Profiles on Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Field
October 29th, 2015
Land Over Sea ran into a juggernaut named Songbird in her last two races, the Del Mar Debutante (G1) and Chandelier S. (G1), but easily proved best of the rest in that latter contest when 9 3/4 lengths up on Right There in second. However, the Doug O’Neill trainee’s only win to date came in her maiden score on the turf at Del Mar in her second career outing, which could mean she might have been better suited to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1) one day earlier instead of the kicking off Breeders’ Cup Saturday in the Juvenile Fillies (G1)
2 – Tap to It (8-1)
Tap to It has opened her career with a nice six-furlong maiden win at Saratoga and quickly followed up with a runner-up effort in the Spinaway S. (G1) gong seven furlongs. The Ralph Nicks pupil will be trying both 1 1/16 miles and a new track on Saturday, but did get in a nice half-mile work at Keeneland on Monday.
3 – Right There (30-1)
Right There is the most experienced runner in the Juvenile Fillies’ field, boasting a 1-1-1 mark from five starts. Her one win came while breaking her maiden in the Landaluce S. at Santa Anita Park in June. That was the dark bay filly’s second start, and she would go on to be well-beaten fourths in the Sorrento S. (G2) and Del Mar Debutante (G1), before her no-factor third in the Chandelier S. (G1) most recently. Right There has yet to crack a 90 BRIS Speed rating and will be getting blinkers added to help her chances on Saturday.
4 – Ma Can Do It (30-1)
Ma Can Do It enters the Juvenile Fillies winless following a pair of runner-up efforts in maidens and a third in the Alcibiades S. (G1) over track and distance on October 2. It was that latter run that probably prompted her connections to pass the entry box with the bay lass, whose best BRIS Speed rating (82) came in the Alcibiades over a sloppy, sealed track.
5 – Forever Darling (30-1)
Forever Darling faces stakes rivals for the first time on Saturday after breaking her maiden in her second try on September 26 at Santa Anita Park. The Richard Baltas pupil was 1 3/4 lengths the best that day while going 6 1/2 furlongs, and earned a 95 BRIS Speed rating. However, the second- and third-place finishers from that maiden have both been well-beaten in their subsequent races.
6 – Bold Quality (20-1)
Bold Quality was an easy 4 1/2-length debut winner at Parx Racing in August before traveling to Churchill Downs for the Pocahontas S. (G2) last out. The Kelly Breen charge got some valuable experience in that stakes as she finished a half-length second but was disqualified to third for bumping a rival in the lane.
7 – Nickname (4-1)
Nickname has suffered one loss from her three career starts thus far, and that came at the hooves of Rachel’s Valentina in her first outing. The Steve Asmussen trainee put that fourth-placing behind her, though, and proceeded to break her maiden by 3 1/2 lengths before taking the Frizette S. (G1) at Belmont Park by that same exact margin. Nickname has been at Keeneland for much of October, getting in three nice works to ready for the Juvenile Fillies.
8 – Dothraki Queen (10-1)
Sure to be a favorite among any “Game of Thrones” fans in the crowd, Dothraki Queen parlayed a first-out seven-length win on the turf at Ellis Park into a half-length victory in the Pocahontas S. (G2) at Churchill Downs on September 12. Trainer Kenny McPeek then sent the bay lass to Keeneland for the Alcibiades over track and distance, and Dothraki Queen rallied to be a nice second while never getting near the winner. She is in the half of the field who has yet to earn a BRIS Speed rating in the 90s.
9 – Rachel’s Valentina (7-2)
As a daughter of Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra, much has been expected of Rachel’s Valentina and the filly has answered every question. She broke her maiden by two lengths at Saratoga before taking the Spinaway S. (G1) at the Spa in early September by a geared-down length. That latter effort awarded the Todd Pletcher trainee a 94 BRIS Speed rating, and she’ll attempt to clear the next hurdle of stretching out past seven furlongs in the 1 1/16-mile Juvenile Fillies.
10 – Songbird (7-5)
Songbird is justly the 7-5 favorite on the morning line after dominating wins in her three races so far. She broke her six-furlong maiden by 6 1/2 lengths, took the seven-furlong Del Mar Debutante (G1) by 5 1/4 lengths and stretched out to 8 1/2 furlongs for a 4 1/2-length romp in the Chandelier S. (G1) last out at Santa Anita Park. That netted the Jerry Hollendorfer filly a 102 BRIS Speed rating, more than enough to tower over everyone else in this year’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1).
Songbird photo courtesy of Benoit Photos
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