The $150,000 Johnstone Stakes takes center stage on Wednesday, July 30, 2025, at Saratoga Race Course, featuring a deep field of New York-bred fillies and mares aged 3 and up sprinting 7 furlongs on dirt. As Race 8 on a nine-race card, this stakes event is a key highlight for state-bred sprinters and a pivotal leg in the Pick 6 sequence with a $132,232 carryover.
Race Overview
Race Name: Johnstone Stakes
Track: Saratoga Race Course
Date & Time: July 30, 2025 – Post Time: 5:14 PM ET
Distance: 7 furlongs
Surface: Dirt
Eligibility: NY-bred Fillies & Mares, 3YO+
Purse: $150,000
Field Analysis – Horses, Jockeys, Trainers & Pedigrees
| PP | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | Pedigree (Sire – Dam by Dam Sire) | Notes |
| 1 | Majestic Return | Ricardo Santana Jr. | Ilkay Kantarmaci | Long On Value – Proud Dreamer (Proud Citizen) | Recent 6th in claiming; longshot |
| 2 | Dolomite | Manny Franco | Chad C. Brown | Unified – Golden Pioneer (Pioneerof the Nile) | 3 straight wins; rising star |
| 3 | Cara’s Time | Dylan Davis | Mitchell E. Friedman | Not This Time – Kat O Mine (Mineshaft) | Stakes-placed; tactical speed |
| 4 | Caldwell Luvs Gold | Irad Ortiz Jr. | Brad H. Cox | Goldencents – Lady Blue (Fed Biz) | Grade 3-placed; consistent |
| 5 | My Mane Squeeze | Luis Saez | Mike Maker | Audible – Berning Rose (Freud) | NY-bred Horse of the Year; class relief |
| 6 | Landed | John Velazquez | Wesley A. Ward | Omaha Beach – With Wonder (Flatter) | Versatile; third at Keeneland |
| 7 | Cupid’s Heart | Flavien Prat | Bruce Levine | Cupid – Sheet Humor (Distorted Humor) | 4-time winner; stakes-placed |
| 8 | Sterling Silver | Junior Alvarado | Bill Mott | Cupid – Sheet Humor (Distorted Humor) | $1M earner; neck loss to Bernietakescharge |
| 9 | Bernietakescharge | Romero Maragh | Domenick Schettino | Take Charge Indy – Berning Rose (Freud) | Dual stakes winner; tactical speed |
| 10 | Maggy’s Palace | Jose Lezcano | James T. Ryerson | Palace Malice – Sister Margaret (Pulpit) | Stakes-placed; improving |
| 11 | Tricky Temper | Jose Ortiz | Jeremiah Englehart | Into Mischief – Tricky Start (Jump Start) | Needs rebound; 6th last out |
Pedigree & Performance Insights
Bernietakescharge: By Take Charge Indy, out of Berning Rose, she’s a half-sister to Bernieandtherose and enters off a neck win over Sterling Silver in the Critical Eye Stakes.
Sterling Silver: Cupid filly with a 31-9-7-5 record and over $1M in earnings. She’s a consistent closer and narrowly missed last time.
Dolomite: Unified filly trained by Chad Brown, enters on a 3-race win streak and looks ready for stakes company.
My Mane Squeeze: Dual graded stakes winner by Audible, has faced elite company like Emery and Jody’s Pride. Class relief makes her dangerous.
Caldwell Luvs Gold: Goldencents filly with strong Saratoga form and a troubled trip last out. Brad Cox-trained and improving.
Jockey & Trainer Trends
Irad Ortiz Jr.: 30.2% win rate at Saratoga; elite stakes rider.
Luis Saez: 15.5% win rate; excels with tactical mounts like My Mane Squeeze.
Chad Brown: Leading trainer at Saratoga with 21.2% win rate.
Brad Cox: Dual Eclipse Award winner; strong ROI with NY-breds.
Tactical Race Setup
Early Speed: Dolomite, Caldwell Luvs Gold, and Cupid’s Heart may contest the lead.
Stalkers: Bernietakescharge, Sterling Silver, and My Mane Squeeze will sit mid-pack.
Closers: Tricky Temper and Cara’s Time could benefit from a hot pace.
