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By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman Guess what? I'm picking Golden Brown to win the $1 million Haskell Invitational (gr. I) on Sunday at Monmouth Park. I figured I might as well state that right off the top, since it will probably require the remainder of this blog post to outline my reasoning in a way that will ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman Races with just five starters are typically the type that get racing fans stirred up and excited, but from a sporting perspective it will be hard for any race this weekend to top Sunday's $300,000 Coaching Club American Oaks (gr. I) at Saratoga in terms of high-level intrigue and ...

Although Saturday's $750,000 Delaware Handicap (gr. II) at Delaware Park has been downgraded from Grade 1 status for Saturday's renewal (given the list of recent winners, I'm not sure why!), the 1 ¼-mile race has nevertheless attracted a Grade 1-worthy field that should be among the highlights of the weekend. Nine fillies and mares have been ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman For a Grade 3 with a purse of just $300,000, Saturday's one-mile Dwyer Stakes (gr. III) at Belmont Park has drawn a remarkably deep, accomplished, and international field. Just look at the achievements of the seven entrants-two are Grade 1 winners, two more are Grade 2/Group 2 ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman We all known how successful trainer Chad Brown has been at conditioning top-class turf horses. Just check out his extraordinary record in graded stakes races on grass—he's won a staggering 154 such races since 2008 while maintaining an eye-catching 24% win rate, and this despite the ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman Over the years, the $500,000 Ohio Derby (gr. III) at Thistledown has danced around the calendar looking for its niche, but since moving to the fourth week of June in 2015, the race has consistently attracted better fields and regained Grade 3 status last year, making clear that it's a ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman The Triple Crown season might be over (and what a Triple Crown it was!), but that doesn't mean that we have to turn our attention away from the three-year-olds just yet. It could be wise to keep an eye on some of the up-and-coming sophomores who could have a major impact on the ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman Ten horses. Twelve furlongs. History waiting at the finish line. Saturday's $1,500,000 Belmont Stakes (gr. I) promises to be one of the most anticipated races of the year thanks to the undefeated Justify, who will face off against nine rivals while seeking a rare sweep of the ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman With a little more than a week remaining until Justify seeks Triple Crown glory in the Belmont Stakes (gr. I) at Belmont Park, I thought now might be a good time to examine the potential pace of the race and how it might affect the outcome. Three years ago, when American Pharoah was ...

By J. Keeler Johnson (''Keelerman'') Twitter: @J_Keelerman With a couple of weeks remaining before Justify bids for history in the Belmont Stakes, we have some time this week to turn our attention away from the three-year-olds—which have dominated the racing action over the last six months or so—and focus on the older horses set to compete ...