2024 Jim Dandy Stakes Preview

The Grade 2, $500,000 Jim Dandy is one of the most eagerly-awaited races of the Saratoga Race Course season. It is the local prep for the Travers (G1), the signature three-year-old race at the Spa during the summer, meaning many of the top Travers contenders flock to the Jim Dandy for both the rich purse and the chance to get used to the local course.

Though the 2024 Jim Dandy drew a field of only six, it is still a tough race with some of the marquee faces on the three-year-old scene, including three multiple graded stakes winners. Preakness winner Seize the Grey, Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner Fierceness, and Kentucky Derby second-place finisher Sierra Leone all entered the Jim Dandy as their Travers prep, meaning this race will be one of the most important races of the year in the sophomore division.

2024 Jim Dandy Stakes Information

• Race Date: Saturday, July 27
• Track: Saratoga Race Course
• Post Time: 5:43 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time
• Distance: 1 ⅛ miles
• Age/Sex: three-year-olds
• Where to Watch: FanDuel Racing, Fox
• Where to Bet: FanDuel Racing

Jim Dandy Stakes Draw and Odds

This is the field for the 2024 edition of the Jim Dandy Stakes, including post positions, trainers, jockeys, and official morning-line odds.

Jim Dandy Stakes Prep Race Results

The six horses in the Jim Dandy come out of four different races. Three of the six last raced in Triple Crown races. Sierra Leone and Seize the Grey were last seen finishing third and seventh in the Belmont Stakes—a race whose form was franked last week when 1-2 finishers Dornoch and Mindframe went 1-2 again in the Haskell (G1) at Monmouth Park on July 20. Fierceness was most recently 15th as the favorite in the Kentucky Derby; he had been entered in the Haskell, but rerouted to the Jim Dandy instead.

Two others come out of the Ohio Derby (G3) at Thistledown. Batten Down bounced to the front and was never challenged, crossing the wire 1 ¾ lengths clear of Gould’s Gold, who chased him all the way around and opposes him once again in the Jim Dandy.

Only one horse makes his stakes debut in the Jim Dandy. Pony Express graduated June 15 in a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight at Santa Anita, and will face winners for the first time in this spot.

Jim Dandy Stakes Contenders

Here is a closer look at each of the runners in the 2024 Jim Dandy in order of post position.

1. Sierra Leone: Sierra Leone came into the Belmont Stakes two noses shy of perfection, and even though he was defeated by a little more than that, he didn’t lose much of his luster in the Belmont. He rallied from last and had to deal with trouble once again, and still finished only 1 ½ lengths behind frontrunning victor Dornoch, who has already come back to win at the Grade 1 level again. The rail draw is less than great since that could lead to more trouble for a trouble-prone runner, but he still ran well from the 2 hole in the Kentucky Derby, and this is only a six-horse field. And, for a field of six? With Seize the Grey, Batten Down, Pony Express, and Fierceness all being speed horses, he should get a surprisingly good setup given the field size.
2. Seize the Grey: His connections were considering both this and the Haskell, but with a Gainesway Farm offering a lucrative bonus to his breeding rights contract if he wins the Travers, Seize the Grey will take his prep over the same course. His form was golden through the Pat Day Mile (G2) and the Preakness, though in the Belmont, he looked like the demanding winter-spring campaign was getting to him. He has gotten a month and a half to freshen up since then. He has also gotten some time to settle in at Saratoga before the race, with a sharp five-furlong move on the Oklahoma training track on July 9 and a stamina-building six furlongs on the main dirt there on July 16. The cut back to 1 ⅛ miles is a positive for him, as is the fact that, even though there is no shortage of speed in the Jim Dandy, Seize the Grey looked just as good coming from a tracking spot three back in the Pat Day.
3. Batten Down: It took a while for this Bill Mott trainee, a full brother to both Tacitus and Scylla, to put it all together. But, he broke his maiden at fourth asking back in April in a 1 ¼-mile maiden special weight at Churchill Downs. He then followed that maiden win up with a victory in the Ohio Derby. The Ohio Derby was interesting because, even though he won it on an uncontested lead, he kept clicking off sharp fractions as he did so. That’s a positive given all the speed in this race, though he still has to prove that he can win a horse race if he has competition—and high-quality competition to boot!—on the front end.
4. Pony Express: Most of the field has been settled in New York for a while, working over the Oklahoma dirt training track and getting used to the environs. Pony Express is the only one new to New York. Of course, trainer John Sadler has finally shaken his old reputation of being far better in California than elsewhere after winning big races like the Breeders’ Cup Classic with Accelerate and the Met Mile with Flightline. And, Pony Express graduated in fast fashion, and looks like a horse getting better with distance. But, he’ll have a lot of more experienced horses to battle with on the front end in the Jim Dandy, and he looks like a need-to-lead horse who has drawn inside of all that other early speed.
5. Gould’s Gold: Kenny McPeek, Brian Hernandez, Four G Racing, Lance Gasaway, and some partners are in the Jim Dandy with a son of Goldencents … just not with Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan, who is chilling out in Kentucky for the time being. Instead, they bring the later-blooming Gould’s Gold. Off the board in both starts as a juvenile, Gould’s Gold has figured it out at three. He graduated in a six-furlong sprint at Oaklawn, and even though he hasn’t won any of his three two-turn stakes starts since, he missed by just a nose in the Sir Barton on Preakness day at Pimlico Race Course and was gaining late on Batten Down in the Ohio Derby. He needs another step up to be able to beat the big guns in here, but he has enough distance underneath to be appealing trying this trip, and he is tactical without being likely to get truly embroiled in a pace battle.
6. Fierceness: What is there to say right now that hasn’t already been said about Fierceness? The juvenile champion last year and the Florida Derby winner this year, he is brilliant on his best. But, when things don’t go well, he burns a lot of money, as happened in the Holy Bull when he drew a pretty good near-outside draw, started poorly, had to battle up front, and folded. This outside draw in a short field is as good as it gets for him, but a good post is no guarantee of a good performance, and there is other speed. If he can get comfortable on an outside pressing trip, perhaps he works a trip like he did in the Breeders’ Cup. The biggest question here is price—he could be bettable if the public throws money at Sierra Leone, Seize the Grey, and perhaps even Batten Down. But this is a Mike Repole and Todd Pletcher production in New York, meaning he could still be bet too hard to present value.

Jim Dandy Stakes FAQ

Here are answers to commonly asked questions about the Jim Dandy Stakes.

Q: When is the Jim Dandy Stakes?

A: The Jim Dandy (or, for sponsorship purposes, the Jim Dandy presented by Mohegan Sun) happens Saturday, July 27, 2024, at 5:45 Eastern Daylight time.

Q: Where is the Jim Dandy?

A: The race takes place at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is carded as the tenth race on Saturday’s 12-race card, a card that also includes Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap (G1), a race for top older sprinters.

Q: Which trainer has the most wins in the Jim Dandy?

A: Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher has won the Jim Dandy more than anyone. He has seven wins since 2000, most recently in 2023 with Forte. He can make it eight if Fierceness wins in 2024.

Q: Who is the favorite for the Jim Dandy?

A: Sierra Leone has been tabbed as the 1-1 morning-line favorite for the Jim Dandy, and his consistency makes him likely to hold that status. However, it would be no surprise if Fierceness, the 8-5 morning-line second choice, at least comes close given how brilliant he is on his best. Also watch for action on both Preakness winner Seize the Grey (6-1) and up-and-comer Batten Down (5-1); both are likely to be shorter prices than the morning lines suggest.

Q: Who is the best Jim Dandy jockey?

A: Eddie Maple, Jerry Bailey, and John Velazquez have each won the Jim Dandy four times. Velazquez can take the record for himself alone if Fierceness wins in 2024.

Q: Who won the Jim Dandy in 2023?

A: Forte, making his first start since a second-place outing in the Belmont, won the Jim Dandy for trainer Todd Pletcher and jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr. Pletcher and rider John Velazquez unite with Fierceness in 2024. Ortiz does not have a call in the Jim Dandy.

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