2024 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes Preview

Three-year-old sprinters get their summer showcase on Saturday, August 24, at Saratoga Race Course in the Grade 1, $500,000 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial. The race, formerly known for Jerkens’s star runner King’s Bishop, covers seven furlongs on the dirt at the Spa. Its history dates back to 1984, and its leading winners over the years include Housebuster, More Than Ready, Squirtle Squirt, Lost in the Fog, Hard Spun, Caleb’s Posse, Runhappy, Drefong, and Jackie’s Warrior.

This year’s edition of the seven-furlong sprint drew a large field of 11 horses. The morning-line favorite is Woody Stephens (G1) winner Book’em Danno, but another top-level win won’t be easy. He lines up against Prince of Monaco once again, and other graded-stakes winners like Timberlake, Domestic Product, and World Record.

H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes Information

• Race Date: Saturday, August 24
• Track: Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York
• Post Time: 5:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time
• Distance: seven furlongs on the dirt
• Age/Sex: 3-year-olds
• Where to Watch: FanDuel Racing and Fox
• Where to Bet: FanDuel Racing

2024 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Draw and Odds

This is the field for the race, including post positions, trainers, jockeys, and official morning-line odds:

H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Prep Race Results

The 11 runners in the Allen Jerkens Memorial come out of nine different races.

The top two from the Amsterdam (G2), the local prep for this race, proceed to the Jerkens. World Record cleared off early and led at every call, bounding home 6 ¾ lengths clear of Jefferson Street. The other race with two coming out of it is the ungraded Jersey Shore at Monmouth on July 19. Book’em Danno won it in his first start since winning the Woody Stephens (G1), though he had to fight to get up by a nose over Little Ni, who reopposes in this spot.

The top two from the Woody Stephens will also meet back up here; though Book’em Danno has returned to the races since, Prince of Monaco has not, and he ships back out from California to avenge his half-length defeat on Belmont Stakes day. Two others come out from longer graded-stakes races as well. Domestic Product was last seen in the one-mile Dwyer (G3) on July 6 at Aqueduct, in which he attended the pace and drew away to win by 7 ½ lengths over Hades. Timberlake, third beaten 6 ¼ lengths by Dornoch in the Haskell (G1) in his last start, shortens up to seven furlongs for the first time since winning the Hopeful (G1) last year.

The one other runner to come out of a stakes race is Otto the Conqueror. He finished 2 ¼ lengths second in the ungraded Maxfield at seven furlongs at Churchill Downs on June 30; he couldn’t catch Raging Torrent, who had an easy lead in the field of five, though he beat next-out Amsterdam winner World Record.

The other three runners come out of victories in non-stakes company. Speak Easy won an open first-level allowance sprint at Saratoga on July 27. Vettriano cleared his first-level New York-bred condition in a dirt mile at Aqueduct on June 29, and faces open company for the first time in the Jerkens. Reynolds Channel broke his maiden over this course and distance on July 13, and faces winners for the first time in the Jerkens.

H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Contenders

These are the 11 entrants in the 2024 Allen Jerkens Memorial in order of post positions:

1. World Record: He has just four starts underneath him, but he has been showing a steady progression, and he looked good wiring the local prep. His maiden win came at seven furlongs, and he won that Amsterdam from the fence, so those are both points in his favor. However, he has yet to close the deal without getting the early lead, and wiring the field from the fence in a five-horse field is a different demand than doing so in an 11-horse field.
2. Speak Easy: The least-experienced horse in the field, he is undefeated but only has two starts under his belt. An allowance win last out showed an ability to handle the footing at Saratoga, as well as the ability to win from off the pace, meaning he has some tools to handle the chaos inherent in an 11-horse sprint field. His maiden win came at seven furlongs as well, suggesting some ability at the distance, and he won from the fence in a field of 11. Watch the price; if he drifts up from his morning line, he could be interesting, but if he goes too short he’ll be an underlay given the experience deficit.
3. Domestic Product: He did the Kentucky Derby trail, but finished well beaten in the Run for the Roses and has cut back in distance since. A blowout score in the Dwyer suggests that one-turn races are perhaps where he wants to be, though this is the real test, as he faces not only a deeper field but also a field of more proven sprint horses. He could do it, as he has tactical speed for high-percentage connections. But, he may be overbet because of those connections.
4. Vettriano: This Brad Cox trainee has found his mojo in extended one-turn races in his last two, winning at 6 ½ furlongs and a mile at Aqueduct. However, both of those starts came against New York-breds, and now he faces not only open company, but Grade 1 company. He’ll get some interest coming from the Brad Cox barn, and he does have some upside with only three starts underneath him, but he has yet to run a race anywhere near fast enough and probably needs this experience.
5. Prince of Monaco: A Bob Baffert shipper to Saratoga is always dangerous. Prince of Monaco has always shown talent, and his record reads as that of a sprinter, as his only flop came in his one route try. Though he was defeated in the Woody Stephens, he has a lot of upside coming out of that spot: he handled a bad start well and still was beaten by only half a length against a known good horse in Book’em Danno. He is versatile, well-suited to seven furlongs, and able to handle adversity. The biggest question is the rider; it is a bit strange that Flavien Prat opted for Domestic Product over Prince of Monaco.
6. Timberlake: This Brad Cox trainee looked like a serious Kentucky Derby contender after the Rebel, but after a pair of flat efforts in the Arkansas Derby (G1) and the Haskell, Brad Cox is turning him back to seven furlongs. It’s a move worth trying, given what good form he showed in his maiden win and the Hopeful (G1) last year. The switch back to Florent Geroux is a positive as well; Geroux was his regular rider early in his career, and could help him find that spark again.
7. Otto the Conqueror: This Steve Asmussen trainee won the Springboard Mile last December but then lost his way for a while. A class drop and a cut back in trip seems to have gotten him in some kind of better form; he won an allowance two back going 6 ½ furlongs at Churchill, and then was second in the seven-furlong Maxfield last out. However, this may be too tough class-wise: he is not likely to be fast enough to be part of the pace at this level, and will need to run the fastest race of his life to contend.
8. Book’em Danno: He’s the little Jersey-bred who could: in eight starts he has never finished worse than second, and one of those second-place finishes was just a head behind Forever Young in the Saudi Derby three starts back. Yes, he only won by a nose in an ungraded affair at Monmouth last out, but that race was likely just a waypoint between a Grade 1 win in the Woody Stephens and this spot. He is versatile, he loves seven furlongs, and he is a winner over this course and distance already. The price won’t be great, and that is the concern, but anyone who wants to declare themself the leader of the sprint division is going to have to beat this son of Bucchero.
9. Reynolds Channel: He isn’t the least experienced by the number of races, but he is the least experienced in terms of class: all six of his races have come against maidens. He finally graduated last out over the same course and distance as this race, doing so in his fastest effort yet, suggesting he may just be getting into form. And, trainer Bill Mott tends to be thoughtful about when he moves an inexperienced horse into a tough spot like this one. However, he took a big step forward last out and will have to make another move forward, while mired near the outside in a tough group.
10. Jefferson Street: The “A” entrant from the Bill Mott barn, he romped at 6 ½ furlongs at Saratoga in an allowance during Belmont Stakes weekend, and followed that up with a second-place finish in the Amsterdam. He had to chase around World Record, who had an easy lead that day, but it’ll be a different pace setup this time. The outside post may be a challenge, but he has the talent, he’s on a “better race” part of an up-and-down cycle, and he keeps Mott’s “A” rider, Junior Alvarado, in the saddle.
11. Little Ni: Little Ni makes his first start for the Mark Casse barn after four in mid-Atlantic stalwart Eddie Owens’ shedrow. He won his first three starts in blowouts, including a debut maiden win after a nightmare start, and then ran Book’em Danno to a nose in the Jersey Shore last out. He did that in fast enough fashion to suggest he’s just a better horse than people gave him credit for, and he could be competitive from an outside stalking or pressing trip.

H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes FAQ

Q: When is the Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes?

A: The race happens Saturday, August 24, at 5:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time.

Q: Where is the Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes?

A: It happens at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. The race is carded as the 12th on Saturday’s showcase 14-race Travers-day card.

Q: Which trainer has the most wins in the Allen Jerkens Memorial?

A: D. Wayne Lukas leads all trainers with five wins in this race between 1985 and 1996. Though he is still active, he does not have a runner in the Jerkens this year. Among trainers with entrants, Todd Pletcher leads with three wins, most recently in 2013 with Capo Bastone. Pletcher can make it four if Speak Easy steps up.

Q: Who is the favorite for the Allen Jerkens Memorial?

A: Book’em Danno, winner of the Woody Stephens two starts back, is the 7-2 morning-line favorite. He has enough class and form that he should go off favored in this field, though Prince of Monaco (4-1) may rival him on the tote just because of the Bob Baffert factor.

Q: Who is the best Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes jockey?

A: Both John Velazquez and Mike Smith have four wins in this race, the most of any rider. Velazquez can take the record for himself if he guides Prince of Monaco to victory.

Q: Who won the Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes in 2023?

A: One in Vermillion won the 2023 edition for trainer Esteban Martinez and jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr. Martinez does not have an entrant in 2024, though winning jockey Ortiz takes the reins on Speak Easy for Todd Pletcher.

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