SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Far Bridge and Webslinger have traded decisions in their two meetings this year. Saturday, they meet again as part of a nine-horse field that includes a filly in the Grade 1, $600,000 Saratoga Derby scheduled for 1 3/16 miles on turf.

Webslinger, at 22-1, beat Far Bridge a nose in the Grade 2 American Turf at Churchill Downs on May 6. Far Bridge, at 3-1, flipped the script when they met again in the Grade 1 Belmont Derby, winning by one length over The Foxes with Webslinger finishing fourth, beaten 1 1/2 lengths.

Big and Classy will attempt to start a new win streak Saturday when he returns to the overnight ranks for the ninth race at Gulfstream Park.

The conditioned allowance is for 3-year-olds and up at seven furlongs and carries a claiming option of $62,500. A field of nine was entered, but multiple stakes winner Ny Traffic is to be scratched. Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. said the horse is targeting the $150,000 John Morrissey Handicap for New York-breds at six furlongs Aug. 10 at Saratoga.

Two weeks after an eighth-place finish at Del Mar, the 4-year-old filly Ascendancy starts in Saturday’s $75,000 Luther Burbank Stakes for fillies and mares at the Sonoma County Fair in Santa Rosa, Calif.

A return to Northern California may boost Ascendancy’s already outstanding season. In five starts this year at Golden Gate Fields and on the fair circuit, Ascendancy has won four times, including the She’s a Tiger Stakes at 1 1/16 miles on dirt at the Alameda County Fair in Pleasanton June 24.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – For nearly a year, Caravel has risen to every challenge posed to her with aplomb. The reigning Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint winner will attempt to keep streaking toward her defense of that race as she contests Saturday’s Grade 3, $300,000 Troy Stakes on the Saratoga turf.

Making this race a particular challenge, Caravel is likely to find plenty of company on the front end in the 5 1/2-furlong race – including graded stakes winner Nobals, who is advantageously drawn outside her.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Much in the same way Technical Analysis is a proven horse-for-course at Saratoga, so too, it appears is her stablemate Portfolio Company.

Portfolio Company has two wins and a second in three starts at Saratoga, where on Saturday he will attempt to become a first-time stakes winner in the $135,000 Lure Stakes.

On Thursday, Technical Analysis ran her Saratoga record to 4-1-0 from five starts by winning the De La Rose Stakes. Portfolio Company, like Technical Analysis, is owned by Seth Klarman and trained by Chad Brown.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The question being asked of Cody’s Wish in Saturday’s Grade 1, $1 million Whitney Stakes is one trainer Bill Mott thought would have been answered long ago.

So confident in his ability to get 1 1/8 miles around two turns, Mott tried Cody’s Wish under those conditions at Saratoga in his second career start in 2021. Watch the replay of that race and you’ll appreciate the fact he was able to finish third and not worse in that nine-horse field.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Rockcrest, the current leader of Woodbine’s older sprint division, will try for an elusive Vice Regent Stakes score on Saturday in a tough edition of the five-furlong inner turf dash for Ontario-breds.

After wintering in Florida, Rockcrest beat reigning Canadian champion male sprinter Filo Di Arianna while exiting a layoff in a conditioned allowance here April 29. The speedy 6-year-old got away with a soft opening quarter most recently in the six-furlong Pink Lloyd Stakes, and never looked back in a two-length tally with a career-high 97 Beyer Speed Figure.

Me Gusta Luna seems the one to beat in Saturday’s $25,000 claiming feature at Emerald Downs. The Rigoberto Velasquez trainee looked like quite the astute $4,500 weanling purchase at Keeneland when winning first time out for a $25,000 tag against maidens on May 20.

The 3-year-old then jumped into the deep end of the pool in the Seattle Stakes only to break poorly and then have a little bit of traffic trouble soon after the start. Me Gusta Luna eventually finished fourth, 6 3/4 lengths behind divisional leader Aloha Breeze.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – When Charge It won the Grade 3 Dwyer Stakes by 23 lengths last summer, there was a belief he could find his way into the mix for divisional honors in the 3-year-old division.

It never happened.

A foot abscess forced him to miss the Travers Stakes and prompted his connections to shut him down for the remainder of the year.

When Charge It won an allowance race at Gulfstream Park to kick off his 4-year-old season, there was a belief it was the start of him becoming a force in the older male dirt division.

It hasn’t happened yet.