Sovereignty seeks rare triple in Travers

Aug 17, 2025 Kellie Reilly/Brisnet.com

Sovereignty winning the Belmont

Sovereignty turned the Kentucky Derby-Belmont double (Photo by Coglianese Photos)

Kentucky Derby (G1) and Belmont (G1) star Sovereignty will meet only four rivals in Saturday’s $1.25 million Travers (G1) at Saratoga, where he rates as the heavy favorite at 2-5 on the morning line.

Sovereignty’s odds reflect not only his dominance in the division, but also the absence of his familiar opponents from the Triple Crown trail. Journalism and Baeza, the respective second and third in both the Derby and Belmont, are awaiting other targets. While Journalism could face older horses in the Aug. 30 Pacific Classic (G1) at Del Mar, Baeza is eyeing the Sept. 20 Pennsylvania Derby (G1) at Parx.

The quartet opposing Sovereignty at the Spa did not compete in the Triple Crown. Steve Asmussen’s Magnitude burst into prominence on the Road to the Kentucky Derby at Fair Grounds, only to miss the classics due to injury. McAfee, a half-brother to Horse of the Year Thorpedo Anna, didn’t score enough points in his preps. Bracket Buster only returned to action in April, around the same time that the late-developing Strategic Focus just started his career for Chad Brown.

Sovereignty thus towers over them in terms of his accomplishments. The Godolphin homebred has won five of his past six starts, beginning with last fall’s Street Sense (G3) at Churchill Downs and the Fountain of Youth (G2) at Gulfstream Park. Since his rallying second in the Florida Derby (G1), Sovereignty has reeled off successive wins in the Kentucky Derby; the Belmont, held at this track and 1 1/4-mile trip; and most recently the Jim Dandy (G2) as his Travers prep.

If Sovereignty extends his streak on Saturday, the son of leading sire Into Mischief would join an exclusive club of horses to turn the Kentucky Derby/Belmont/Travers triple. Twenty Grand (1931), Shut Out (1942), and Thunder Gulch (1995) achieved that feat. Whirlaway (1941) is unique for adding the Travers to his Triple Crown sweep of the Derby, Preakness, and Belmont.

Sovereignty would also fill a rare gap on the resume of his Hall of Fame trainer, Bill Mott, who has yet to win the Travers. According to the New York Racing Association, he’s come closest with runners-up Vision and Verse (1999), Hold Me Back (2009) and Tacitus (2019).

Although Sovereignty looms larger than they did, Mott knows that anything can happen in racing.

“His record, people have watched him, it’s in black and white what he’s done,” Mott said. “Probably a well-known fact is that he is the horse to beat, but by the same token, they’ve got to go around there. They need to do it in the afternoon. It is not a done deal, that is why they are going to run the race.”

The pace scenario is an important consideration, even if Sovereignty has gotten more tactical early.

“Particularly in a short field, you don’t know much speed is going to show up,” Mott noted. “I looked at the past performances for a couple of the horses that are going to run, and there’s a couple in there that look like they have good, reasonable, honest type speed if they want to use it – Vicki Oliver (Bracket Buster) and Steve’s horse (Magnitude) – they look like they have the ability to lay up there, and I think they probably will.”

Sovereignty’s regular rider, Junior Alvarado, can navigate a good trip from post 4.

“I guess he’s got confidence that when he turns for home, he usually has a nice closing kick,” Mott said of Alvarado’s relationship with Sovereignty. “He knows him, and I guess we’ll just leave it up to him.

“I think he looks very much like he did going into the Belmont,” Mott added. “I’m sure people figure there are probably easier places to run. Not everybody is fleeing. There’s always somebody in there that can run…It is not a done deal.”

Magnitude, the 2-1 second choice, is particularly intriguing because he once emerged as a major player on the Derby trail. The Winchell Thoroughbreds colorbearer upset the Feb. 15 Risen Star (G2) in the manner of a serious contender, but an ankle injury forced him onto the sidelines. Magnitude returned triumphant with a similar front-running display in the July 5 Iowa Derby.

“We thought that was the perfect race back,” Asmussen’s assistant Scott Blasi said of the Iowa Derby. “He ran good figures once again. We wanted to give him plenty of time between that race and the Travers, which we’ve pointed to. We have to run against a champion (Sovereignty), and that is never an easy task, but hopefully we are doing as good as we can, physically, and get the job done.”

By the red-hot stallion Not This Time, sire of 2022 Travers champion Epicenter for the same connections, Magnitude promises to flash speed on the rail with Ben Curtis.

Drawn right alongside in post 2 is the other projected pace factor, the 20-1 Bracket Buster, who picks up Luis Saez. The Oliver trainee was a non-threatening fifth to Sovereignty in the Street Sense, but he’s shown more at times this season.

Bracket Buster was runner-up in his Lexington (G3) comeback to Gosger, the eventual near-misser in the Preakness. After breaking through with a seven-length romp in the Pegasus S. at Monmouth, Bracket Buster tired to fourth in the Haskell (G1) behind Journalism and Gosger.

“I think he would’ve been a lot closer fourth if he didn’t have a horse run with him early,” Oliver said of Bracket Buster’s Haskell effort. “I don’t know if he’ll get the mile and a quarter distance (in the Travers), but we are going to find out on Saturday. He’s coming into the race very good, worked well and came out of his work well.”

Strategic Focus is the only entrant besides Sovereignty to have experience over the track. The son of Hall of Famer Gun Runner crossed the wire first in a June 6 allowance, only to be demoted to second. As the 3-5 favorite in the Curlin S. last time out, Strategic Focus appeared to make the winning move, but weakened late and wound up third to stablemate Chancer McPatrick.

Brown opted to split up his duo on Saturday. Chancer McPatrick shortens up to seven furlongs in the H. Allen Jerkens Memorial (G1), and Strategic Focus adds blinkers for the Travers. Flavien Prat stays aboard the 6-1 Strategic Focus.

“He looks good and it's obviously a tall order here. We're going to try,” Brown said of Strategic Focus’s chances. “He looked to be winning the Curlin on the turn easy, and then he just packed it in when he made the lead. He scoped good. I'll have to think it's mental because the horse can definitely get the distance.

“I've heard this complaint about him when he makes the lead from two different jockeys, so we'll try a little blinker on him. He should have a good target to run at in Asmussen's horse (Magnitude) – one he very well might not even get by. It's not like he's going to make the lead early on that horse -- that's a good horse.

“If Sovereignty runs his race, everyone is going to be running for second, but I’m OK with that,” Brown reasoned. “I’d be happy with that, but it’s Saratoga and anything can happen. I have a horse that’s sound, healthy, fresh and lightly raced, and it’s a race I’ve always wanted to have success in, so I want to take a shot.”

McAfee’s trainer, Rick Dutrow Jr., is likewise keeping a realistic attitude about his prospects. Fifth in the Gotham (G3) and Wood Memorial (G2), McAfee subsequently placed in the Peter Pan (G3), Ohio Derby (G3), and West Virginia Derby (G3).

“I don't really know what his best game is, but he is showing up in these longer races. He's an underachiever,” Dutrow said. “I'm hoping we'll see his best this Saturday, just to see him grab a hold of the bit turning for home, I'd love to see that.

“We see the horses going in there, we're hoping we can beat one or two of them and be happy with a third-place. Anything can happen up there. Our horse might love the track, and maybe somebody might not like it that day.”

Listed at 20-1 on the morning line with Hall of Fame rider John Velazquez, McAfee will take to the track about 2 1/2 hours after his celebrity half-sister, Thorpedo Anna. She will line up in the Personal Ensign (G1), a “Win and You’re In” for the Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1), that’s carded as the ninth race.

The Travers is the 13th race, with an approximate post time of 6:14 p.m. ET. You can watch and wager on the stakes-laden program on TwinSpires.com.

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