Betting With, and Against, Pretty Mischievous in the Fair Grounds Oaks

Hoosier Philly wins the Golden Rod Stakes (Photo by Coady Photography)

March 22nd, 2023

A compact, but superb, field of five three-year-old fillies will vie in Saturday’s $400,000 Fair Grounds Oaks (G2). The 1 1/16-mile affair features a trio of standout fillies, led by morning-line favorite #3 Pretty Mischievous (8-5), who commenced her sophomore season with a measured victory in the Rachel Alexandra S. (G2) on the surface.

Trained by Brendan Walsh, the daughter of Into Mischief has been excellent while boasting a fine four-for-five lifetime mark, with her lone setback resulting in a third-place result in the Golden Rod S. (G2) at Churchill Downs in November.

The Godolphin homebred has good gate presence to establish position early, as well as a fine turn of foot, which makes her a contender every time that she steps on the oval. I believe that she was not fully cranked up in her seasonal bow last time out and will improve while making her second run off the shelf. The classy lass will likely track the pace from second or third to the top of the lane on Saturday for Brian Hernandez.

It's a thrilling finish in the Rachel Alexandra (G2) at @fairgroundsnola on the Road to the #KyOaks as #5 Pretty Mischievous dukes it out for the win with @Tyler_Gaff up for @BrenPWalsh and @godolphin to pay $18.20.

The #TwinSpiresReplay 🎥 pic.twitter.com/2ld3MZxsar
— TwinSpires Racing 🏇 (@TwinSpires) February 18, 2023

#5 Hoosier Philly (2-1) was sensational during her juvenile season when registering a trio of impressive tallies for conditioner Tom Amoss. Also by Into Mischief, the $510,000 yearling purchase was flat in her sophomore debut when a distant third in the Rachel Alexandra but should take a big step forward in this spot.

She has posted a trio of strong morning drills on the surface in advance of Saturday, and the outside post slot will ensure that the talented filly will receive a clean trip throughout the contest. Edgar Morales retains the mount.

Ike and Dawn Thrash’s #4 The Alys Look (2-1) didn’t impress in the first pair of outings to kick off her career, but the Brad Cox trainee has shown marked improvement in her last three performances since having the blinkers removed. The daughter of Connect exits a nice tally in the Silverbulletday S. on the surface and has trained well in the interim. Purchased for $60,000 as a yearling, the Connect filly is bred for distance and will appreciate the slight stretch out in trip on Saturday with Luis Saez staying in the silks aboard the win contender.