Sovereignty joins exclusive club by conquering Travers

Aug 23, 2025 Kellie Reilly/Brisnet.com

Sovereignty wins the Travers at Saratoga. (Photo by Coglianese Photo / Credit to Chelsea Durand)

History was on the line when Kentucky Derby (G1) and Belmont (G1) hero Sovereignty lined up in Saturday’s $1,212,500 Travers (G1) at Saratoga. Could the superstar three-year-old join the very exclusive club of Derby and Belmont winners to add the Travers?

The answer was a resounding yes, as Sovereignty ran away from his overmatched rivals. The Godolphin homebred became the first since champion Thunder Gulch (1995) to win the Kentucky Derby, Belmont, and Travers.

Thunder Gulch had himself been the first to achieve the feat in a half-century. Before Thunder Gulch, you have to go back to the World War II era to find Shut Out, who captured the Derby, Belmont, and Travers in 1942.

In 1941, Hall of Famer Whirlaway won the Travers after completing a Triple Crown sweep in the Derby, Preakness, and Belmont. Whirlaway remains the only Triple Crown winner to prevail in the Travers too.

The charter member of the Derby/Belmont/Travers club is Hall of Famer Twenty Grand, who accomplished the treble in 1931.

It should be noted that Sovereignty’s Belmont came in different conditions. While Twenty Grand, Whirlaway, Shut Out, and Thunder Gulch won the traditional 1 1/2-mile classic at Belmont Park, Sovereignty captured the shortened 1 1/4-mile Belmont at its temporary home of Saratoga.

Nevertheless, as a matter of historical record, Sovereignty has etched his name alongside a few of the sport’s most memorable champions. The son of leading sire Into Mischief was also giving his Hall of Fame trainer, Bill Mott, a long-sought first Travers trophy.

The overwhelming odds-on favorite in a five-horse field, Sovereignty broke well to secure good position. Regular rider Junior Alvarado then allowed him to settle into his own comfortable rhythm near the back of the compact field, just a couple of lengths off the pace.

Meanwhile, Magnitude, the second choice at odds of 3.60-1, hustled to the early lead right out of the gate. Prompted by the 17-1 longshot Bracket Buster, Magnitude carved out fractions of :23.47, :47.43, and 1:11.23.

Bracket Buster tried to live up to his name by putting Magnitude away on the far turn. But Sovereignty wasn’t going to let him get too big of a jump.

As soon as Alvarado gave him the nudge, Sovereignty picked up, tackled Bracket Buster, and took command turning into the stretch. From that point on, it was only a question of how far Sovereignty would open up on the field.

The winning margin was ultimately 10 lengths. Even after Sovereignty crossed the wire, he flaunted his supremacy by continuing his momentum on the gallop-out.

Bracket Buster outperformed expectations as best of the rest, drawing 10 3/4 lengths clear of Magnitude. McAfee, the half-brother to Horse of the Year Thorpedo Anna, checked in a long way behind in fourth. Strategic Focus was eased home but walked off the track.

Sovereignty romps in the G1 Travers! 🏆@juniorandkellya was aboard for trainer Bill Mott and @godolphin! pic.twitter.com/9afQdqzDIk

— TwinSpires Racing 🏇 (@TwinSpires) August 23, 2025

Sovereignty, who powered 1 1/4 miles in 2:00.84, has now bankrolled $5,835,300. He’s won six of nine starts, including last year’s Street Sense (G3) in stakes-record time at Churchill Downs and the March 1 Fountain of Youth (G2) at Gulfstream Park. After a rallying second in the Florida Derby (G1), Sovereignty has progressed to win four straight. His classic scores in the Kentucky Derby and Belmont were followed by the Jim Dandy (G2), his tune-up for the Travers.

“This is the horse of a lifetime,” said Alvarado, who was also winning the Travers for the first time. “All my big wins come from him. I can’t give thanks enough to the Godolphin people and to Billy Mott for keeping their trust in me and letting me ride these beautiful horses. I’ve gotta thank this guy right here (patting Sovereignty) for being so amazing with me.”

Mott commented on finally achieving a hitherto elusive Travers win.

“It's something I've been waiting on,” the Hall of Fame horseman said. “I had two or three races on my bucket list, and one was the Met Mile (G1), which we got that done with Cody's Wish (the 2023 Horse of the Year), and the one that was left was the Travers.”

When asked if the Travers were Sovereignty’s career-best performance, Mott’s thoughts turned to the Kentucky Derby.

'It's really hard to top the Derby,” his trainer said. “He came from way back and over a muddy track. This was a great race -- his races have been very impressive. I think the final furlong of this race was very good -- it was probably equal to the Derby, but the Derby, the way it was run, on such a sloppy track and he had to overcome so much -- 20 horses -- it's a much smaller field today, but the way he looked out there today was incredible.

“I thought from the eighth pole to the wire, I said, ‘wow, he's looking pretty magnificent right now.’ I thought he was traveling well early in the race. The whole race was good, it was smooth and when he digged in leaving the eighth pole, he responded and opened up.”

Sovereignty will aim to crown his glittering season in the Nov. 1 Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) at Del Mar, his first start versus older horses. His prime opponents could be the top three from last year’s Classic – Sierra Leone, Fierceness, and Japan’s Forever Young, all alumni of the 2024 Derby.

Michael Banahan, director of bloodstock for Godolphin USA, put the Travers in context.

“It is monumental for the fans to have what looks like the best three-year-old in the country go out and win the Travers in the manner he did today, with a massive crowd here at Saratoga, to put on a performance like that.

“We saw the horses we need (for the sport),” Banahan added, alluding to other major races on Travers Day. “Book'em Danno earlier (in the Forego [G1]), Thorpedo Anna (winning the Personal Ensign [G1]), him coming back here, horses that have won at Saratoga before. I think this is unbelievably great for the fans and the sport.”