Every summer, Saratoga Race Course serves as an epicenter of high-class juvenile racing. Day after day, week after week, promising 2-year-olds take center stage in competitive stakes and maiden races.

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It’s commonplace for juveniles who compete at Saratoga to go on and win major races down the road. Whether they’re shining at the Breeders’ Cup World Championships or seizing the spotlight in the Triple Crown, Saratoga alumni are regularly found at the highest levels of the sport. Three of the last seven Grade 1 Belmont Stakes winners ran at Saratoga during their juvenile seasons, as did 2017 Grade 1 Kentucky Derby hero Always Dreaming and 2022 champion 2-year-old male Forte.

Looking to catch up on the most exciting 2-year-olds from Saratoga’s 2023 meet? We’ve got you covered with a list of five talented youngsters to follow. Perhaps we’ll see the 2023 FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance and/or 2024 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve winner emerge from this group:

General Partner

General Partner started twice during the Saratoga meet. He didn’t show much in his July 22 debut, finishing fourth in a maiden special weight dashing three-quarters of a mile. But when he stretched out over seven-eighths of a mile for a Sept. 2 maiden special weight, he left no doubt about his superiority.

Indeed, General Partner dashed to the front and never looked back, setting quarter-mile fractions of :22.74, :45.92, and 1:09.87 on his way to victory by four lengths in the fast time of 1:22.33. It was an impressive performance suggesting General Partner can become the next star for trainer Chad Brown and owner Klaravich Stables, who previously teamed up to win the Preakness Stakes with Cloud Computing (2017, owned in partnership with William H. Lawrence) and Early Voting (2022).

A son of champion sprinter Speightstown out of the Distorted Humor mare Fleeting Humor, General Partner has plenty of speed in his pedigree, although there’s enough stamina to suggest longer distances are within reach. Speightstown has sired many Grade 1 winners at the Kentucky Derby distance of 1 1/4 miles, while Distorted Humor is the sire of Kentucky Derby winner Funny Cide and Belmont Stakes hero Drosselmeyer. Don’t be surprised if General Partner gives the Road to the Kentucky Derby a try.

Fierceness

Fierceness (Joe Labozzetta/NYRA photo)

One of the most impressive debut winners during the Saratoga meet was Fierceness, a Repole Stable homebred conditioned by Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher.

Fierceness started as the heavy favorite in an Aug. 25 maiden special weight sprinting three-quarters of a mile and obliterated his competition, setting quick fractions of :22.02 and :44.65 before powering clear in the stretch to win by 11 1/4 lengths. He reached the finish line in a fast 1:09.56 on a track labeled muddy.

The pedigree of Fierceness combines speed with stamina. His sire, City of Light, was a brilliant miler who won the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile before stretching his speed over 1 1/8 miles to take the Grade 1 Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes. His dam (mother) is Nonna Bella, a daughter of the long-winded Pletcher-Repole star Stay Thirsty, who won the 1 1/4-mile Grade 1 Travers Stakes after finishing second in the Belmont Stakes.

Speed mixed with stamina is often the recipe for success in the Kentucky Derby, so Fierceness has the potential to make some noise in the 2024 classics.

Locked

A troubled start left Locked racing far off the pace in his Aug. 5 debut dashing three-quarters of a mile at Saratoga. But the Todd Pletcher trainee never gave up and gained a lot of ground in the stretch to finish third, beaten by 3 1/2 lengths.

This promising debut established Locked as a heavy favorite to win a one-mile maiden special weight on Sept. 1 at Saratoga, and the chestnut colt delivered with a stellar performance. After pressing quarter-mile fractions of :23.96 and :47.72, Locked seized a daylight lead and widened his advantage down the homestretch to win by 7 1/2 lengths in 1:36.

The timer revealed that Locked ran his final two furlongs in :11.99 and :11.95, spectacular finishing times for a 2-year-old running long on dirt. A well-bred son of 2017 Horse of the Year Gun Runner out of the Malibu Moon mare Luna Rosa, Locked looks like a star in the making for the partnership of Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners and Walmac Farm.

Risk It

Risk It (Eclipse Sportswire)

Back in 2017, trainer Steve Asmussen and owners Winchell Thoroughbreds and Three Chimneys Farm enjoyed phenomenal success with Gun Runner, who was voted Horse of the Year after rattling off four consecutive Grade 1 wins. Perhaps the same team can return to the spotlight with Risk It, a promising son of Gun Runner.

Produced by the winning Broken Vow mare Wedding Jitters, Risk It started as the favorite in an Aug. 19 maiden special weight sprinting three-quarters of a mile and never gave his rivals a chance to challenge. He broke on top, led by a minimum of 1 1/2 lengths through fractions of :22.60 and :46 and drew off through a sharp final quarter-mile in :24.75 to win by 4 1/2 lengths in 1:10.75.

Risk It has the pedigree to stretch out in distance and improve with maturity, so his future looks bright. He sold for $500,000 as a yearling and could certainly earn back his purchase price if he delivers on the potential he showed at Saratoga. We’ll see how he stacks up against tougher competition when he starts in Saturday’s Grade 3 Iroquois Stakes at Churchill Downs, the first leg of the 2023-’24 Road to the Kentucky Derby.

The Wine Steward

A New York-bred son of champion and 2019 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Vino Rosso, The Wine Steward is undefeated in three starts for trainer Mike Maker. After a smashing a maiden special weight victory against New York-bred rivals at Belmont Park, The Wine Steward took on non-state-restricted competition in the Bashford Manor Stakes at Churchill Downs, where he won by a decisive 2 3/4 lengths.

The Wine Steward made his Saratoga appearance in the Funny Cide Stakes, a $200,000 race for New York-breds traveling three-quarters of a mile. The Wine Steward stumbled a couple of times at the start and got bumped shortly thereafter, but recovered from his early adversity to rally down the stretch and beat pacesetter El Grande O by a head in 1:10.92.

The Wine Steward’s dam is Call to Service, a daughter of Grade 1 Woodward Stakes winner To Honor and Serve. Everything about The Wine Steward’s pedigree suggests he’ll thrive running long and improve with maturity, so a foray on the Road to the Kentucky Derby is very likely ahead for this unbeaten bay colt, who races for the partnership of Paradise Farms Corp. and David Staudacher.