What a Pip(pin)! Whoa Nellie won't be overlooked in Oaklawn's Bayakoa

Whoa Nellie was 20-1 in the program for her stakes debut last month, but she’s the 5-2 program favorite for Monday's Grade 3, $200,000 Bayakoa Stakes for older fillies and mares.

That’s the power of a sparkling 4 ½-length victory in the Jan. 25 Pippin, Oaklawn’s first of three preps for the $1 million Apple Blossom Handicap (G1) coming up April 18.

Post time for the Bayakoa, which goes as the sixth of 10 races, is 3:08 p.m. ET.

Owned by Rick Porter's Fox Hill Farm and trained by Larry Jones, Whoa Nellie is seeking her third consecutive victory after overcoming tibia fractures to the same rear leg twice earlier in her career. Jones said the 1 1/16-mile Bayakoa is Whoa Nellie’s audition for the Azeri Stakes (G2) March 14, the final major local prep for the Apple Blossom. Jones also trains Grade 1 winner and millionaire Street Band, who is being pointed for the Azeri.

“We’ll let those two kind of settle it between themselves and get another race under this one and see where she’s sitting,” Jones said of Whoa Nellie, a 4-year-old daughter of Kentucky Derby winner Orb. “That’s the game plan.”

Whoa Nellie tuned up for the Azeri with a 5-furlong bullet workout in 59.60 seconds over a sloppy track Wednesday.

In addition to Whoa Nellie, Cairenn and the speedy Lady Suebee, 3-4, respectively, in the 1-mile Pippin return for the Bayakoa. New shooters in the projected six-horse lineup are Motion Emotion, Go Google Yourself and early 3-1 second choice Gold Standard.

Motion Emotion, a recent arrival for Southern California-based trainer Richard Baltas, was one of Oaklawn’s leading 3-year-old fillies last year after breaking her maiden sprinting and dominating first-level allowance foes in her two-turn debut. Then under the care of trainer Tom Van Berg, Motion Emotion finished second in the Honeybee Stakes (G3) and the Fantasy Stakes (G3) – Oaklawn’s signature races for 3-year-old fillies.

Motion Emotion recorded her biggest career victory to date in the Zia Park Oaks on Nov. 27 at Zia Park.

Go Google Yourself was an allowance winner last year at Oaklawn for trainer Paul McGee (2018 Canadian Horse of the Year Wonder Gadot was second) before claiming the Groupie Doll Stakes on Aug. 11 at Ellis Park and the Locust Grove Stakes (G3) on Sept. 14 at Churchill Downs. Go Google Yourself, in her last start, finished second in the Falls City Stakes (G2) Nov. 28 at Churchill Downs.

Gold Standard, who was scratched from the Pippin to await the Bayakoa, is seeking her first career stakes victory after finishing second, beaten a half-length, in the Remington Park Oaks (G3) on Sept. 29 at Remington Park and third in the Comely Stakes (G3) at 1 1/8 miles Nov. 29 at Aqueduct in her last start.

“She’s run some winning races,” trainer Brad Cox said. “Obviously, I was very proud of her Remington race. The race was maybe just a touch far her last time at Aqueduct. No real excuse there. She’s a real nice filly.”