The Grade 1 Diana highlights first Saturday card at Saratoga

By the New York Hot List Staff // Friday, July 16

It’s back! After two long and trying years fans can finally return to lovely Saratoga. Though racing continued at the Spa last year despite the pandemic, the general public could not attend the races due to safety restrictions. But with vaccination levels at a suitable level, Saratoga reopened its doors Thursday and Saturday’s card is a typical Saratoga gem, topped by the Grade 1 Diana Stakes on the turf for fillies and mares featuring the European duo of Althiqa and Summer Romance, who ran 1-2 last month in the Grade 1 Just a Game Stakes at Belmont Park.                                                                                                   

Here’s the Hot List picks:

The $500,000 Diana (G1) Saratoga, Saturday, Race 10.

(7) Lemista (A) was second in her American debut for Chad Brown in the Beaugay (G3) rallying to get within a half-length of the winner. Last year in Europe, she was a Group 2 winner at the Curragh in Ireland going nine-furlongs, so she should appreciate the Diana distance. Lemista will try and extend Brown’s winning streak in the Diana to six which would be his seventh overall.  (6) Summer Romance set the pace in the Just A Game (G1) in her American debut for European trainer Charlie Appleby and finished second. In this race, she appears to be the lone speed and that makes her dangerous. At Meydan in Dubai, she won a Group 2 going the 1 1/8 mile distance. She is likely to be overlooked in the betting. (8) Althiqa is also trained by Appleby and rallied up the rail to win the Just A Game after an ideal trip. She finished behind Summer Romance in that race at Meydan. Althiqa has yet to win at the distance of the Diana. (5) Harvey’s Lil Goil was third by just a neck in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Turf (G1) last year. She won her 2021 debut in the Beaugay but then was a non-threatening fifth in the New York (G2). The yielding turf may have been hard to handle for a big filly like her. On her best she is a threat to win.

Analysis of the other NY Hot List races and the Special Saturday Pick 3 are available free of charge at this website.