Skippylongstocking Aims to be Newest $6 Million Man

Grade 1 winner Skippylongstocking will return to familiar ground when he attempts to win the $1 million Charles Town Classic Stakes (G2) for a third time Aug. 28 at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races. The race is scheduled to start under the lights at about 10:25 p.m. ET. The 12-time stakes winner captured the three-turn, 1 1/8-mile test in 2023 and 2024 before a disappointing run last year when he yielded in the stretch to finish last of eight. His connections attributed the off-the-board finish to an electrolyte imbalance. That issue appeared resolved when the tough son of Exaggerator bounced back from that effort with three straight stakes wins, closing out the season with a score in the Harlan's Holiday Stakes (G3) at Gulfstream Park before opening his 7-year-old campaign with a victory in the Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1) at Gulfstream and following with a 5 1/4-length score in the Essex Handicap (G3) at Oaklawn Park. The Pegasus marked the first grade 1 victory for Skippylongstocking and the Essex stamped his 12th stakes win overall in a six-season career in which he has secured $5,928,650 in purses for owner Daniel Alonso. He is trained by Saffie Joseph Jr. Along with those 12 stakes wins, Skippylongstocking has landed 10 other stakes placings—the most recent of which were a second in the Alysheba Stakes (G2) May 1 at Churchill Downs and a third in the Monmouth Cup Stakes (G3) July 18 at Monmouth Park. The most recent race was captured by Knightsbridge, who proved a runaway winner of the Pacific Classic Stakes (G1) Aug. 22 at Del Mar. A third-place finish or better Friday would make classic-placed Skippylongstocking the 60th runner to race in North America at some point in their career and earn $6 million or more in purses. If that group is limited to United States-based runners, it's an even more exclusive club. While a third-place finish will provide Skippylongstocking those milestone earnings, the connections, of course, are aiming for more. A victory would make him the first three-time winner of Charles Town's premier race. He enters as the 3-1 morning-line favorite and will start on the outside in the expected field of 10. Tyler Gaffalione, who guided Skippylongstocking to victory in the 2023 Charles Town Classic, is scheduled to ride. To secure victory this year, Skippylongstocking will have to defeat last year's winner, Banishing, who rallied from sixth early to take command in the stretch in registering a 2 1/4-length win. While Banishing is yet to win a grade 1 in his five seasons of racing, the 6-year-old son of Ghostzapper has enjoyed international success this season with a victory in the Godolphin Mile (G2) on the Dubai World Cup (G1) undercard. Like last year's Charles Town Classic, he won that test by 2 1/4 lengths. Trained by co-owner David Jacobson, Banishing enters Friday's test off a clear victory in the Jeff Hall Memorial Stakes July 18 at Ellis Park. Banishing will start two lanes inside of Skippylongstocking and is listed at 4-1. (Banishing also is entered in the Forego Stakes (G1) Aug. 29 at Saratoga Race Course but is expected to start in the Charles Town Classic.)