‘Queen’ Heads Competitive Golden Rod

A competitive field of juvenile fillies, headlined by trip-and-track GII Pocahontas S. winner Dothraki Queen (Pure Prize), will vie to establish themselves as factor on the GI Kentucky Oaks trail in Saturday’s GII Golden Rod S. at Churchill Downs. Dothraki Queen followed up her Sept. 12 Pocahontas triumph with a second-place run in Keeneland’s GI Darley Alcibiades S. Oct. 2 and a third-place finish in the wake of “TDN Rising Star” Songbird (Medaglia d’Oro) in the GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Oct. 31. Conditioned by Ken McPeek, the bay has worked twice over the local strip in the interim and has been installed as the 5-2 second choice on the morning line. The filly’s greatest challenge figures to come from Stageplay (Curlin) and “TDN Rising Star” Carina Mia (Malibu Moon), who ran first and second respectively in an Oct. 10 Keeneland maiden race. Stageplay, a Mike G. Rutherford homebred, came back to capture the one-mile Street Sense S. here Nov. 1, while Carina Mia earned “Rising Star” status with a dominant 9 3/4-length score going 6 1/2 furlongs here Oct. 29. Conditioned by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, the Three Chimneys Farms colorbearer will attempt to stretch her speed over a route distance for the first time in her career. “The big question mark will be the two turns, and that’s what we all want to find out,” said Kenny McCarthy, assistant to Mott. “She’s on the improve with each start. I think with anything she’s developed a bit more maturity with these two races under her belt and she ran so well the first time and came back to run an excellent race the second time.” Michael J. Bruder’s Susies Yankee Girl (Blame) brings an unbeaten record into the Golden Rod and figures to be coming from off the pace as an intriguing longshot. The dark bay, from the extended family of two-time Horse of the Year Wise Dan (Wiseman’s Ferry), broke her maiden with a rallying score Sept. 25 and came right back to win by a half-length over six furlongs Nov. 1. The Dale Romans trainee completed her preparations for this stakes debut with a snappy five-furlong breeze in 1:00.60 Nov. 21. Sugar Cone (Street Sense), a G. Watts Humphrey and St. George Farm homebred, broke her maiden last out over seven panels at Keeneland Oct. 16 and also does her best running from off the pace.