Closing out the July 4th weekend at Saratoga are the Grade III Kelso Stakes and the Harvey Pack Stakes, both run on turf. After the unfortunate scratching of Costa Linda from Friday’s Schuylerville which saw the longshot Harper’s Corner carry her form up from Laurel to Saratoga, a duo of Midlantic breds will take the first crack at Saratoga stakes in each feature. New Jersey bred Cruise the Nile will take on the Kelso field while Pennsylvania bred Jean Valjean tackles the Harvey Pack. Both entering as under the radar long shots, these geldings have both flashed the turf potential to be considered even amongst well stocked groups.

Race 6 on the nine race card, the Kelso will be run at a mile on the inner turf course for four year olds and up. Headlined by Chad Brown’s inside breaking Zulu Kingdom, this field may feel better about their chances of tackling the likely favorite as he was unable to win the Grade III Poker Stakes over this course last month. Finishing in third there behind the returning Pass the Hat and the outside breaking Capitol Hill, Zulu Kingdom looks primed for a bounce back effort, and should be on a fairer turf course this time around. He still figures to be aggressive early, which may force the hand of Cruise the Nile who also tends to be forwardly placed. With more speed to his immediate outside from post seven, Cruise the Nile has shown the ability to win from off the pace with his lone jockey Jorge Ruiz who has guided him in all six starts. This Graham Motion trainee has clearly taken a liking to turf in his still lightly-raced career, and also appears best suited for eight furlongs after fading late in the nine furlong Dinner Party last time out. Even at 8/1 on the morning line for owner and breeder Hope H. Jones, this gelding by Cairo Prince – Party Boat, by Into Mischief has been showing improvement in his speed figures and compares well even to Zulu Kingdom. While continued improvement would be needed to win, a strong turf record and jockey trainer combo make Cruise the Nile very dangerous in this spot off the bench.

The Harvey Pack is a five and a half furlong turf sprint also exclusively for four year olds and up. As the penultimate race on the card, this ten horse field is very evenly matched, with four six year old geldings who break from the inside posts who all have winning chances. Breaking to their immediate outside is the elder statesman of the bunch in the seven year old Jean Valjean from Elizabeth Merryman’s barn. Off a layoff from mid May, this chestnut gelding by Uncle Lino – Lady’s Tale, by Tale of the Cat made the switch to turf two summers ago before a year and a half long break from November of 2024. Since his return, this Pennsylvania bred has run three times at Laurel Park, all at this distance. While he was unable to hold onto leads in his two stakes tries, a strong record as a turf sprinter and good early speed should put him in the mix from the break. New jockey Jaime Rodriguez will have the willing Bring Theband Home among others to contend with in the first half mile, as getting to the lead is vital for Jean Valjean to run well. At 15/1 on the morning line, winning in this spot may be a tough ask, but a forward break and strong effort should lead to a good finish on this dry turf course. Jean Valjean is owned by Martha Nevins and Michael Pawasarat and was bred by Hasting Farm.

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