Monmouth Park Picks: Haskell Stakes Day, 7/19/2025

Key Takeaways

• Race 5 – Matchmaker (G3): Segesta (3-1) returns to Irad Ortiz and looks primed third off the layoff for Chad Brown with pace versatility and back class at this trip; Sacred Wish (5-2) has sharp Grade 1 form, proven Monmouth affinity, and may be overlooked for wagering due to Brown’s presence in the race.
• Race 9 – Wolf Hill Stakes: Isivunguvungu (5-2) makes his first U.S. start since Dubai but returns to a race shape and class level that suits his off-the-pace style perfectly; Buccherino (5-1) is intriguing on turf debut—has sharp dirt sprint speed, a turf-leaning pedigree, and could stay on if the course favors early speed.
• Race 11 – United Nations (G2): Vote No (10-1) has found new life going long on the turf since being claimed and may get the perfect setup in a surprisingly pace-laden marathon; Rebel Red (9-2) enters off a win at this trip and has the running style and class to go back-to-back under Luis Saez.

The summer racing season at Monmouth Park Racetrack reaches its apex Saturday, July 19, with its flagship race day, headlined by the Grade 1, $1 million Haskell Stakes. The race is one of the most important events of the year for three-year-olds, with both a seven-figure purse and a Breeders’ Cup bid on offer. And, it drew several horses from the Triple Crown races, including Journalism, winner of the Preakness Stakes and the runner-up in both the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes.

The Haskell Stakes isn’t all there is on Saturday at Monmouth Park, though. Saturday’s card features 14 races, including five graded stakes races and a total of six at the stakes level. Aside from the Haskell Stakes, there is the United Nations (G2) for older turf routers, the Matchmaker (G3) for turf fillies and mares, the Monmouth Cup (G3) for older dirt horses, the Molly Pitcher (G3) for older dirt fillies and mares, and the Wolf Hill for older turf sprinters.

The first race gets underway at noon EDT, and you can watch and wager all day long with FanDuel and FanDuel TV. Remember to check the weather and the scratches come race day. There is some chance of rain on Saturday, and if that comes to be, then scratches and abilities to handle off tracks could have a significant effect on the pace setups and the class balances of the races.

These are three best bets for races on Saturday’s Haskell day card at Monmouth Park on Saturday, July 19:

Monmouth Park Best Bets

Race 5 - Matchmaker (G3), 1 ⅛ miles on the turf - Segesta, Sacred Wish

FanDuel odds: 3-1 and 5-2

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There are two horses in this field who can show speed: No Mo Candy and Segesta (3-1). The latter is better drawn, and in a pair of turf races last year, she was able to stalk just off of a sharp pace and stay on to win. In this field of seven, that has a good chance to be the winning trip. The return to Irad Ortiz in the irons is another point in her favor; he rode Segesta to both of her wins last year, as well as a close second behind the classy Cinderella’s Dream in the Belmont Oaks (G1) last year. Making her third start of the year, getting her rider back, getting some better ground underneath her feet, stepping up in trip after a Grade 1 try at a mile last out at Saratoga … all in all, Segesta is making all the right moves, and she looks beautifully spotted by trainer Chad Brown.

Although Sacred Wish (5-2) was named the morning-line favorite, there are three reasons to doubt this horse will actually be favored come post time, or at least can be overlaid: specifically, there are three horses in the field trained by Chad Brown, who always takes a lot of money in big turf races. Sacred Wish is not one of them. She is trained by the experienced and capable George Weaver, for whom she won the Matriarch (G1) at a mile at Del Mar last December. She is pace-versatile enough to work out a good trip no matter how fast the horses with speed end up going, and her two solid races at Monmouth last year suggest that she can run her race over the course.

Race 9 - Wolf Hall Stakes, 5 ½ furlongs on the turf - Isivunguvungu, Buccherino

FanDuel odds: 5-2 and 5-1

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Isivunguvungu (5-2) makes his first start since a try in the Al Quoz Sprint (G1) at Meydan in April. The layoff could not be less of a worry: the Graham Motion trainee won his United States debut (after starting his career in South Africa) in September of last year off an even longer layoff, against ungraded stakes company much like this. His usual race is good enough to win this, and his reliable ability to come from off the pace means he’ll get a good setup, since there is a bumper crop of early speed in the group. All signs point to this being a cozy spot for him.

If speed is holding well at all, then Buccherino (5-1) could run on best of the front ranks. He’ll be a price because he has never tried turf before. But, he has won at this distance on dirt, and over and over again in his dirt races, he has been able to dispute the pace and stay on late. He has been able to do that even from inside posts; he won from the rail after an early battle in a dirt sprint stakes at Parx last year. It would be no surprise if Buccherino takes well to the turf, either – he is a son of top-class turf sprinter Bucchero from a female family with some surface versatility in it.

Race 11 - United Nations (G2), 1 ⅜ miles on the turf - Vote No, Rebel Red

FanDuel odds: 10-1 and 9-2

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Vote No (10-1) had been a sprinter-miler for his old barn, but after a $40,000 claim two starts back, new trainer Kelsey Danner has tried him longer on the turf, and he has responded well. Two starts back, he romped in a second-level allowance at Horseshoe Indianapolis going a mile, and he romped. Next out, she stretched him all the way to 1 ½ miles for the Cape Henlopen at Delaware Park, an interesting and worthy experiment for a son of long-winded Divisidero. He rallied into an honest pace for the distance, getting up to win by three-quarters of a length. The slight cut back in trip is no worry, and the presence of a surprising amount of early speed for such a long race is a huge positive for this late-running type. He’ll be a price since he has yet to prove himself in graded-stakes company yet, and he is a young horse with plenty of upside in his new specialty.

Another who should be able to muster a sharp late run is Cherie DeVaux trainee Rebel Red (9-2). He comes into this race off a win in the Chorleywood, a listed race over this same 1 ⅜-mile distance at Churchill Downs. He rallied smartly into a modest pace, and could get an even better setup this time around. Though he loses regular rider Jose Ortiz, it doesn’t feel like a snub; he has graded-stakes mounts at Saratoga Race Course, including a Grade 1 call for DeVaux. He gets an experienced big-race rider, Luis Saez, to replace him, a positive. Also to his credit, Rebel Red can run a good race from closer to the pace if need be, and it’s always nice to see versatility—but with Corruption, Redistricting, Get Smokin, and even Limited Liability likely to show pace, the usual late-running trip should be the key to another good effort from Rebel Red.

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