NEW YORK -- Ghostzapper, by a neck.

In a thrilling stretchlong duel down the middle of the track, a gallant Ghostzapper held off Saint Liam and won Saturday's $500,000 Woodward Stakes, one of three Grade 1 races at Belmont Park leading up to the Breeders' Cup on Oct. 30.

Ghostzapper established himself as one of the nation's top older horses with his fourth straight victory. And the 4-year-old colt did it impressively with one of the fastest Woodwards ever.

Ridden by Javier Castellano, Ghostzapper covered the 1 1/8 miles in 1:46.38 -- among the top times for the race. Last year, Mineshaft won in 1:46.21, with the record of 1:45.80 set by Forego in 1976.

The victory for trainer Bobby Frankel gives the Hall of Famer a strong contender for the Breeders' Cup Classic, a race he has yet to win but finished second the past two years with recently retired Medaglia d'Oro.

Saint Liam set a wicked pace, covering three-quarters of a mile in 1:08.75 and a mile in 1:33.35, And when the field turned for home, Ghostzapper was right there and both horses swung out wide as their duel to the wire began. They raced neck-and-neck until Ghostzapper stuck his neck in front in the final strides.

Ghostzapper won his previous three races easily, including 10 3/4 -length romp in the Philip Iselin Handicap at Monmouth Park in his last start. Frankel wasn't sure what his colt would do in a close race.

"You had to wonder,'' Frankel said. "He had won his races so easily He fought on today.''

In the other Grade 1s, Stellar Jayne won the $250,00 Gazelle for 3-year-old fillies, and Magistretti took the $500,000 Man o'War on the turf.

Ghostzapper, who earned $300,000 for Stronach Stables with his seventh win in nine career starts, returned $2.80, $2.40 and $2.10 as the 2/5 favorite in the field of seven. Saint Liam, in his first start since April, paid $5.60 and $2.20, and Bowman's Band, 9 1/4 lengths farther back, paid $2.10 to show.

Seek Gold was fourth, followed by Newfoundland, Midway Road and Presidentialaffair.

Frankel said he wasn't sure of Ghostzapper's next start, with the Jockey Club Gold Cup on Oct. 2 a possibility before a likely start in the Breeders' Cup Classic.

Frankel has won three of the last four Woodwards. He won with Lido Palace in 2001 and 2002.

-- In the Gazelle, Stellar Jayne stamped herself a contender for 3-year-old filly honors with a gutsy one-length win over Daydreaming. Stellar Jayne, ridden by Robby Albarado, gave up the lead to Daydreaming at the top of the stretch but fought back gamely to take the 1 1/8-mile race.

It's been quite a productive summer for the gray filly trained by D. Wayne Lukas. Stellar Jayne won the Mother Goose Stakes on June 26, then finished second twice -- to Ashado in the Coaching Club American Oaks on July 24 and to Society Selection in the Alabama Stakes on Aug. 21 -- before adding a second Grade 1 victory to her resume.

Stellar Jayne, likely to make her next start in the Breeders' Cup on Oct. 30, earned $150,000 for Spendthrift Farm. She returned $3, $2.30 and $2.10 as the odds-on favorite in the six-horse field. Daydreaming, trained by Shug McGaughey, paid $3.50 and $2.10, and He Loves Me paid $2.10 to show.

The winning time was 1:48.25.

-- In the Man o'War, Magistretti came flying down the stretch and caught Epalo in the final strides for a 1 1/4 -length win in his first race for trainer Patrick Biancone.

Magistretti, ridden by Edgar Prado, finished third in the Arlington Million in his American debut Aug. 14, but was moved up to second through a disqualification. The 4-year-old colt earned $300,00 for owner Michael Tabor with his first win in five starts this year.

Magistretti returned $8.30, $3.90 and $3, with Epalo, bred in Germany, yielding $3.30 and $3.40. King's Drama, coupled in the wagering with Epalo, was third in the eight-horse field. Winning time for the 1 3/8 miles on the turf was 2:14.65.