Native Dancer was then given a layoff to recover from sore shins. He returned to racing on the opening day of Saratoga Race Course, August 4, in the Flash Stakes over furlongs. Again the odds-on favorite, he was ridden hard around the turn before drawing away in the stretch to win by lengths. On August 16, he entered the Saratoga Special, noteworthy at the time for having a winner-takes-all purse of $17,000. He won by lengths over a muddy track. He followed up by winning the Grand Union Hotel Stakes on August 23, defeating two previously undefeated colts – Tahitian King and Lafango. He won by lengths while running the fastest six furlongs at that year's Saratoga meeting, 1:11. He completed his dominance at Saratoga by winning the Hopeful Stakes on the meeting's closing day, August 31. Jockey Eric Guerin said, "I never had a second of worry. He took off when I asked him to."