The July 18 Haskell Stakes (G1) will bring a collection of the nation's best 3-year-old males to Monmouth Park and one of them could become the year-end, Eclipse Award-winning champion of the division.
But if people want to see a current champion, they will have to travel to the Jersey Shore a day earlier.
One of just two New Jersey-breds to earn an Eclipse Award, Atlantic Six Racing's Book'em Danno will be the star attraction on the titular "Book'em Danno Day" at Monmouth, as the 2025 champion male sprinter headlines a likely field of seven in the $200,000 Mr. Prospector Stakes July 17.
"Most of the guys who own the horse live near the track. They can have their family and friends there to see him run," trainer Derek Ryan said. "This all came about after talks at the Eclipse Awards with (Monmouth CEO and chairman) Dennis Drazin."
Though the Mr. Prospector originally attracted a field of nine, owner/trainer David Jacobson said both grade 2 winner Banishing and grade 3 winner Durante will be scratched, with Banishing racing in the Jeff Hall Memorial Stakes Saturday at Ellis Park.
Even with a smaller field for the stakes, the day will still belong to Book'em Danno, as the first 2,000 paid customers will receive a Book'em Danno T-shirt, and there will be free admission for Oceanport, N.J., residents.
The purse of the 6-furlong stakes was also increased by $100,000 because of the son of Bucchero 's presence in the field.
For Jay Briscione, the head of the ownership group, having a "home game" will be a festive time for the connections, and will also be a proper tribute to the multiple grade 1-winning gelding who was bred in the Garden State by Gregory Kilka and Bright View Farm and has record earnings for a Jersey-bred of more than $2.1 million.
"It's a pretty cool thing to have a horse who is New Jersey's most successful racehorse and have him recognized here," said Briscione, who acknowledged the work of Drazin and Monmouth officials John Heims, Bill Anderson, and Brian Skirka for putting the race and the celebration together.
As an Oceanport native, Briscione is well aware of the struggles Monmouth has endured over the years to stay afloat, and he and his partners were quite happy to help bring out people to the racetrack on the eve of the showcase $1 million Haskell Stakes (G1).
"It is a hometown track for me. I grew up in Oceanport and the track has been a fabric of the town forever," Briscione said. "They are kicking the can down the road and trying to survive. What they really need is a guaranteed revenue stream like slots, which other tracks in the region have. I hope they get a good crowd on Friday. I hope people realize what could happen here. We've seen so many tracks go by the wayside, and if we lose Monmouth, it would be a disaster. We're doing our part to get a good crowd on Friday. 'Danno' has a pretty big following and hopefully having him run can double the attendance."
Book'em Danno comes into the race 3-for-3 at Monmouth and defeated 2025 Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) winner Bentornato while winning the True North Stakes (G3) at Saratoga Race Course in his last start.
"All races are tough, but he's coming into it good and we are ready to go," Ryan said.
With the Jacobson horses out of the race, grade 3 winner Full Moon Madness (Into Mischief ) and the stakes-winning Quint's Brew (Mosler) should be the main rivals.
Ryan said the Aug. 29 Forego Stakes (G1) at Saratoga would likely be Book'em Danno's last start before the Oct. 31 Breeders' Cup Sprint at Keeneland.
Monmouth Park, Friday, July 17, 2026, Race 7Entries: Mr. Prospector S.
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Silver Slugger (KY) Angel Morales 118 Juan Carlos Avila 20/1 2 2Quint's Brew (MD) Forest Boyce 124 Edward T. Allard 5/1 3 3Book'em Danno (NJ) Paco Lopez 124 Derek S. Ryan 3/5 4 4Go Irish (NJ) Kendry Rivera 118 Panagiotis A. Synnefias 30/1 5 5Durante (KY) Jose Antonio Gomez 124 David Jacobson 12/1 6 6Banishing (KY) Luis R. Rivera, Jr. 124 David Jacobson 4/1 7 7Boardwalk Jack (NJ) Jorge A. Vargas, Jr. 118 Eddie Owens, Jr 30/1 8 8Doroteo (KY) Carlos Eduardo Rojas 118 Alexis Delgado 30/1 9 9Full Moon Madness (KY) Reylu Gutierrez 118 Michelle Nevin 8/1
