Flurry Racing Stables LLC and Hoffman Family Racing LLC's Key of Life is scheduled to seek her second straight graded stakes victory in Friday's $150,000 Miss Preakness Stakes (G3) at Pimlico Race Course.
The daughter of Mo Town is prominent in a field of seven 3-year-old fillies entered Sunday in the six-furlong sprint, one of five supporting stakes to the $300,000 George E. Mitchell Black-Eyed Susan on Friday's card.
Key of Life has won five of eight career starts, including a gutsy front-running victory in the seven-furlong Beaumont (G2) at Keeneland April 16. The daughter of Mo Town previously finished third in her 2023 debut in Dixie Belle at Oaklawn before capturing the Purple Martin also at Oaklawn.
“She's a Grade 2 winner. Cutting back from the Beard Course (seven-furlongs and 184 feet) to three-quarters definitely seems what she wants to do, as opposed to the extended seven-eighths race where she just barely held. on,” trainer Brad Cox said.
Key of Life graduated in her second career start last August at Churchill Downs before going on to win an optional claiming allowance by 6 ¼ lengths and the Myrtlewood, both at Keeneland going six furlongs. The Kentucky-bred filly concluded a productive juvenile campaign with a troubled third-place finish in the six-furlong Fern Creek at Churchill Downs.
“She's won four stakes. We're backing her up to six furlongs, which is probably what she wants to do,” Cox said. “She's going good. She's had time to recover from the Beaumont.
Flavien Prat has the return call on Key of Life.
Maryland-based trainer Brittany Russell is represented by two fillies in the Miss Preakness field, Black Cloud Racing Stable LLC's Bound by Destiny and Madaket Stables LLC's L Street Lady.
Bound by Destiny is scheduled to make her first start for Russell in her 2023 debut. The daughter of Lord Nelson won her first four races before finishing off the board in her 2022 finale in the Nov. 12 Smart Halo at Laurel Park.
“She's coming off the layoff. She was down training in Middleburg. They were legging her up down there. Actually, Madison Meyers had her for me and she put some works into her. I brought her in and I worked her, and she worked really well. I thought, 'wow, she's a little more ready than I thought she might be,'” Russell said. “Then she and L Street Lady both worked together Friday, and it was a very nice work for both of those fillies. They galloped out well and came out of it well. They both seem to be in a good place considering they're both coming off a little time.”
L Street Lady will return to action off a three-month layoff since an off-the-board finish in the Feb.18 Wide Country at Laurel, which was preceded by a victory in the Xtra Heat.
“We love L Street. She had a very good excuse out of that last run. We were really disappointed,” Russell said. “Unfortunately, you never want to find something wrong, but she did have an excuse and we got her fixed up. We hope she can rebound and run a big one.”
Sheldon Russell has the call aboard Bound by Destiny while Jevian Toledo will ride L Street.
William Heiligbrodt, Corinne Heiligbrodt and Jackpot Farm's Topsy will seek to rebound from a fourth-place finish behind Key of Life in the Purple Mountain Friday. The Steve Asmussen-trained daughter of Bee Jersey previously won her first two career starts at Fairgrounds. Tyler Gaffalione has the mount.
August Dawn Farm's Maple Leaf Mel, who has won all three of her career starts, will make her graded-stakes debut in the Miss Preakness. The New York-bred daughter of Cross Traffic is coming off back-to-back state-bred stakes wins. Trainer Jeremiah Englehart has named Joel Rosario to ride Maple Leaf Mel.
WinStar Farm LLC's Afternoon Tea enters the Miss Preakness off just two career starts. The lightly raced daughter of Speightstown graduated with an off-the-pace victory April 7 at Keeneland that followed a third-place finish in her debut over a sloppy Oaklawn Park race track. Trainer Rodolphe Brisset named Irad Ortiz Jr. to ride Afternoon Tea.
Timothy Freitag's Happy Clouds will seek her first stakes victory in the Miss Preakness. The daughter of Paynter, who finished second in the Beyond the Wire Stakes at Laurel two starts back, has been first or second in her last six starts. Arnaldo Bocachica has the call on the Anthony Farrior trainee.
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