A near-full field of 13 will saddle up for the prestigious Grade I Oaks de English<\/I><\/B> on Saturday to run a mile and a half on the storied Epsom Downs turf course in the co-featured race of the day, one of the most important races for fillies in the world.\u00a0 And it draws an impressive cast this year. The entries by post position:
PP 1 – Jaca <\/B>(Mt. Livermore x Gone West x Roberto) <\/I>ships back across the pond from Michigan for the palmisland<\/I> barn <\/I>after a heartbreaker of a\u00a0loss by a nose in the Grade II Michigan Sophomore Turf Invitational <\/I>at 9 furlongs.\u00a0 Her previous outing was another 2nd, this one by 3 1\/2, in the Grade I Sydney Oaks, at the same distance as this race, 12 furlongs.\u00a0 Her speed figures, while solid, seem a bit light in this company, but as was just pointed out, she certainly stays close to the winners.\u00a0 When she’s on her game, she likes to stalk\u00a0 There is a pretty good likelihood of a brisk pace in this race, and if she’s forced to use too much effort to stay close to these, she could have trouble.\u00a0 Still, a lot to like here, and a lively play in exotics.<\/P>
PP 2 – Malindi <\/B>(A.P. Indy x Storm Cat x Forty Niner)<\/I> is saddled by the escapade <\/I>stable, and comes in with some eye-popping numbers: Like an 8-0-2 record in 13 career starts, including 7 wins in 8 lifetime tries on the grass, and 3 wins in 4 Graded stakes tries, and four races in a row with 90+ speed figs, including a 96 LTO in the Grade I 1000 Guineas<\/I>, and a nice versatile style that lets her run equally well near the pace as from well off of it.\u00a0 Now for the questions.\u00a0 Well, really only one question, it seems:\u00a0 Will she like the distance?\u00a0 Her longest career race is 8 furlongs, and while her daddy had no trouble with distance in the Belmont, her granddaddy was a speed horse who throws almost twice as many sprinters as routers in the sim.\u00a0 But each of her tries at 8 furlongs had her gaining ground in big chunks down the stretch, so she just may be itching to run further.\u00a0 An all-or-nothing kind of bet in this race.\u00a0 If she likes a mile and a half, this gal could be a winner.<\/P>
PP 3 – Peyragudes <\/B>(Unbridled’s Song x El Prado(IRE) x Ack Ack), <\/I>bred and trained by the limpid<\/I> stable, in many ways presents the same pros and cons as her neighbor in post 2. Both have very good records, come in in good form, and are most adept at around a mile.\u00a0 Malindi has a very slight edge in career speed figs (98-96), and Peyragudes has gone a half furlong further (and won) in her career.\u00a0 Peyragudes edged Malindi at the 1000 Guineas <\/I>by half a length, but Malindi made up more ground in the stretch.\u00a0 That leads to perhaps the only significant difference between these two:\u00a0 Running style.\u00a0 When she’s at her best, this girl is running on or near the lead.\u00a0 If there is going to be a speed duel up front (and it seems likely there will be), Peyragudes is in danger of getting used up too early.\u00a0 And of course the same caveat is in place here:\u00a0 IF she likes the mile and a half.<\/P>
PP 4 – The Queen Bee <\/B>(Cryptoclearance x St. Jovite x Drone)<\/I> comes in from the inzy2 <\/I>stable in excellent form, coming off of an 11 furlong win against the boys in wire-to-wire fashion.\u00a0 The question here, however, is class.\u00a0 That last win, however impressive, was in a conditioned allowance, and she’s picked an awfully tough place to run in her first ever stakes race of any kind.\u00a0 My guess is she’ll be a rabbit looking to run as fast as she can for as long as she can, but so far she hasn’t shown the speed figures to beat some of the ladies in this field.\u00a0 She may fry a contender or two along the way though, if they treat this race like a sprint.<\/P>
PP 5 – Things Need Done <\/B>(Shadeed x Swain(IRE) x Majestic Prince) <\/I>is a 7\/1 shot with some gaudy numbers of her own.\u00a0 Trainer sunrunner<\/I> has this gal loaded for bear and ready to go.\u00a0 She’s coming in on a stretch of 5 wins in 6 races, and the one race she didn’t win, she placed in.\u00a0 She too will be wanting to run near the leaders, although she has shown a willingness to stalk just off the leaders when she needs to.\u00a0 The speed numbers are a bit up and down (she’s ranged from an 80 to a 97 in just her last 3 races), but she’s excellent at running just as fast as she needs to.\u00a0 Her longest career races are 11f up til now, but seeing as how she’s won both of them pretty handily, AND she has a stamina-and-then-some pedigree, the extra eighth of a mile shouldn’t hurt.\u00a0 The main thing for this gal, along with about half the field, will again be the pace.\u00a0 If she can rate, she’s got a great shot.<\/P>
PP 6 – Wicked Wench(IRE) <\/B>(Montjeu(IRE) x Blushing Groom x Nureyev) <\/I>is a lightly raced filly (she didn’t race as a two year old), saddled by the tesio <\/I>barn (20% wins), and comes in in red hot form, having handled every hurdle put in front of her with relative ease.\u00a0 She’s got 3 wins and 2 places in 5 lifetime starts, and she’s coming off of a spectacular win in the Grade I Adelaide Oaks<\/I>, at this very distance, where she rode sixth for the first half of the race, moved up just off the shoulder of the leader at the third call, and roared past her and place-finisher Futuristic to win looking back, by 4 1\/2.\u00a0 She’s certainly vulnerable to a bounce here, but we may be seeing a filly that hasn’t scratched her potential yet.\u00a0 The pace, if honest, would seem to set up just right for her, if she keeps running like she has and doesn’t show her inexperience.\u00a0 She certainly hasn’t yet.<\/P>
PP 7 – Incredible Diva(IRE) <\/B>(Galileo(IRE) x Maria’s Mon x In Reality) <\/I>stays at the same track where she won LTO in the ungraded Monster Dot Com Challenge<\/I> over this same course and distance.\u00a0 While she seems very solid in select ungraded stakes, her speed numbers to date don’t suggest anything close to this level of competition.\u00a0 Breeder\/trainer tg <\/I>brings this gal in with high hopes, a solid if not spectacular jock, a good versatile post, and a wing and a prayer.\u00a0 She is fairly inexperienced, and will definitely get better, but this might be too optimistic a place for that improvement.\u00a0 On the other hand, this is why the races are actually run and not just talked about.<\/P>
PP 8 – Basic Instinct <\/B>(Empire Maker x Deputy Minister x Mr. Prospector) <\/I>also got to stay in his same stall as last time out, and in fact resembles Incredible Diva on several levels – both have won at the ungraded level, both have topped out (thus far) below 90 speed fig, both even have 14% winning jocks.\u00a0 But Basic Instinct has a bit more early upside showing here because she’s won her only stakes asking (albeit an ungraded one), it was her last time out, and her running style suits this field to a tee.\u00a0 It’s still going to be a massive jump to expect results going straight to a Grade I Classic from one stakes race, and I’m thinking that while this girl will be passing horses in the stretch, she’s still going to have to run the race of her life to hit the top half of this field.\u00a0 But another one who’s going to be heard from again.<\/P>
PP 9 – Street Away(IRE) <\/B>(Street Cry(IRE) x Kris S. x Bold Ruler) <\/I>comes in off of a disappointing effort, a 6th in the aforementioned Grade II\u00a0 Michigan Sophomore Turf Invitational, <\/I>where she ran an 88, although she did close to within 4 1\/2 of the leader.\u00a0 She’s never gone past 9.5 furlongs, but several of her hard charges at the end suggest she’ll like the added ground.\u00a0 Another nice stalker\/closer style here, but I’d be a bit worried about the speeds she’s shown, as compared to some of the gals in this race.\u00a0 Still, with a crafty veteran like theatrical <\/I>training her (219+ wins), you know she’ll be as ready as she can be when the bell rings.<\/P>
PP 10 – Futuristic <\/B>(Vindication x Sadler’s Wells x Secretariat)<\/I>, bred and saddled by the shades<\/I>, comes in with morning line odds of 16\/1, which at first blush seems a bit high for the runner-up in the prestigious Grade I Adelaide Oaks<\/I>, and it might be at that.\u00a0 But her numbers have topped out (so far) at 89, which may not get it done with this crowd, and game performer though she is, may have run over her head last time out.\u00a0 On the other hand, she may have simply shown she likes this kind of company, and, if that’s the case, then she certainly won’t be intimidated by this calibre of horse.\u00a0 Either way, she has a good versatile style, able to stalk or close from well off the pace, and that’s going to be a big advantage here.\u00a0 Still, all in all, for my money, I’d need to see another race like her last time out to prove that she can win in this company.\u00a0 She’s already proved she belongs in the race with them.<\/P>
PP 11 – Kid Thunder <\/B>(Thunder Gulch x Lemon Drop Kid x Dayjur) <\/I>is the longest shot in the field, and trainer bountyhawk <\/I>is no doubt carrying the stable colors here based on her last time out, a very nice win at 11 furlongs against the boys, as well as a solid 2nd three back, also at 11 furlongs.\u00a0 The problems there are both of those races were against allowance company (albeit open allowances), and the win was with a 77 speed figure.\u00a0 I don’t think this filly is ready to take on this massive kind of leap in class, considering that just 4 races ago, she qualified for (and finished 7th in) a CPU value race of 135.\u00a0 She’s definitely getting better, and we’ll hear more from this gal in the future, but barring a Disney-esque finish here, I don’t think that future is yet.<\/P>
PP 12 – TSR’s Inner Child <\/B>(Shagny x Slew The Coup x Deputy Regent) <\/I>comes in as an intriguing play for the longshot touts in the crowd.\u00a0 This 21\/1 shot, bred and trained by madeline<\/I>, is a bargain-baby extraordinaire, having a 5-2-3 record in 13 lifetime starts, including a stunning win in the Grade I Sydney Oaks <\/I>last time out, where she beat a field including the filly in the number 1 slot in this race, Jaca, did it in convincing fashion, where she was 3rd and a length behind the leader at the 3rd call, and flew past the two in front of her to win it by 3 1\/2 lengths.\u00a0 And at almost 18\/1 odds!\u00a0 She’s the number 2 ranked 3 yr old filly in the turf long division, and the 12 furlongs she ran was the first time she’s been over 9.5.\u00a0 Is she for real at this distance?\u00a0 The speed figure might need to improve to win this one, but with a stunner like last time, it’s entirely possible.\u00a0 Of course, so is a big bounce.\u00a0 But at that price, this gal may be worth a long look.<\/P>
PP 13 – Stricken <\/B>(Dynaformer x Rubiano x Storm Cat)<\/I> is another in this field who has never gone this far, although the Dynaformer x Rubiano cross suggests that might not be a problem.\u00a0 She hasn’t shown drop-dead speed (although she established career highs for herself in her last two races), but she can close some, and that will help here.\u00a0 Still, the class and speed obstacles in her path would have me hesitate to put her in the exotics with these.\u00a0 This is another one who’s going to be a very good racer, maybe even a great one, but it looks like she has a bit of work to do before she gets there.<\/P>
My Picks<\/I><\/B><\/U><\/P>
1) Wicked Wench – comes just off a hot pace to win – not clear by much.<\/I><\/B><\/P>
2) Malindi – Very game effort, can’t quite get up past the winner.<\/I><\/B><\/P>
3) TSR’s Inner Child – Stretch effort passes horses, but not the top two.<\/I><\/B><\/P><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Wide Open Betting Affair Features All Styles, All Strategies<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":392,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2631","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-previews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2631","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/392"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2631"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2631\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2631"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2631"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2631"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}