Multiple graded stakes winner Skippylongstocking will seek to regain the consistent form he showed earlier in the year in the $150,000 Harlan's Holiday Stakes (G3) Dec. 20 at Gulfstream Park.
The 6-year-old son of Exaggerator has not placed in his most recent two starts, but those performances were quite different from his first four starts of the year that resulted in two wins and two thirds in graded stakes company. He won the Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes (G2) at Santa Anita Park, going 1 1/4 miles, and the Challenger Stakes (G3) at Tampa Bay Downs, going 1 1/16 miles. He was also third in the Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1) and the Oaklawn Handicap (G2).
Skippylongstocking is returning in the 1 1/16-mile Harlan's Holiday off a nearly four-month layoff. He returned to the work tab Nov. 7 at Palm Meadows Training Center for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. and has been working steadily since then, producing a 5-furlong bullet in :59.75 Dec. 5, followed by a sharp 4 furlongs in :47.70 Dec. 12.
Owner Daniel Alonso has been on quite a ride with Skippylongstocking, whom he bought for $37,000 out of the Ocala Breeders' Sales Spring 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale from Top Line Sales. The horse has since won 11 of 34 career starts and banked $3,684,110 so far. He has three wins already at Gulfstream and four wins at the Harlan's Holiday distance.
Skippylongstocking will break from post 2 with jockey Tyler Gaffalione aboard. Gaffalione held the reins for the Challenger Stakes win and the third-place finish in the Pegasus World Cup.
Another challenger in the seven-horse field aiming to resharpen his form is Godolphin homebred Poster, a 3-year-old son of Munnings who won the Remsen Stakes (G2) at 2 and ran third in his first start of this year in the Sam F. Davis Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs. He was fourth in his next start in the Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) at Turfway Park before being given some time off by trainer Eoin Harty. Poster returned to racing Nov. 9 at Churchill Downs in a $100,000 1-mile optional claiming race on the grass that he won by half a length. Neither the Harlan's Holiday distance nor the dirt should be an issue with Poster since the Remsen was run at 1 1/8 miles on Aqueduct Racetrack's main track. The Harlan's Holiday will be the colt's first start at Gulfstream Park.
Others with stakes credentials and previous success at Gulfstream include grade 1-placed Catalytic, a 4-year-old son of Catalina Cruiser owned by Tami Bobo and trained by Antonio Sano. The colt ran second in the 2024 Florida Derby (G1) to Fierceness and two races later was second in the Carry Back Stakes at Gulfstream. He has a 3-6-0 record from nine starts at the Hallandale Beach, Fla., track.
Amy Dunne and trainer Patrick Biancone's Classic of Course also has a stakes win at Gulfstream, having won the 7 1/2-furlong Cutler Bay Stakes on the grass back in March. The son of Awesome of Course was gelded Aug. 31 and has won twice and placed third once since that procedure. Overall, Classic of Course has a 4-3-3 record in 13 starts at Gulfstream.
Gulfstream Park, Saturday, December 20, 2025, Race 10Entries: Harlan's Holiday S. (G3)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 Hold My Bourbon (KY) Irad Ortiz, Jr. 121 Saffie A. Joseph, Jr. - 2 Skippylongstocking (KY) Tyler Gaffalione 126 Saffie A. Joseph, Jr. - 3 Catalytic (KY) Javier Castellano 121 Antonio Sano - 4 Classic of Course (FL) Junior Alvarado 118 Patrick L. Biancone - 5 Poster (KY) Flavien Prat 118 Eoin G. Harty - 6 Racing Driver (KY) Edgard J. Zayas 118 Gustavo Delgado - 7 Con Compania (CHI) Miguel Angel Vasquez 121 Bobby S. Dibona -
