By Alan Carasso
A few weeks removed from having topped this year's Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale on a bid of $3.7 million from Bill Shiveley's Dixiana Farms, Lush Lips (GB) (Ten Sovereigns {Ire}) pounced on long-time leader Classic Q (Classic Empire) with less than a furlong to race in Friday's GII Mrs. Revere Stakes and held off a late surge from East Coast raider Pretty Picture (Munnings) by a long neck as the heavy 1-2 favorite.
Exiting a victory in Keeneland's Oct. 11 GI Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup about 70 miles east on Interstate 64, Lush Lips hit the ground running from the inside gate, but she was outfooted and was content to lay second, as Classic Q–who ran on from behind to fill the runner-up spot in the Oct. 24 GIII Valley View Stakes–reverted to the front-running tactics that saw her annex Saratoga's Wild Applause Stakes and just miss in the GII Lake George Stakes over the summer.
Taken off the fence approaching the half-mile marker by Tyler Gaffalione, Lush Lips looked to have the front-runner where she wanted her on the turn and into the lane. The Gary Barber runner proved a stubborn rival down inside, in large part owing to a fairly sedate time of things on the engine, but Lush Lips called upon her class to push past for the victory. Pretty Picture flashed home for second, while Classic Q was a very game third.
Unplaced in a pair of starts for Donnacha O'Brien at two, Lush Lips had not finished worse than second in any of her previous seven runs for Brendan Walsh and an ownership group that included Medallion Racing, Parkland Thoroughbreds, Hoffman Thoroughbreds and Mrs. Paul Shanahan.
The facile winner of her first two outings under Walsh's care, the bay was runner-up to Nitrogen (Medaglia d'Oro) in the GIII Florida Oaks and again in this track's GII Edgewood Stakes before registering a breakthrough black-type success in the local Tepin Stakes June 28. She was unlucky not to make the Del Mar Oaks her first elite-level triumph Aug. 16, but ticked off that box at Keeneland before making headlines in the adjacent sales pavilion on Nov. 4.
“She's improved the entire year,” said Walsh, who was not far from Shiveley when the bidding on Lush Lips took place that Tuesday afternoon. “All credit to our team. I'm very thankful for the Dixiana Farms team to keep her in training. We had this race in mind after the sale. We'll take her down to Florida after this and get her ready for her 4-year-old season.”
Pedigree Notes:
Lush Lips is easily the most accomplished from five to race from Lamyaa, a half-sister to seven other winners from as many runners, including multiple German group winner and champion Electric Beat (GB) (Shinko Forest {Ire}) and the dam of French GSW & G1SP Melo Melo (GB) (Gleneagles {Ire}) and Treasuring (GB) (Havana Gold {Ire}), victorious at the group/graded level in Ireland and the U.S.
The now-yearling relation to Lush Lips, a colt by Harry Angel (Ire), was a 25,000gns graduate of last year's Tattersalls November Foal Sale and changed hands for €55,000 at this year's Goffs Orby Yearling Sale (Book 1). The mare produced a full-brother to Lush Lips this past Mar. 25.
💋 Lush Lips gets another graded stakes win in the G2 Mrs. Revere at @churchilldowns! @brenpwalsh trains the 3YO filly and @tyler_gaff was aboard!
The G2 Clark is up next!
🎥 #TwinSpiresReplay pic.twitter.com/Lu7wTVppVl
— TwinSpires Racing 🏇 (@TwinSpires) November 28, 2025
Friday, Churchill Downs
MRS. REVERE S.-GII, $269,800, Churchill Downs, 11-28, 3yo, f, 1 1/16mT, 1:41.75, fm.
1–LUSH LIPS (GB), 122, f, 3, by Ten Sovereigns (Ire)
1st Dam: Lamyaa (GB), by Arcano (Ire)
2nd Dam: Divine Grace (Ire), by Definite Article (GB)
3rd Dam: Grey Patience (Ire), by Common Grounds (GB)
(£82,000 Ylg '23 GOFFUK; $3,700,000 3yo '25 KEENOV). O-Dixiana Farms LLC; B-The Pocock Family (GB); T-Brendan P. Walsh; J-Tyler Gaffalione. $147,250. Lifetime Record: 11-5-4-0, $916,760. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree or free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Pretty Picture, 118, f, 3, Munnings–Farofa, by Tiznow.
O/B-Three Chimneys Farm, LLC (KY); T-Chad C. Brown. $57,500.
3–Classic Q, 118, f, 3, Classic Empire–Lovely Em, by Scat Daddy.
($40,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP). O-Gary Barber, Blue Crevalle Racing and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners; B-Winning Bloodstock (KY); T-Mark E. Casse. $28,750.
Margins: HF, NK, HF. Odds: 0.57, 7.31, 5.78.
Also Ran: Bracelet, Caviar Breakfast, Sea To Sky (Ire), In the Stars, J N J Heartandsoul, Table Flirt, Somethinabouther. Scratched: Fast Market, Princess Attitude.
Click for the Equibase.com chart or the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.
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