Descending to the Beaumont Stakes
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Two time Grade 1 winner Turbulent Descent heads the field and will no doubt be the overwhelming favorite off the strength of her four lifetime wins. Turbulent Descent began the year in the Las Virgenes Stakes (gr.1) but finished second, proving to be no match for leading Kentucky Oaks contender Zazu. In her second start of the year she held off a fast closing Zazu in the 1 1/16 mile Santa Anita Oaks (gr.1), winning by a neck in a thrilling stretch drive. Despite her impressive score in the Santa Anita Oaks trainer Mike Puype announced his star filly would be pointed for the Nation’s premier sprint races, stating that his filly is at her best in one turn races. She should have little trouble handling the quality of the Beaumont field after having run in three straight Grade 1 races against some of the best fillies in training. Turbulent Descent will break from post position six and shares top weight of 123 pounds with Grade 1 winner Tell A Kelly. She has turned in four excellent works ranging from four to five furlongs in preparation for the Beaumont.
[Turbulent Descent ranks #5 on HRN's 2011 Kentucky Oaks Contenders page]
Tell A Kelly took a long time making her return to the races but is finally back after four months away. In her last start Tell A Kelly finished a fast closing third to Turbulent Descent in the Grade 1 Hollywood Starlet on December 11th. She employed a terrific late rally in her third lifetime start to win the Grade 1 Del Mar Debutante before finishing a tough-luck second to Rigoletta in the Grade 1 Oak Leaf Stakes. She has posted six works since March 11th in preparations for her three-year-old debut, her last move was a sharp four furlong move in :48.00 flat. Expect her to be far back in the short field and closing with a sustained punch in the stretch.
Gran Lioness has proven herself a tough and consistent performer this year while facing high class fields. She began the year with a win in the My Trusty Cat Stakes before finishing third in the Rachel Alexandra Stakes (gr.3) behind Kathmanblu and Inglorious after setting the pace. In her last start she easily won the six furlong Prima Donna Stakes at Oaklawn Park. She’ll have a tough task holding off Turbulent Descent and Tell A Kelly if she once again contests the lead but enters the Beaumont with only three weeks between races so she should be in tip-top shape. Her single four furlong work on April 9th
was extremely slow, as she went in :52.80 but that seems to be the pattern she follows before most of her races and shouldn’t be too much of a concern.
was extremely slow, as she went in :52.80 but that seems to be the pattern she follows before most of her races and shouldn’t be too much of a concern.
Coax Liberty enters the Beaumont off a second place finish in the Grade 3 Cicada Stakes, losing by just half a length. Before her runner up effort in the Cicade she won the Dearly Precious Stakes with a terrific drive halfway down the homestretch and won going away, easily the best. She is in fine form right now and could make some noise if one of the two favorites isn’t on top of their game Sunday.
Aide and Honey Chile complete the field. Aide finished fourth behind Kathmanblu in the Golden Rod Stakes and began 2011 with a fifth place finish behind Bouquet Booth and Daisy Devine in the Silverbulletday Stakes. In her last start she finished second in the Mardi Gras Stakes.
Honey Chile hasn’t raced since finishing seventh behind Dancinginherdreams in the Pocahontas Stakes (gr.2) in late October but has an allowance victory over Keeneland’s Polytrack to her credit. She has turned in three consecutive works during the last few weeks, two at Keeneland that were very promising. She looks like she’s in over her head but with so much time off it’s hard to gauge exactly where she’s at and whether or not she has improved since October.
Turbulent Descent is the filly to beat and will probably win but in the case that she doesn’t win Tell A Kelly looks like a strong second choice even without any starts yet this year. Gran Lioness always runs a good race and should be in contention at the head of the stretch, the question is whether or not she can hold off the two Grade 1 winners. Coax Liberty has consistently run against solid stakes competition but she seems a level below the quality of Turbulent Descent and Tell A Kelly.
Photo Courtesy of Benoit Photography
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