Godolphin-Appleby 3-year-olds head to Saratoga for big turf races

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - The two Godolphin-bred and -owned and Charlie Appley-trained 3-year-olds who finished second in Grade 1 turf stakes at Belmont Park on Saturday moved up to Saratoga to prepare for this track’s marquee events for 3-year-olds on turf in August.

Nations Pride, beaten three-quarters of a length as the favorite in the $1 Belmont Derby, will run in the Grade 1, $1 million Saratoga Derby on Aug. 6, while With the Moonlight, beaten 1 3/4 lengths as a 7-1 choice in the Belmont Oaks, will run in the Grade 3, $700,000 Saratoga Oaks on Aug. 7.

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“We’re very happy with the way they’ve come out of their races,” said Chris Connett, an assistant to Appleby. “The initial plan was for them to travel home this week, but Charlie made the decision to look at going to the Saratoga Derby and the Oaks and thought best to keep him here and train away into those races.”

Nations Pride was off a bit slowly in the Belmont Derby, but made a determined rally to get up for second behind the loose-on-the-lead upset winner Classic Causeway.

“He ran a nice race, had a bit of traffic problems going into the far bend,” Connett said. “But he showed his talent and finished up really well and maybe was a bit unfortunate.”

With the Moonlight was part of the early pace in the Oaks, had the lead in the stretch, and gave way to McKulick late.

“The filly jumped out and they went pretty good fractions early on,” Connett said. “She did really well to last it out and unfortunately just got nabbed at the end.”

Nations Pride and With the Moonlight are in Saratoga with Creative Flair, who is running in Saturday’s Grade 1 Diana.

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Yibir, the Breeders’ Cup Turf winner, is scheduled to come here later this summer for the Grade 1 Sword Dancer on Aug. 27.

Yibir already made a visit to New York in May, finishing third in the Grade 1 Man o’ War at Belmont. He rebounded from that to win the Group 2 Princess of Wales’s Stakes at Newmarket on July 7.