Bellstreet Bridie leads 11 fillies in Monday's American Oaks

Positioned as North America’s final Grade 1 turf test for 3-year-old fillies, Monday’s $300,000 American Oaks has attracted a large field of 11 sophomore fillies at 1 1/4 miles over Santa Anita’s Camino Real turf, with English-bred Bellstreet Bridie rating a big chance in what shapes up as one of the best betting races on the opening day 11-race card.

Although ridden by Flavien Prat to an impressive 4 1/4-length win in her U.S. debut, Mark Glatt's Bellstreet Bridie will be handled by Mike Smith in the American Oaks, as Prat has opted to ride eastern invader Salimah. Close to the pace in the Red Carpet Stakes (G3) at 1 3/8 miles over the Del Mar turf Nov. 24, Bellstreet Bridie assumed command early and drew off to an emphatic 4 1/4-length win at odds of 4-1.

Owned by Red Baron’s Barn and Rancho Temescal, Bell Street Bridie is 6: 1-2-2 at the Oaks distance and is 13: 4-4-3 overall.

Trained by four-time Eclipse champ Chad Brown, Irish-bred Salimah, who ships in from her Belmont Park base, will be seeking her first graded-stakes victory in her first Southern California start.

A winner of her last two races and three of her four career starts, upstart Salimah was a first-out maiden winner going a flat mile on turf Jan. 22 at Tampa Bay Downs and she comes off a rousing three-length score going 1 1/16 miles over a yielding turf in an ungraded stakes Nov. 13 at Aqueduct. Ridden last time out by Jose Ortiz, she was ridden by Prat to a one-length victory going the same distance over the Aqueduct turf in a first condition allowance two starts back on Nov. 13.

Owned by Stephanie Seymour Brant, Salimah’s lone defeat came in her second start, a one mile turf allowance at Saratoga on Aug. 27, a race in which she finished seventh in a field of nine at odds of 3-1.

English-bred Skims, fresh off a one-length win going a 1 1/8 miles on turf in the Sands Point Stakes (G2) at Aqueduct on Oct. 15, retains the services of John Velazquez and rates a huge chance for Shug McGaughey. By superstar Frankel and owned and bred by Andrew Rosen, Skims was a close second going 1 5/16 miles on turf in an ungraded stakes at Kentucky Downs two starts back on Sept. 5 and should have no problem with 1 1/4 miles Monday as she seeks her first Grade 1 win.

Raced exclusively on grass in nine starts, Skims has three wins, a second and two third place finishes.