The Remington Park Oaks (G3) drew a field of eight, with Merlazza pegged as the 2-1 morning-line favorite for the 1 1/8-mile contest Sunday, Sept. 24 at the Oklahoma City racetrack.
A Don Alberto Stable homebred, Merlazza is trained by Brad Cox and will be ridden by Flavien Prat, who teams with Cox-trained Hit Show in the $400,000 Oklahoma Derby (G3) one race later on the track's 10-race card.
Merlazza, a daughter of Medaglia d'Oro, is seeking her first graded stakes win after finishing fifth in the Black-Eyed Susan (G2) at Pimlico in May and then fourth in the Indiana Oaks (G3) at Horseshoe Indianapolis in July. She landed her first stakes victory April 22 in the Valley Of The Vapors at Oaklawn Park.
Cox has never won the Remington Park Oaks but Prat scored in 2021 with Lady Mistify.
Ancient Peace, from the barn of trainer Brian Lynch, is the second morning-line favorite at 5-2 odds. Ancient Peace was second in the Summer Oaks (G2) at Santa Anita in June and then finished 10th over the turf in the San Clemente (G2) at Del Mar in July.
The field for the Remington Park Oaks in post-position order, with (jockey, trainer) and morning-line odds:
1. Perfect Wish (Floyd Wethey Jr., Jayde Gelner) 10-1
2. Merlazza (Flavien Prat, Brad Cox) 2-1 (morning-line favorite)
3. Magic Bubbles (Joel Rosario, Steve Asmussen) 10-1
4. Honor D Lady (Tyler Conner, Saffie Joseph Jr.) 9-2
5. Nomadic Pride (Cristian Torres, Thomas Amoss) 6-1
6. Appropriated Funds (Iram Diego, Jaylan Clary) 8-1
7. Love Tank (David Cabrera, Ray Ashford) 20-1
8. Ancient Peace (Rafael Bejarano, Brian Lynch) 5-2
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