How to bet the 2024 Ashland Stakes

An octet of three-year-old fillies with Kentucky Oaks aspirations will vie in the opening day feature at Keeneland, the $600,000 Ashland S. (G1). The 2024 Road to the Kentucky Oaks affair attracted a fine group of fillies in a race with numerous attractive contenders. I’m against both of the morning line choices from a value perspective and will tab a trio of horses on top, and in my multi-race wagers, as well. 

Ashland Wagers

• $5 exacta box 1,3,8 ($30)
• 50-cent trifecta 1,3,8 with 1,3,6,7,8 with 1,3,6,7,8 ($18)

#3 Leslie’s Rose (4-1) burned money in the Davona Dale (G2) when third but she remains a major player in the division for Pletcher. The expensive Into Mischief filly was fantastic in her first two career assignments, and I’ll give her a pass for finishing third on the quirky Gulfstream Park oval last time out. The Whisper Hill color bearer rates a big chance with Irad riding.

Alcibiades S. (G1) heroine #1 Candied (6-1) lands in a tough spot for her sophomore debut, but if she runs to her juvenile form, then the Todd Pletcher charge will be a major contender while making her three-year-old bow. The Candy Ride filly was a close third in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) in her latest offering, and her morning drills in the interim indicate that she will be a threat at a price on Saturday beneath Luis Saez. 

Why the once-beaten #8 Jody’s Pride (8-1), second by a neck in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) in November, is such a generous price is beyond me. This American Pharoah Kentucky-bred commenced her three-year-old campaign with a facile tally in the Busher S. last time out and has a lot of room for improvement second off the bench. The fact that Jorge Abreu opts for this race, as opposed to a run in the Empire State, tells me that he thinks that the sophomore has a major chance on Saturday. Flavien Prat returning to ride is a major plus, in my opinion. 

I surely have a lot of respect for both champion #6 Just F Y I (3-1) and the impressive Godolphin homebred #7 Impel (2-1), but both appear to be overrated in the wagering with this much class on board. I’ll take a stand against each of the talented fillies in the top slot.