Saratoga’s 2026 summer meet reaches its finale on Labor Day, Monday, September 7, with a card of 12 races highlighted by the $200,000 Funny Cide for New York bred 2 year olds and the $200,000 Gio Ponti for 3 year olds on turf.
First post is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. Eastern. The Funny Cide is Race 10 and the Gio Ponti follows as Race 11, giving closing day a stakes doubleheader before the Spa shuts down its summer stand.
Funny Cide: Scramjet and Mindfield meet again
The six furlong Funny Cide brings back two colts who already faced each other at Saratoga. Scramjet won their August 15 state bred maiden by 1 1/2 lengths after setting the pace, while Mindfield finished second after making a serious inside challenge in the stretch.
Scramjet returns for Linda Rice with Ricardo Santana Jr. aboard. Mindfield, trained by Mark Casse, will try to reverse the result under Kendrick Carmouche.
The field also includes Professor Plum, Fullcup, D I Wire and Midnight Raider. Several are lightly raced, so the Funny Cide is less about established hierarchy and more about which juvenile can take the next developmental step at stakes level.
Gio Ponti: Chummers goes for four straight
The one mile turf Gio Ponti centers on Chummers, who enters on a three race winning streak for trainer Ray Handal. His Saratoga run includes victories in the Rick Violette and a division of the New York Stallion Stakes Series Cab Calloway.
Chummers has already won twice at the meet and now gets a chance to close the summer with another stakes score. Dylan Davis retains the mount from post 8.
The opposition is deeper than a story about one horse. Third Coast brings graded stakes experience after competing in the Belmont Derby and National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame. Lyneham arrives from European Group 3 company, while Doubting Thomas enters off a stakes victory at Colonial Downs. Black Hornet, Glorious Boy, Glavine, Siyouincanada and Bull Shoals add further depth, with Chief Wallabee and Talk to Me Jimmy entered for the main track only.
What to watch on closing day
The Funny Cide could identify a New York bred juvenile with room to develop into the fall. The Gio Ponti offers a different test: established 3 year old turf runners, improving regional horses and international form meeting over a mile.
Closing day also brings the curtain down on an extended Saratoga summer that ran through Labor Day. For readers following the final weekend, see our Saratoga Sunday stakes guide and our recap of Mashallah’s Prioress win and Manny Franco’s riding title.
Primary verification sources: New York Racing Association stakes schedule and official race previews. Featured image: Mike Kotsch via Unsplash, used under the Unsplash License; image is illustrative and does not depict the Funny Cide or Gio Ponti entrants.
