BC Winners Converge in Madison

Less than six months ago, Keeneland played host to the Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred championships, and the winners of two of the races restricted to females begin their respective campaigns in a nails-tough renewal of the GI Madison S. at the historic Lexington oval.

A dual Grade I winner at three, Stopchargingmaria (Tale of the Cat) kicked off her 2015 campaign in this event and rallied strongly in the final stages before dropping a half-length decision to Princess Violet (Officer). She made four subsequent starts, all at nine furlongs, winning the GIII Allaire du Pont Distaff and the GIII Shuvee H. before closing out the year with a neck defeat of subsequent Eclipse Award winner Stellar Wind (Curlin) in the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff.

Wavell Avenue (Harlington) made rapid progress to the top of the distaff sprint division in the latter half of 2015, winning a third-level Saratoga allowance by a nose in August before just failing to catch La Verdad (Yes It's True) in the GII Gallant Bloom H. over 6 1/2 furlongs of the Belmont main track Sept. 26. Those two rivals would come to settle the GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint over this course and distance on Halloween, and Wavell Avenue, dispatched at overlaid odds of 10-1, rallied off fast splits down the center of the track and raced away to a 1 3/4-length success. She subsequently dropped a narrow decision on Eclipse night, but connections hope the 5-year-old can right that wrong beginning Saturday.

Owner Harold Queen elected to keep Sheer Drama (Burning Roma) in training for a 6-year-old campaign and the homebred adds a fair bit of intrigue as she returns over this sprint trip. One of the classier mares around going two turns, the Florida-bred was kept busy in 2015 with eight starts at five different venues. Runner-up in the GI La Troienne S. and GII Fleur de Lis H. at Churchill, the chestnut posted a two-length victory in the GI Delaware H. ahead of tidy tally in the GI Personal Ensign S. at Saratoga. An 8-1 chance in the Distaff, Sheer Drama was hopelessly wide at the entrance to the stretch and ran on with good interest to be fourth, beaten just under five lengths.

Sunday Rules (Tribal Rules) brings her imposing form into this first test beyond the borders of California. A three-time stakes winner within the confines of restricted company, including a defeat of the boys in the Cal Cup Sprint Jan. 30, the bay suffered her lone blemish when a well-beaten third in the GII Great Lady M. S. at Los Alamitos last summer. She be in the early mix and will try to take them as far as she can.