Comical Scores a Goal for Johnson at Saratoga

Comical gave Erik Johnson the first half of a personal daily double.

Now it's up to the Colorado Avalanche.

"To get a win here at Saratoga means a lot," Johnson said. "I hope I can win the Stanley Cup and get a daily double."

Johnson, a defenseman with the Avalanche since 2010, notched one of his lifetime goals as Comical recorded a neck victory in the $150,000 Schuylerville Stakes (G3) for 2-year-old fillies over a muddy (sealed) track on the July 11 opening day card at Saratoga Race Course.

"It's an unbelievable feeling to win at Saratoga. We're blessed," Johnson said. "These horses are amazing animals, and they get the best care in the world, probably better than humans. I got involved in the sport about four years ago, primarily to race at Del Mar, so to win here … it's like winning at Lambeau Field if you're a football player. A lot of work goes into this filly, and I couldn't be more honored to own her."

Trained by Doug O'Neill, Comical came into the Spa stakes off a six-length victory in her May 26 debut at Santa Anita Park when she was owned by Johnson's ERJ Racing, Dave Kenney, and Westside Racing Stable. The group then added Sol Kumin's Madaket Stables and Gary Barber and heeded O'Neill's advice to ship the daughter of Into Mischief  east for the opening day stakes at the Spa.

"As soon as she won, Erik called me and said they were thinking of this race," Kumin said. "I watched the race she won, and I really, really liked her."

He liked her even more after Thursday's race.

Comical prompted the pace of Integral while racing three wide through fractions of :22.54 and :46.24 in the field of eight. Moved to the five path at the top of the stretch by jockey Javier Castellano, she motored to a half-length lead at the eighth pole and then held off a late bid by Three Diamonds Farm's Kiss the Girl.

The 3-1 second choice paid $8.20 to win and covered the six furlongs in 1:11.66.

"She dug in and really ran great," Kumin said. "It was a nice ride by Javier. Doug gave her 6 1/2 weeks to prepare for this, and he had her ready. You always get nervous when they win at 4 1/2 furlongs and wonder if they can go longer, but she finished well."

Bred in Kentucky by Susan Casner, Comical is out of the Tiznow  mare Kayce Ace. She was purchased by Johnson for $100,000 from the Taylor Made Sales Agency consignment at the 2018 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

Kiss the Girl, a Maryland-bred daughter of Into Mischief trained by Todd Pletcher who was bought for $210,000 from the Candyland consignment at the 2018 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Fall Yearlings Sale, took second by a half-length over Shippy, the 6-5 favorite who is also trained by O'Neill and is owned by Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, R.A. Hill Stable, and Joseph Besecker.

It figures to be a short visit at the Spa for Comical as Johnson said the juvenile filly will return to California and point for the Aug. 31 Del Mar Debutante Stakes (G1) at Del Mar.

Video: Schuylerville S. (G3)

Favored Listing Prevails in Quick Call Stakes

Californians made it a sweep of the opening day stakes at the soggy Spa as Listing rallied in the stretch to take the $100,000 Quick Call Stakes (G3T) for 3-year-olds, a 5 1/2-furlong stakes over the yielding turf course.

Trained by Ben Cecil for Reddam Racing and ridden by Joel Rosario, the California-bred Listing notched a half-length victory over a fast-closing Elektronic.

"The turf is soft, but he was handling it fine," Rosario said. "I rode him on the dirt in California, and he went to the grass after that and won easily. It was on the grass again today, so that was good."

Rosario's previous ride on the son of Square Eddie  came in the Echo Eddie Stakes for state-breds at Santa Anita when he finished third. He won the California Cup Turf Sprint Stakes prior to that and afterward returned to the sod and finished fourth in the Silky Sullivan Stakes and then beat open company by 2 1/4 lengths in the five-furlong Desert Code Stakes on turf at Santa Anita in his most recent start.

Sixth early in the field of seven, Listing covered the 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:03.94 as the 7-5 favorite, returning $4.80 to win. 

The victory was the fourth in nine starts and first graded stakes score for the homebred colt out of the Yonaguska mare Marquis Diamond, pushing his earnings to $280,400.

Elektronic, owned and trained by Linda Rice, edged Phoenix Thoroughbreds' Neverland Rock for second by a neck.

Video: Quick Call S. (G3T)

All-Sources Handle Off 22% on Opening Day 

Whether it was the rain, the earlier starting date, or opening on a Thursday, the figures for the opener of the revamped Saratoga meet came in well below last year with a 22% drop in all-sources handle.

A year ago, Saratoga opened on a Friday and generated an all-sources handle of $20,247,319, with on-track handle of $5,403,833 from a paid crowd of 33,714. Thursday's all-sources dropped to $15,754.227, with on-track handle sinking 42% to $3,087,839. The paid attendance of 22,591 was off by nearly 33%.

The July 11 opener was the earliest of the track's modern era and was plagued by humidity at the start of the day and rain throughout the card that left the main track muddy and the turf course yielding for the final four races of the 10-race program.

In particular, the 10th race, which was to be contested on turf, was moved to the main track with a field of three starters.