Veteran trainer Gary Contessa returned to Saratoga on Thursday after a four-year absence. He won the 105th running of the Grade 3, $175,000 Schuyleville on opening day of the meet with 21-1 long shot Becky’s Joker, who was making the first start of her career.
“This is the way you want to come back,” the very happy Contessa explained. “I’m back. I tried the real world, but this side of the fence is the happier place for me. I like the other side of the fence, but I love this side of the fence.”
For Contessa this was victory number 2,400 in his career that began in 1985. According to Equibase, his last win at Saratoga was with Another Miracle in the 2019 Skidmore Stakes.
“I spent two years at Fair Hills, and before that was COVID,” Contessa said. “It was the year before COVID that I won at Saratoga in 2019.”
Jockey Javier Castellano asked her for more in the turn, and she responded. Splitting rivals at the top of the stretch, Becky’s Joker drew away for a 3 1/4-length victory that was Castellano’s third in the Schuylerville.
