Kentucky Oaks

Searching for redemption following a sub-par effort as the beaten 1-10 choice in her stakes debut last time out, Michael Lund Petersen's Maysam (Game Winner) appeared to have her running shoes on Sunday while registering a hard-fought victory at odds of 3-2 over favored Supa Speed (Justify) in the GIII Fasig-Tipton Santa Ysabel Stakes at Santa Anita. Rushing to the lead from her outside perch facing three others, Maysam, dropping the blinkers here, clicked off an opening quarter in :23/45 as even-money choice Supa Speed kept the frontrunner in her...

With the top five finishers receiving 50-25-15-10-5, respectively, on the Road to the Kentucky Oaks, Drexel Hill (Bolt d'Oro) proved best and took home the top prize in the Busher Stakes at Aqueduct on Saturday. Initially conditioned by Barbara Minshall, the filly broke out of the maiden ranks with a six-length score last fall in what was her fourth attempt at Woodbine. Drexel Hill was then sent to Whit Beckman. The filly finished a well-beaten fifth in the Untapable Stakes in New Orleans Dec. 21, but rebounded to run a...

The Queens M G (Thousand Words), winner of last summer's GIII Adirondack S. and Schuylerville S. at Saratoga, rode the rail to a decisive victory in Saturday's GII Fasig-Tipton Davona Dale S. at Gulfstream Park, good for 37.5 points on the road to the GI Kentucky Oaks. Drawn on the fence and off as the 9-5 second-choice, she traveled nicely on the inside through an opening quarter in :24.24, slipped through along the inside beneath Irad Ortiz, Jr. at the top of the stretch and took off nicely from there...

As the calendar turns to March, Derby fever kicks into high gear with no fewer than six races awarding points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby or the Kentucky Oaks respectively this weekend. Saturday features the return of the undefeated GII San Vincente Stakes winner Barnes (Into Mischief) for trainer Bob Baffert as one of a six-horse field in the GII DK Horse San Felipe Stakes at Santa Anita. The $3.2m FTSAUG grad lines up with a pair of well-regarded stablemates in Mellencamp (Constitution) and 'TDN Rising Star' Rodriguez...

The GIII Honeybee S., rescheduled for one day due to cold weather at Oaklawn, figured to be the key GI Kentucky Oaks prep run so far this year. And it was. Our No. 1 in previous polls Muhimma (Munnings) ran well to finish third, but it was not enough for her to keep her top spot. Take Charge Milady (Take Charge Indy) was 10th and Look Forward (Bolt d'Oro) was seventh. Off those performances both have dropped out of the Top 10. This will be a big weekend for Oaks-bound...

All-American National Champion gymnast Olivia "Livvy" Dunne along with Major League Baseball star Jayson Werth will host meet-and-greets in Sports Illustrated's Club SI at historic Churchill Downs during the 151st runnings of the GI Longines Kentucky Oaks and GI Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve Friday, May 2 and Saturday, May 3, respectively. Club SI, a multi-year exclusive partnership between Churchill Downs Racetrack and Sports Illustrated, debuted at last year's Kentucky Derby and offers guests a modern, sophisticated race day experience as part of the racetrack's recent $200 million reimagined...

The GII Coolmore Fountain of Youth, the final prep for the GI Curlin Florida Derby held March 29, will headline a program laden with nine stakes, of which eight are graded, worth $2.15 million in purses next Saturday. The 79th running of the Fountain of Youth offers qualifying points for the GI Kentucky Derby on a 50-25-15-10-5 scale. Burnham Square, the GIII Holy Bull winner, is scheduled to clash with seven other 3-year-olds entered for next Saturday's feature. Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher is represented in the Fountain of...

The GIII Honeybee Stakes, rescheduled for Sunday at Oaklawn, looks like the toughest GI Kentucky Oaks prep race run so far this year. Led by 'TDN Rising Star' Muhimma (Munnings), the field of 12 includes five horses that are in our Top 10. In last week's action, the GII Fasig-Tipton Rachel Alexandra Stakes, expected to have a powerhouse field of seven, was decimated by scratches. The defectors included the highly regarded Simply Joking (Practical Joke), who was scratched because her white blood cell count was below normal. Though she still...

A halter worn by champion Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) is available in the Bourbon & the Bayou silent auction, run by the non-profit child advocacy organization CASA of Lexington. Bidding on the halter, as well as hundreds of other items, including Kentucky bourbon, vacation packages and gift baskets, is open at https://bandb2025.givesmart.com through 9:45 p.m.  Feb. 28. To directly access the bidding page for the halter, visit https://bit.ly/thorpedoanna. CASA of Lexington's annual Bourbon and the Bayou fundraiser raises funds that provide advocacy for hundreds of abused and neglected children in...

Okay, so possibly Magnitude (Not This Time) won't ever do anything quite like that again. But let's enjoy the moment, at least, and relish the sheer theater of his GII Risen Star performance--much, for instance, as people did the astounding sophomore debut of Dr. Carter in 1984. He had won two of seven previous starts; Magnitude, two of six. But even though so unpressured that he won by 17 lengths, Dr. Carter equalled the Hialeah track record. Their trainer John Veitch declared him better than Alydar. The stage was set...

Simply Joking was failed by 17 vets at the Keeneland September Sale, but Geoff Nixon had an inside track into the filly's history. The daughter of Practical Joke had spent some time at his farm, Grantley Acres, as a yearling and Nixon had liked what he saw. Plus, he knew that her half-brother Drum Roll Please (Hard Spun) was showing promise as a 2-year-old. Nixon took a chance and bought the filly from his friends at Ballysax Bloodstock for $65,000. "To the Thoroughbred world it's not a ton of money,...

Stonestreet homebred Eclatant (Into Mischief) remained perfect in three starts going one turn with a late-running victory in the GIII Fasig-Tipton Forward Gal Stakes to close out the Saturday program in Hallandale Beach. The 4-1 chance was beaten for speed and settled in about midpack early on as longshot and 'TDN Rising Star' Rojo Rita (Volatile) came across from her high draw and was pressed along by Stunner (Girvin) through enervating early fractions. Three deep, but with cover on the back of The Queens M G (Thousand Words) into and...