With a focus on sprinting in his 4-year-old season, Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners' Built is aiming to build on his résumé, and he will get that opportunity July 25 as the favorite in the $400,000 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Stakes (G2).
Most known for being a consistent presence on Louisiana's 2025 Kentucky Derby (G1) trail, the 4-year-old son of Hard Spun has turned in several eye-catching sprint performances in the allowance ranks this year, including a 6-furlong track record in 1:07.96 March 13 at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots. However, he has still yet to break through in three stakes attempts this year.
He nearly broke through last time, coming up a half-length short June 27 in the Bango Stakes (G3) on a sloppy Churchill Downs track. That was the second race in which trainer Wayne Catalano acquired the riding services of Irad Ortiz Jr., who one month earlier piloted him to a 4 3/4-length allowance win.
Ortiz remains teamed up with Built Saturday as the pair are clear 8-5 favorites from post 8.
Damon's Mound, the 4-1 second choice, will be on the opposite end of the gate after drawing the rail with Junior Alvarado aboard. Hall of Famer Bill Mott will saddle Cliff and Michele Love's multiple graded stakes-winning millionaire son of Girvin , who returns to graded company off two stakes wins against Florida-breds. Mott also enters LRE Racing's stakes winner T Kraft.
Gregory Sacco also ships in a pair of horses from Delaware Park. Donna Wright and Omar Ghrghar's Just Beat the Odds is the more fancied of the two at 9-2 on the morning line. He broke through in December by taking Aqueduct Racetrack's Elite Power Stakes (G3), which he parlayed into a runner-up effort beaten just three-quarters of a length by Imagination when shipping to Saudi Arabia for the Riyadh Dirt Sprint (G2).
The 6-year-old Munnings gelding returned from that adventure to finish third in the Alapocas Run Stakes June 13 at Delaware Park, pressing the pace and getting leg-weary late. It would not be surprising to see him take a step forward in his second start back in the States.
"We brought him back at his own pace and we thought he'd be a little short last time, but those are two good horses that beat him and they had been running through the winter and were dead-fit," Sacco told New York Racing Association publicity. "We were a little compromised with just three (half-mile works at Delaware) going into the race but, all in all, we were very happy with his effort. The main thing is he benefited from that race and has had nice works since."
His stablemate Crazy Mason, owned by Wright in partnership with Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, also seeks a rebound effort after finishing sixth in the 1-mile Hanshin Stakes (G3) June 28 at Churchill Downs. Prior to that, the son of Coal Front was riding a streak of five consecutive graded placings, two of which at the grade 1 level.
Stakes winner Hymn and stakes debuter Cat On Time both enter on three-race win streaks.
Grade 1 winner Nutella Fella is also entered for what would be his 5-year-old debut, but trainer Joe Sharp told BloodHorse July 22 that he is likely to be scratched.
Saratoga Race Course, Saturday, July 25, 2026, Race 9Entries: Alfred G. Vanderbilt S. (G2)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Damon's Mound (FL) Junior Alvarado 122 William I. Mott 4/1 2 2Crazy Mason (KY) John R. Velazquez 124 Gregory D. Sacco 8/1 3 3Cat On Time (KY) Tyler Gaffalione 120 David Jacobson 15/1 4 4Just Beat the Odds (KY) Manuel Franco 120 Gregory D. Sacco 9/2 5 5Nutella Fella (KY) Jose L. Ortiz 120 Joe Sharp 15/1 6 6Hymn (KY) Ricardo Santana, Jr. 122 Ron Moquett 5/1 7 7T Kraft (KY) Flavien Prat 120 William I. Mott 8/1 8 8Built (KY) Irad Ortiz, Jr. 120 Wayne M. Catalano 8/5
