How to bet the 2024 Diana Stakes

Conditioner Chad Brown has saddled a total of eight winners of the $500,000 Diana S. (G1), including seven since 2016, and he has five chances to extend his mark in the Saturday feature at Saratoga. This is a superb rendition of the nine-furlong grassy tussle for fillies and mares, with an abundance of class from top to bottom in the contest. 

Diana Wagers

• $16 win #10 Chili Flag ($16)
• $1 trifecta 8,10 with 8,10 with all ($16)
• $1 trifecta 8,10 with all with 8,10 ($16)

There are multiple reasons to side against Brown’s #10 Chili Flag (9-2), but I still consider her to be a must-use in the race. The cons include her drawing widest of all in the especially deep field, she has no early speed, and the Cityscape mare might be a miler who will not close as robustly at the 1 1/8 miles trip, too. But, with all things considered, I can’t get past how good she has looked to me in her last two outings when powering home to wins in both the Distaff Turf Mile (G2) at Churchill and the Just A Game (G1) on this oval in June. 

Chili Flag has undoubtedly elevated her game as a five-year-old, and she has an obvious affinity for the Saratoga turf, too. She furiously ran past a top field on the oval in her latest and will be a major threat with even minor improvement. Irad stays. 

I’ll also include fellow one-run closer #8 Neecie Marie (15-1), who really caught my eye when second in the New York S. (G1) behind a soft pace here during Belmont Stakes weekend. The underrated four-year-old ran some really big races in the Empire State as a sophomore, and she has improved in 2024 from two appearances. The Cross Traffic filly has performed quite well at multiple distances and over all kinds of surfaces (firm, good, yielding), and she might peak in her third run off the shelf, as well. Her running style is not ideal over the inner surface, but there is a chance that the early tempo could be decent to aid her run. I wish that Joel Rosario retained the ride for a sign of confidence, but Luis Saez picking up the live mount is a fine alternative. 

There are so many other contenders deserving of a mention in the Breeders’ Cup-quality affair, but I’ll stick with my top pair on this day.