the scene of his memorable allowance victory, as well as the Grade 2 True North last year when landing his first graded victory by six lengths.

“Not every race at Saratoga has been up to that level, but he usually runs pretty well here,” Mott said.

In his last-out victory, the 7-year-old Prospective gelding set a pressured pace under Flavien Prat, but shook off his rival in the turn and sprinted clear to win by 4 1/4 lengths, completing the 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:13.86, a track record at the Big A.

“He throws one of those every year, and you wonder where it came from,” Mott said. “You don’t know when it’s going to be or why, but he ran super last time.”

Baby Yoda, who is 4-for-8 at Saratoga, will become racing’s newest millionaire should he visit the winner’s circle on Saturday.

Cliff Love and Michele Love’s dual graded stakes-winner Damon’s Mound returns to the scene of his Grade 2 Saratoga Special victory as a juvenile in 2022. The 5-year-old Girvin horse has made two starts for Mott, beginning with a win in the state-bred Sunshine Sprint in January at Gulfstream in his first start off a more than one-year layoff.

Damon’s Mound, who also won the Grade 2 Gallant Bob as a sophomore at Parx Racing when trained by Michelle Lovell, enters from a 1 1/2-length third in the Alapocas Run going this distance on June 14 at Delaware Park.

Godolphin’s Kentucky homebred Nash [post 6, Joel Rosario] was awarded a lofty 108 Beyer for a last-out optional-claiming victory over a sloppy and sealed Churchill Downs main track on June 13, pouncing to victory under Luan Machado to get his nose down over Harrodsburg at the wire for dual Eclipse Award-winning trainer Brad Cox. 

The career-best performance came in his fourth outing this year, and his third since being cut back to six furlongs after starting his current campaign with a distant third traveling 1 1/16 miles in February at Fair Grounds Race Course.

“A very fast race, and a big figure,” Cox said of Nash’s last effort. “He’s obviously stepping up, but cutting back in distance has seemed to propel him forward as an older horse. I think anywhere between three-quarters to seven-eighths suits him the best.”

The 4-year-old Medaglia d’Oro colt returns to Saratoga for the first time since a distant ninth in the Woody Stephens last June, his final effort before a nearly eight-month respite that ended with the aforementioned Fair Grounds effort this winter. His lone stakes win came in the one-mile Hot Springs last March at Oaklawn Park.

Completing the field are dual graded stakes-winner and last year’s Vanderbilt runner-up Skelly [post 1, Ricardo Santana, Jr.] for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen and Grade 3-winner Full Moon Madness [post 2, Kendrick Carmouche] for conditioner Michelle Nevin.

The Vanderbilt is slated as Race 11 on Saturday’s 12-race program, which features the Grade 1, $500,000 Coaching Club American Oaks in Race 10 and is supported by the Grade 3, $175,000 Caress in Race 9. First post is 12:35 p.m. Eastern. 

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