Grade 1 winners take aim at final stakes of Oaklawn meet

The 2020 Oaklawn Park meet is winding down, with closing day scheduled for May 2. But the Arkansas track still has half a dozen stakes races on the agenda, including the rich Arkansas Derby (G1).

Here is how the fields for these six stakes events are shaping up.

April 25: $100,000 Bachelor S. (6 furlongs)

American Pharoah (G1) winner Eight Rings has been training up a storm for Hall of Fame conditioner Bob Baffert and figures to be heavily favored in the Bachelor, which will mark his first start of 2020.

But the son of Empire Maker could face a stiff challenge from Long Weekend, a dominant, 4 3/4-length winner of the March 21 Gazebo S. over the same track and distance as the Bachelor.

April 25: $125,000 Carousel S. (6 furlongs)

A surprisingly high quality field is expected to contest this 6-furlong dash for fillies and mares, with Grade 1 winners Bellafina and Mia Mischief among the best.

Bellafina will make her 2020 debut, after she finished second in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1) and La Brea (G1) to wrap up 2019. Mia Mischief will step back into stakes company, after she easily won a March 20 allowance at Oaklawn.

The Grade 1-placed Amy’s Challenge, a three-time stakes winner at Oaklawn, will add further depth to the Carousel field.

May 1: $100,000 Arkansas Breeders’ Championship (1 1/16 miles)

The capable sprinter K. J’s Nobility won the 6-furlong Nodouble Breeders’ Stakes on March 28 at Oaklawn and will attempt to stretch his speed around two turns in the Arkansas Breeders’ Championship, a 1 1/16-mile event for Arkansas-breds.

He’ll be joined by former claimer Hamazing Vision, who prevailed in a two-turn allowance race March 19, to bring his record at Oaklawn this winter to a perfect 2-for-2.

May 1: $400,000 Fantasy (G3) (1 1/16 miles)

As the only Road to the Kentucky Oaks prep race currently on the agenda, the Fantasy — which will award 100 Kentucky Oaks qualifying points to the winner — is shaping up to be a deep and competitive race.

Reigning champion 2-year-old filly British Idiom is expected to lead the charge for trainer Brad Cox, though she’ll be joined by stablemate Shedaresthedevil, who overcame a tough trip to win the Honeybee (G3) at Oaklawn last month.

Venetian Harbor, the runaway winner of the Las Virgenes (G2) at Santa Anita, and Swiss Skydiver, who upset the Gulfstream Parks Oaks (G2), are likewise targeting the Fantasy.

It’s also possible the 1 1/16-mile race could attract 2019 Pocahontas (G2) winner Lazy Daisy, who hasn’t run since she finished sixth behind British Idiom in the Nov. 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1).

May 2: $1 million Arkansas Derby (G1) (1 1/8 miles)

With 170 Kentucky Derby qualification points on the line, including 100 points to the winner, the Arkansas Derby is expected to draw a large field.

Baffert will likely enter Rebel (G2) winner Nadal and unbeaten allowance victor Charlatan, which gives the two-time Arkansas Derby-winning trainer a powerful, 1-2 punch.

Louisiana Derby (G2) winner Wells Bayou, Southwest (G3) victor Silver Prospector, Tampa Bay Derby (G2) winner King Guillermo, and Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) upsetter Storm the Court are other graded winners under consideration for the Arkansas Derby, which looms as the final Road to the Kentucky Derby prep race for the foreseeable future.

Farmington Road and Taishan, who finished second and third in the Oaklawn S. on April 11, will try to keep their momentum going with a step up in class. The Grade 1-placed duo of Anneau d’Or and Gouverneur Morris will also try to bounce back from disappointing efforts in the Risen Star (G2) and Florida Derby (G1), respectively.

Should enough horses enter the Arkansas Derby, it’s possible the race will be split into two divisions, so stay tuned.

May 2: $600,000 Oaklawn H. (G2) (1 1/8 miles)

Warrior’s Charge, a gutsy frontrunning winner of Oaklawn’s 1 1/16-mile Razorback H. (G3) two months ago, will try to win right back, with a stretch out to 1 1/8 miles. But he’ll face formidable opposition in the Oaklawn H .

Santa Anita H. (G1) winner Combatant will ship in from California, while Grade 1 winner Improbable (runner-up in three stakes at Oaklawn) could be dangerous in his second start of the season for Baffert.

Last year's Louisiana Derby winner, By My Standards, and the 2019 Jim Dandy (G2) victor, Tax, will bring serious back class to the equation, along with two-time Grade 3 winner Sky Promise.

Recent Essex H. winner Night Ops, who hasn’t missed the trifecta in five starts at Oaklawn, could also factor in the outcome.

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