The highlight of another big weekend at Saratoga is Saturday’s G1 Fourstardave Handicap on the lawn. Last year’s winner Casa Creed returns for his fourth appearance in the race, taking on the Todd Pletcher pair Annapolis and Emmanuel in what should be a closely contested affair.
Fourstardave Handicap
G1, $500,000, 1m turf, 3yo+, 5.44pm ET
Doubts remain over the condition of Saratoga’s turf course, but if it holds up this weekend then there is a real treat in store on Saturday. The headline Fourstardave features the return of last year’s winner in what will be a fascinating three-horse war, with a paid berth into the G1 Breeders’ Cup Mile at Santa Anita on the line.
This is the fourth time that the local favourite Casa Creed (7-5) has come for the Fourstardave; he finished third in 2020 and 2021 and was victorious last year, when he produced his usual strong late rally to win going away from a short but sharp field. He has carried over his talent into this campaign, taking the show spot in the 2023 G1 Jaipur over six furlongs at Belmont Park when longshot Ice Chocolat (8-1) was two lengths back in sixth, before winning the 2023 G3 Kelso over this course and distance.
He was in front a little earlier than usual but sustained his run to the line to beat the late-closing Annapolis (8-5) by a length, with Ice Chocolat again hovering on the fringes in fourth, a length and a half away. Casa Creed is four-for-seven at the Spa, comes along in peak form with his barn also in hot-ticket order, and is the one to beat.
Annapolis will again be a potent threat, although a soft track would be a negative. He has only been out of the first two once – 2022 G1 Breeders’ Cup Mile – and won a mile stakes at Churchill Downs on his 2023 comeback before that Kelso defeat.
At his best, such as when winning the 2022 G1 Coolmore Turf Mile at Keeneland with Casa Creed beaten two lengths into fifth, he could very well take this, but he does not bring his A-game every time.
Neither does his barnmate Emmanuel (3-1), whose last-time score in the 2023 G3 Poker over a mile at Belmont was a pretty good indication of his status. He is a solid G3 animal, is zero-for-three at G1 level, but could pick up the pieces in the unlikely event that the big two both misfire.
Ice Chocolat has only won at allowance level since leaving Brazil and his limitations were exposed behind Casa Creed on his last two starts. He is nevertheless much more accomplished than his two allowance-beat barnmates Full Screen (30-1) andMy Sea Cottage (30-1), who are a very long way out of their depth.
My Sea Cottage may be a pace angle but he will not make that stick, while fellow no-hoper So High (20-1) is riding a 13-race losing streak since taking an Aqueduct claimer in 2020.
2023 Fourstardave Handicap Odds
This is between the first two from the G3 Kelso here last month, and CASA CREED can beat Annapolis again and go back-to-back in this prestigious race.
| Horse | Jockey | Horse Racing Odds by Jazzsports |
| Emmanuel | Jose L. Ortiz | +300 |
| Full Screen | Manuel Franco | +3000 |
| My Sea Cottage (IRE) | Dylan Davis | +3000 |
| Annapolis | Irad Ortiz, Jr. | +160 |
| So High (GB) | Ruben Silvera | +2000 |
| Casa Creed | Luis Saez | +140 |
| Ice Chocolat (BRZ) | Joel Rosario | +800 |
Check out the Casa Creed defends title in the 2023 Fourstardave Handicap
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