Fierceness bids for 3-year-old title with victory in Jim Dandy at Saratoga

July 29 (UPI) -- Finally, nearly seven months into the season, the race to the 3-year-old championship started to pick up some definition during the weekend as Fierceness and Sierra Leone fought it out to a 1-2 finish in the Grade II Jim Dandy Stakes at Saratoga.

It also was a big weekend in the Sprint Division, with The Chosen Vron and Nakatomi victorious in Grade I events at Del Mar and Saratoga. On the turf, Silver Knott and Johannes sparkled, also a continent apart.

On the international front, Goliath easily bested a quintet of Group 1 winners in a stunning upset of the King George at Ascot. We also have action from France, Germany and South Africa.

The 3-year-olds

The mist is starting to clear in that crystal ball that holds the future of this year's 3-year-old champion.

Fierceness, last year's 2-year-old champ and this year's Florida Derby winner, got the jump on Kentucky Derby runner-up Sierra Leone in the stretch run of Saturday's $500,000 Grade II Jim Dandy at Saratoga and held him off by 1 length at the finish.

That outcome surely has Fierceness and Sierra Leone right up there atop the championship rankings with Dornoch, winner of the Belmont Stakes and last weekend's $1 million Grade I Haskell at Monmouth Stakes. Relative newcomer Mindframe, second in the Haskell, gets a tentative nod, too.

Chances are good those four will meet in the $1.25 million Grade I Travers Stakes, the "Midsummer Derby" at Saratoga on Aug. 24.

Trainer Bill Mott said Jim Dandy third Batten Down also will be nominated to the Saratoga highlight. And trainer Kenny McPeek said this weekend that Kentucky Oaks winner Thorpedo Anna will take on the colts in the Travers, too.

The Oaks Crowd

Scalable outdueled the favorite, Gun Song, in final furlong of Saturday's $250,000 Grade III Monmouth Oaks and won by 3/4 length.

Sprint

It was a busy week here.

The Chosen Vron took charge in the stretch in Saturday's $400,000 Grade I Bing Crosby at Del Mar, a "Win and You're In" for the Breeders' Cup Sprint, and won off by 2 1/4 lengths.

It was his 14th win from his last 15 starts, a string interrupted only by a fifth-place finish in the 2023 Breeders' Cup Sprint.

Nakatomi chased down heavy favorite Skelly near the sixteenth pole in Saturday's $350,000 Grade I Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap at Saratoga and ran on to win by 1 1/2 lengths over that rival.

Nakatomi, a 5-year-old Firing Line gelding trained by Wesley Ward , was third in last year's Breeders' Cup Sprint.

Also: Dean Delivers won the $150,000 Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash and Sunny Breeze took the $100,000 Concern for 3-year-olds, both at Laurel Park, and World Record won Friday's $200,000 Grade II Amsterdam for 3-year-olds at Saratoga by 6 3/4 lengths.

Filly & Mare Sprint

Apple Picker won Sunday's $100,000 Alma North Stakes at Laurel Park by 3 lengths as the even-money favorite.

Turf Sprint

Daring Do upset Sunday's $100,000 Lady Carey Sprint for fillies and mares on the Hawthorne Race Course turf. The favorite, Oeuvre, was fourth. In the companion $100,000 Robert S. Molaro Stakes, Mischievous Rogue got home first by 2 1/2 lengths. Reigning Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint winner Nobals was scratched.

Connie Swingle won Saturday's $100,000 Daisycutter Stakes for fillies and mares at Del Mar by 1 3/4 lengths over the favorite, Elm Drive.

Turf

Silver Knott, the odds-on favorite, romped home first by 2 1/2 lengths in the $250,000 Grade II Bowling Green Stakes Sunday at Saratoga. The 4-year-old Lope de Vega gelding did it in track-record time of 2:11.03.

Johannes, the even-money favorite, dominated Sunday's $250,000 Grade II Eddie Read Stakes at Del Mar. The 4-year-old Nyquist colt took over through the stretch, winning easily. Johannes, with Umberto Rispoli up, won for the fifth time in his last six starts.

Filly & Mare Turf

Time to Dazzle opened a huge lead in Saturday's $135,000 (Canadian) Grade III Ontario Colleen at Woodbine and won by 4 1/2 lengths over Simply In Front.

Classic

Dr. Venkman stalked pacesetting favorite Arabian Knight through the early furlongs of Saturday's $300,000 Grade II San Diego Handicap at Del Mar, took over turning for home and ran on to win by 1 length over Katonah.

The 4-year-old Ghostzapper gelding, now has three wins and two seconds from five starts.

Also: Last year's King's Plate winner Paramount Prince dominated Saturday's $210,000 (Canadian) Grade II Seagram Cup at Woodbine and Frosted Departure won Sunday's $100,000 Deputed Testamony Stakes at Laurel Park by 8 3/4 lengths.

Juvenile Fillies Turf

Dreamaway worked quickly to the front of six rivals in Sunday's $102,000 Colleen Stakes at Monmouth Park and was away and gone, winning by 5 1/4 lengths as the odds-on favorite. The Flameaway filly, owned and bred by John Oxley, is trained by Wesley Ward.

Around the world, around the clock

England

There were five Group 1 winners in the field in Saturday's Group 1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot but it was Goliath running off with the victory in his first-ever Grade 1 start.

The race was a "Win and You're In" ticket to the Longines Breeders' Cup Turf Trailing home the French-trained Adlerflug gelding were Bluestocking, Rebel's Romance, Sunway, Auguste Rodin, and Luxembourg, in that order.

All had previous top-level wins to their credit, and Auguste Rodin and Rebel's Romance are previous Breeders' Cup winners.

France

Sunday's Group 1 Prix Rothschild at Deauville turned up distaff contender for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe as the Edouard de Rothschild-owned Mqse de Sevigne rallied to victory.

With Alexis Pouchin up for trainer Andre Fabre, Mqse de Sevigne saw off Excellent Truth by 1 length with Rogue Millenium another 1 1/4 lengths back. She won the 1-mile race for the second straight year.

Germany

Calif got first run to the lead in the final 100 meters of Sunday's Group 1 Grosser Dallmayr-Preis in Munich and held on to win by 1 length from the favorite, Fantastic Moon.

South Africa

Dave the King took the lead turning for home in Sunday's Grade I HKJC Champions Cup at Greyville, and no one could challenge as he won by some 1 1/2 lengths over Cousin Casey, finishing the 1,800 meters in 1:49.49. "He could win anywhere in the world," trainer Mike de Kock said.