Kentucky Oaks notes: Thursday updates on the fillies in the field
On the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks front, Tapit Jenallie was declared out of the race, allowing Our Pretty Woman to draw in off the also-eligible list for trainer Steve Asmussen. Joel Rosario has the mount.
Here's a Thursday update on the Oaks day contenders one day ahead of the race.
Everland. Everland, winner of the Bourbonette Oaks in her most recent start for trainer Eric Foster, walked the shedrow Thursday.
“She’s doing great, everything’s good, wish we could run the race today,” said Foster, who scored an upset win Wednesday in the featured $291,000 William Walker Stakes with 29-1 Joe Shiesty. Abel Cedillo, who was that winning jockey, also will ride Everland in the Oaks.
“We came in here ready, and we’re not going to change a whole lot,” Foster said. “We’re already fit. Gallop yesterday, walk today, win tomorrow.”
Foster claimed the daughter of Arrogate for $30,000 on Dec. 30, 2023, at Turfway Park. Everland was 44-1 after two days of advance wagering and will start from post 9.
Fiona's Magic. Fiona’s Magic jogged a mile and visited the paddock under Alejandro Mariano.
“Our on-track training is done,” trainer Michael Yates said. “She won’t go to the track in the morning.”
A winner of three of six starts, including the Davona Dale (G2), Fiona’s Magic will exit post 6 under Luis Saez, who will be aboard for the first time.
“I just want to see her break clean and go from there,” Yates said of what he was looking for Friday.
If’Candied draws into the race off the also-eligible list, Saez would have that mount. Yates has John Velazquez on standby, if necessary.
Gin Gin, Tarifa. Gin Gin and Tarifa both galloped about 1 1/2 miles Thursday at 7:30 a.m. EDT for trainer Brad Cox.
“They’re doing as good as you can hope leading into the Oaks,” Cox said. “It’s a solid group of fillies this year and we’re looking forward to the race.”
Into Champagne. Into Champagne was on the track Thursday at the 7:30 a.m. training time for trainer Ian Wilkes.
“She galloped about a mile-and-three-eighths with Adelso Orantes,” Wilkes said. “All good with her.”
Jockey Julian Leparoux will ride Into Champagne, the third-place finisher in the Gulfstream Park Oaks (G2). She has finished in the money in her four career starts with Leparoux.
The filly drew post 10 but will move in one spot with the scratch of Tapit Jenallie. She was bet down to 36-1 after two days of advance wagering.
Just F Y I. Reigning champion juvenile filly Just F Y I continues to train as impressively as any Oaks or Derby contender, putting in another gallop twice around Thursday where she was on the muscle.
The daughter of Justify certainly brings fresh legs to the table for the Oaks as she has had only one start this year, a runner-up finish in the Ashland Stakes (G1) at Keeneland.
“She’s moving great,” trainer Bill Mott said. “When she had that race in the Ashland, I think it was a little wake-up call. You lay those horses up five months and they get a little rusty, but I think she kind of realizes she’s back in the game.”
Rain is in the forecast for Oaks day, but an off track shouldn’t be a problem for Just F Y I. The bay filly won the Frizette Stakes (G1) at Saratoga last October over a sealed, sloppy surface.
Lemon Muffin. For the second straight day, Honeybee Stakes (G3) winner Lemon Muffin jogged once around and in the chute after coming onto the track with stablemate and Derby entrant Just Steel.
Trainer D. Wayne Lukas has been jogging the filly in an effort to keep her energy contained after a swift final workout (58.2 seconds for five furlongs) on Saturday and strong gallop two days ago.
Leslie's Rose, Candied. The two potential Kentucky Oaks fillies who train out of the Todd Pletcher barn took advantage of the 7:30-7:45 training session available for runners pointed for the Kentucky Derby or the Kentucky Oaks.
Leslie’s Rose, who is assured a spot in the 14-horse field for the nine-furlong classic Friday, had regular exercise rider Joel Osorio in the saddle. Candied, who is on the also-eligible list and will need one defection from the race prior to the 9 a.m. Friday scratch time, had exercise rider Carlos Quevedo aboard.
“She went nice and easy today,” Osorio said of Leslie’s Rose and her 1 1/2-mile gallop. “She’s feeling very good.”
Leslie’s Rose will break from post 13 Friday at about 5:51 p.m. Regular rider Irad Ortiz Jr. has the call.
Our Pretty Woman. Our Pretty Woman drew into the Kentucky Oaks field after the defection of Tapit Jenallie.
Trained by Steve Asmussen, Our Pretty Woman galloped about 1 ½ miles Thursday at 5:30 a.m.
Power Squeeze. Power Squeeze was out on the Churchill Downs track Thursday with exercise rider Edwin Castro for trainer Jorge Delgado.
“She went out and galloped her mile-and-a-half,” Delgado said. “Just one more day. With the scratch (of Tapit Jenallie), that changes the race a little.”
Power Squeeze could extend her win streak to five if the upset winner of the Gulfstream Park Oaks (G2) prevails in the Kentucky Oaks. The filly, who is a 11-1 betting choice after two days of advance wagering, drew post 12 with Daniel Centeno in the field of 14, but the scratch will move Power Squeeze one stall closer to the rail.
Regulatory Risk, Ways and Means. With all the hard work behind them, Chad Brown’s Oaks duo of Regulatory Risk and Ways and Means both put in their final gallops ahead of Friday’s signature test for 3-year-old fillies.
With rain in the forecast for Oaks day, Ways and Means might be faced with running over a wet track for the first time in her career. Regulatory Risk caught a sealed, sloppy track in the Busher Stakes at Aqueduct March 2 in which she finished fifth.
“They’re both doing really well, but we’re watching the weather I guess,” Brown said. “These horses don’t have much experience in the wet, particularly Ways and Means, who is the stronger half of the entry. But she is doing super, and I do expect her to run well.”
Tapit Jenallie. Tapit Jenallie was withdrawn from Friday’s Oaks because of a slight injury, trainer Eddie Milligan Jr. said Thursday morning.
“She’s having a little problem with her back end, and we felt like she’s just too nice of a filly to do anything detrimental to her health,” Milligan said.
The trainer said that he first noticed something was a little off the last couple of days, but that the situation didn’t clear up.
“It’s very disappointing, very disheartening, but that’s how this game is,” he said. “She’s been doing really well, and been training really well. It showed up one morning while I was galloping her, and it’s there.”
Milligan said they’ll regroup and plan out an altered racing schedule for her 3-year-old season.
“We’re going to give her a little more time, maybe a 30-day break, let her eat some grass, then re-evaluate and see what we need to do,” said Milligan, who was training Tapit Jenallie to be his first Oaks starter.
Thorpedo Annie. Thorpedo Anna went out Thursday morning for a gallop with her Oaks rider, Brian Hernandez Jr.
After two days of advance wagering, the easy winner of the Fantasy (G2) at Oaklawn Park was the 2-1 favorite.
“She galloped a mile-and-a-half, the usual stuff,” said trainer Kenny McPeek, who was one of several trainers on hand Wednesday night at the Davenport Derby Dash to support Bellarmine University basketball.
Thorpedo Anna, winner of three of her four career starts with Hernandez, drew post 5 for the Oaks.
Where's My Ring. Gazelle (G3) winner Where’s My Ring took care of business relatively early Thursday morning, going trackside with exercise rider David Rodriguez up at 6:20 for a two-mile jog around the big oval.
Trainer Val Brinkerhoff took the filly to the track then watched her stretch her legs from the clocker’s stand on the backside. They were back at Barn 30 shortly thereafter.
“We got her out early today to beat the heat (it has been in the 80s in Louisville of late),” Brinkerhoff said. “She’s as ready as she can be. We’re just hoping for a good trip tomorrow.”
The Twirling Candy filly will break from post 2 in the 14-horse Oaks lineup, with veteran rider Jose Lezcano once again at the controls.