Unbeaten Averly Jane pursues Breeders' Cup berth in Indian Summer

Photo: NYRA

Undefeated Averly Jane tops a field of 10 2-year-olds entered Thursday for Sunday’s fourth running of the listed $200,000 Indian Summer going 5 1/2 furlongs on the turf.

Click here for Keeneland entries.

The Indian Summer, a Breeders’ Cup Challenge race that offers the winner a fees-paid berth into the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G2) at Del Mar on Nov. 5, will go as the eighth race Sunday with a 4:44 p.m. EDT post time.

Trained by Wesley Ward, who won the 2019 Indian Summer with the filly Kimari, Averly Jane is one of two fillies in the race for Ward along with Gregory Kaufman’s Kaufymaker.

Averly Jane has won her three starts by a combined 19 1/4 lengths, with stakes victories in the Kentucky Juvenile at Churchill Downs and the Skidmore at Saratoga. She won at first asking at Keeneland as did Kaufymaker, who enters Sunday’s race off a third-place finish in the Juvenile Sprint at Kentucky Downs last month.

Tyler Gaffalione has the call on Averly Jane from post 7, while Irad Ortiz Jr. will pilot Kaufymaker from post 2. The two entrants are the race’s lone fillies.

Trainer Mark Casse, who sent out Strike Silver to win the inaugural Indian Summer in 2018, is back this year with Canadian invader Diamond City.

Owned by D. J. Stable, Diamond City has won one of three starts at Woodbine with the victory coming in his most recent start in the Ontario Racing Stakes on Sept. 19 going 5 furlongs. Diamond City will start from post position 10 and be ridden by Julien Leparoux.