Sunny Ridge faces big ask in Haskell

Trainer Jason Servis confirmed Thursday that Grade 3 Withers winner Sunny Ridge will return to the races in the Grade 1 Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park next Sunday.

Sunny Ridge has missed time with a pulled gluteal muscle after finishing fourth in the Grade 3 Gotham at Aqueduct on March 5. He has recorded five workouts at Monmouth Park since June 20. He had his second five-furlong work at Monmouth on Thursday.

“He’s doing pretty good,” Servis said. “Is it an ideal situation? No way. It’s tough to go in a 1 1/8-miles Grade 1 off a five-month layoff without a prep.”

Sunny Ridge is a New Jersey-bred gelded son of Holy Bull. He races for and was bred by Dennis Drazin, the head of Darby Development, which operates Monmouth on behalf of the New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association. Drazin is fiercely pro-Monmouth and pro-New Jersey racing and has talked about running Sunny Ridge in the $1 million Haskell ever since he finished second in the Grade 1 Champagne at Belmont Park last October.

“This is Dennis’s home track, and we’re going to give it a go,” Servis said. “I wish we had a prep, but we don’t.”

Sunny Ridge has a 7-3-2-0 record and has earned $544,000.

◗ Haskell favorite Nyquist is expected to have his final workout for the race Sunday at Del Mar.

◗ The Haskell will be televised live on NBC as part of the Breeders’ Cup Challenge series. The race is a Win and You’re In for the Breeders’ Cup Classic. The Haskell is scheduled for 5:49 p.m. Eastern.