Saratoga: Why Pretty Mischievous will cut back for Test

Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Pretty Mischievous can carry her considerable speed beyond a mile. That much is indisputable after she overcame the outside post to win the 1 1/8-mile Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs. She tacked on another Grade 1 when she fended off Dorth Vader by a head in the 1 1/16-mile Acorn at Belmont Park.

What will the Godolphin homebred’s speed look like at seven furlongs? The connections are determined to get a glimpse of that in the Aug. 5 Test Stakes (G1) at Saratoga.

Michael Banahan, director of bloodstock for Godolphin USA, said the idea had been tossed around as far back as late March. The daughter of Into Mischief, out of the Tapit mare Pretty City Dancer, appeared to idle on the lead in the Fair Grounds Oaks (G2), and Southlawn blew by.

Even as Pretty Mischievous has emerged as the leader of the 3-year-old filly division, the cutback in distance continues to intrigue Banahan and trainer Brendan Walsh. “She can use her speed to advantage, and we know she stays well,” Banahan said. “We thought those two attributes would work really well, and we’re excited to see how she will do in the Test.”

Walsh did not need any arm twisting to bypass the July 22 Coaching Club American Oaks (G1) in favor of the Test. The CCA Oaks went to Wet Paint, another Godolphin homebred.

Walsh said of the decision to keep Pretty Mischievous and Wet Paint apart by running Pretty Mischievous in the Test, “She’s got a ton of natural speed, so I feel the seven-eighths won’t be a problem. The Test is a highly prestigious race, as we all know. It will be very interesting to see how she handles it. But, believe me, if we didn’t think we had a very good chance of pulling it off, we wouldn’t be trying to do it.”

Pretty Mischievous was a very different filly when she swept the only two starts she made below a mile. She took her 6 1/2-furlong debut at Churchill Downs on Sept. 18 and followed that with a seven-furlong success in an optional-allowance claiming race there before advancing to stakes company.

“We’ve always liked her,” Walsh said. “She moved forward with every race through the winter and the spring as well.”

In all, the sophomore has swept six of eight lifetime starts with earnings of $1,481,560. Her only blemish other than the Fair Grounds Oaks occurred in her first try at the graded-stakes level, when she ran third in the Nov. 26 Golden Rod (G2) at Churchill Downs.

Walsh is confident Pretty Mischievous will benefit from the two additional weeks she gained when the Test was chosen for her over the Coaching Club American Oaks.

“She had a busy spring. Since we ran her first last fall, she didn’t miss a lot of time,” Walsh said. “We missed one race in New Orleans (at Fair Grounds) over the winter deliberately, just to give her a bit of time. We were able to give her a couple of easy weeks right after the Acorn, so that was nice, too, to set her up for the rest of the year.”

The veteran Walsh knows fillies such as Pretty Mischievous do not come around often. Mentally and physically, she is the total package.

“She’s got all the qualities of a good one. All she does is eat and sleep,” the trainer said. “She gives herself every chance.”

Banahan and Walsh are tasked with giving her every chance to win the Eclipse Award. They do not believe their gamble in the Test would harm that cause if it should not go well.

“Look, if it doesn’t work out for her, we’re wrong and we know she gets the mile and an eighth as well as she did in the Oaks, and we will pursue longer-distance races,” Banahan said.

No decisions have been made, but Banahan pointed to the Sept. 23 Cotillion (G1), at 1 1/16 miles at Parx, as a possibility for the filly’s next start after the Test.

Pretty Mischievous could strengthen her hold on the division if she can show another dimension and add a third Grade 1 score in the Test.

“We certainly feel we’re in the driving seat at the moment,” Banahan said. “Hopefully, she’ll have a strong finish to the year and she will keep that position.”