European Shippers Althiqa, Empress Josephine Headline Deep Field For Keeneland’s First Lady

Godolphin's Althiqa (GB), already a two-time Grade 1 winner in the U.S. in two attempts, headlines a talented field of 13 fillies and mares entered Wednesday for the First Lady (G1) Presented by UK HealthCare.

Scheduled as Saturday's eighth race at Keeneland with a 4:44 p.m. post time, the First Lady is a “Win and You're In” race for the $2 million Maker's Mark Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G1) at Del Mar on Nov. 6.

Trained by Charles Appleby, Althiqa already was multiple group-placed in Europe as well as a Group 2 winner in the United Arab Emirates before coming to North America, where she took the Just a Game (G1) at Belmont in June and the Diana (G1) in July at Saratoga.

Althiqa will be ridden Saturday by Jamie Spencer and exit post three.

She will have to contend with another European invader in the Aidan O'Brien-trained Empress Josephine (IRE).

Owned by Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith, Empress Josephine has made her past four starts in Group 1 company and won the Tattersalls Irish One Thousand Guineas. John Velazquez has the mount Saturday from post position two.

Heading the U.S. contingent are the Estate of Harvey Clarke and Paul Braverman's Harvey's Lil Goil and Susan and John Moore's homebred Princess Grace.

Trained by Bill Mott, Harvey's Lil Goil won the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup (G1) Presented by Dixiana here last fall and followed that with a third-place finish in the Maker's Mark Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf in which she was defeated by a neck.

A winner in one of four starts in 2021, Harvey's Lil Goil will be ridden by Junior Alvarado from post position eight.

Princess Grace, a four-time graded stakes winner, has won six of seven career starts for trainer Mike Stidham and enters the First Lady Presented by UK HealthCare off a victory in the Kentucky Downs Ladies Turf (G3) on Sept. 11.

Kent Desormeaux has the mount on Princess Grace, who will start from post position 10.

Trainer Chad Brown, who has saddled the past three First Lady winners and four overall, will be represented by three runners: Juddmonte's Viadera (GB) and Peter Brant's Regal Glory and Blowout (GB).

Viadera, a three-time graded stakes winner in the U.S., comes into Saturday's race off a victory in the Ballston Spa (G2) at Saratoga. Florent Geroux has the mount Saturday and will leave post position 13.

Regal Glory, a multiple graded stakes winner, captured the De La Rose at Saratoga in her most recent start. Jose Ortiz will ride Saturday and exit post position six.

Blowout, who figures to be the pacesetter, is one for two in 2021 with the victory coming in the Distaff Turf Mile (G2) at Churchill on May 1. She was fourth in the Fourstardave (G1) against males at Saratoga. Blowout will start from post position nine and be ridden by Flavien Prat.

The field for the First Lady Presented by UK HealthCare, with riders and weights from the inside, is:

  1. Abscond (Adam Beschizza, 124 pounds)
  2. Empress Josephine (IRE) (Velazquez, 121)
  3. Althiqa (GB) (Spencer, 124)
  4. Star Command (Brian Hernandez Jr., 124)
  5. Hendy Woods (Tyler Gaffalione, 124)
  6. Regal Glory (Ortiz, 124)
  7. Daddy Is a Legend (Julien Leparoux, 124)
  8. Harvey's Lil Goil (Alvarado, 124)
  9. Blowout (Prat, 124)
  10. Princess Grace (Desormeaux, 124)
  11. Dalika (GER) (Miguel Mena, 124)
  12. La Signare (FR) (Ricardo Santana Jr., 124)
  13. Viadera (GB) (Geroux, 124).

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Letruska To Face Top-Class Field In Personal Ensign

Despite Letruska's imposing presence, a field of nine top-class older fillies and mares will line up in the Saratoga Race Course starting gate to contest the Grade 1, $600,000 Personal Ensign presented by Lia Infiniti at 1 1/18 miles on Saturday's blockbuster Runhappy Travers Day card.

Named in honor of the Phipps Stable's homebred champion and Hall of Famer who went undefeated in 13 career efforts, the Personal Ensign is a “Win and You're In” qualifier for the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Distaff at Del Mar in November.

Owned by St. George Stable and trained by Fausto Gutierrez, the dual Grade 1-winning Letruska will be attempting her fourth consecutive graded stakes score. She has already secured her Breeders' Cup Distaff spot with a dominating gate-to-wire 2 ¾ lengths victory in the Grade 1 Ogden Phipps, also a “Win and You're In” event, two starts back at Belmont Park on June 5.

“She's a horse with a lot of talent. She has a strong character and the different places that we ship get more serious and more competitive,” Gutierrez said of his Mexican champion and the winner of five of her last six efforts, all graded stakes races.

The Personal Ensign is competitive indeed. Every other horse is a graded stakes winner in her own right and the field includes reigning 3-Year-Old Filly champion and 2020 Grade 1 Alabama Stakes and Grade 1 Preakness-winner Swiss Skydiver.

“This race very well could dictate who is the champion older filly and mare,” said Kenny McPeek, who trains Swiss Skydiver and will saddle King Fury in the Grade 1 Travers Stakes on Saturday's card.

Letruska comes into the Personal Ensign as the deserving favorite and will break from Post 6 under Irad Ortiz, Jr.

In the Grade 1 Apple Blossom at Oaklawn Park three starts back, Letruska defeated multiple champion Monomoy Girl by a nose, while Swiss Skydiver was third. Next time out when taking the Ogden Phipps, Letruska finished in front of Bonny South, a Grade 3 winner she meets again in this contest. In her last effort Letruska seemingly toyed with her competition when drawing away to a 5 ¾ lengths triumph in her typical front-running fashion in the nine-furlong Grade 2 Fleur de Lis on June 26 at Churchill Downs.

“This year since the Apple Blossom, she's run with the toughest filles and mares in the division like Swiss Skydiver and Monomoy Girl,” Gutierrez said. “The performance she gave in the Apple Blossom was no coincidence. You don't beat horses like Monomoy Girl by coincidence.

“After Belmont, she was in good condition,” he continued. “It wasn't my original idea to run in the Fleur de Lis. I was going to go to the Delaware Handicap. But after she went back to train at Keeneland, something told me to nominate. After I checked the nominations a couple of times and saw her training, I decided to run her. If we are in a fight to win an Eclipse, we have to win races.”

To that end, McPeek is returning Peter Callahan's Swiss Skydiver to the distaff division. After circumstances forced his hand earlier in the Saratoga meet, he ran her in the Grade 1 Whitney against the boys here last out on Aug. 7 and she finished fourth.

“She needed the race,” McPeek said in reference to the Whitney. “She hadn't run since April. She went through that little fever she had for the Ogden Phipps. She was just off a long time. My preference was the Shuvee. I think it certainly would have been a better launching pad, but it was a good run. I'm sure she's going to improve fitness wise off that.

“In her race at Arkansas against Letruska I had to make a difficult decision. She had a light infection in a hind ankle,” McPeek added. “I felt we had it under control, and I think that dulled her effort a little bit. We're confident she's going to run a lot better than she did at Oaklawn. I think she's going to be able to put three consecutive races together to finish the year, probably in the Personal Ensign, Spinster and then the Breeders' Cup. I think the Whitney hopefully leads us into that.”

Swiss Skydiver, who took the Grade 1 Beholder Mile at Santa Anita in March, will depart from post 4 with Jose Ortiz aboard.

Bonny South, a Juddmonte homebred coming from the powerhouse stable of reigning Eclipse Award-winning trainer Brad Cox, will try to turn the tables on Letruska after a runner-up finish in the Ogden Phipps. The 4-year-old filly was a well-beaten fifth in her last start in the Grade 2 Delaware Handicap as the odds-on favorite but has been breezing with stablemate, Grade 1 Runhappy Travers Stakes 4-5 favorite [and Belmont Stakes-winner] Essential Quality, impressing her trainer in the process.

“She seems to really like it here. She's had some really good moves over the main track and has worked the last two weeks with Essential Quality and holding her own,” said Cox. “We're going to throw her last race out at Delaware. There was a lack of pace, and she probably didn't want to be that close. She needs a set up and she didn't get it. She's been here for a good while and she's settled in, so I'm excited to give her this opportunity.

“I'm excited about getting her back in good form in the Personal Ensign. Hopefully, she has a pace to run at, and I think we'll get that,” Cox added. “She's going to have to step up and run her 'A' race, but she's certainly training like she's ready to do it.”

Bonny South, second in the Grade 1 Alabama to Swiss Skydiver here last year, drew post 3 and Manny Franco takes over the reins.

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Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott is sending out Harvey's Lil Goil, third in the 2020 Alabama, who will be returning to the dirt after making her last six starts on the grass. On July 17 the gray/roan daughter of 2015 Triple Crown champion American Pharoah was fourth in the Grade 1 Diana here.

Harvey's Lil Goil, the winner of the Grade 3 Beaugay on the Belmont Park inner turf course three starts back, drew post 8 and will partner for the first time with Luis Saez.

She turned in an eye-popping bullet five furlongs work over the Oklahoma dirt training track in :59.79 seconds on August 21 for the fastest time of 40 horses working the same distance.

“She did work really well. We've seen her good before, but she's doing well and we're happy with her. She handles either surface [dirt or turf] very well,” said Mott, a three-time winner of the Personal Ensign with Close Hatches [2014], Hall of Famer Royal Delta [2013], and Link River [1994]. “Letruska is the one who's in good form right now, but I'd like to see my horse run well. We're crossing our fingers and she'll give us a good effort, I think.”

As Time Goes By, who runs for the Coolmore connections and has been sent from the Southern California base of Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, ran second to Swiss Skydiver in the Grade 1 Beholder Mile and then racked up a pair of Grade 2 wins, taking the Santa Margarita by 9 ¼ lengths and the Santa Maria by a nose, both at Santa Anita.

The 4-year-old daughter of the Baffert-trained American Pharoah, out of the multiple Grade 1-winning millionaire Take Charge Lady, looks to rebound from a fourth-place finish last out in the Grade 1 Clement L. Hirsch on August 1, where she stumbled out of the Del Mar gate and then came up empty.

“She's probably the best-bred horse in the race. She's a big, beautiful mare,” Baffert said. “She had a bad race last time. I thought she was going to win at Del Mar, but she got away bad and got shuffled back and at Del Mar, if you get shuffled back early you have no chance. So, she just didn't run. She didn't show up that day, and they'll do that.”

Baffert said that the 1 1/8 miles of the Personal Ensign should suit his filly.

“The further the better for her. She's been working really well, so hopefully we'll get a good, clean break. I think she'll like that big track,” he said. “I've been very high on her and took my time with her, so hopefully this race could be her coming-out party. It's a tough race, but it's a good spot for her.”

Hall of Famer Mike Smith will jet in from Southern California to ride As Time Goes By from post 2. Smith and Baffert teamed up to win the 2018 Personal Ensign with Abel Tasman.

Graceful Princess, winner of the Grade 3 Molly Pitcher at Monmouth Park in her last outing, will have home field advantage. Whisper Hill Farm's exquisitely bred daughter of Tapit out of former Horse of the Year Havre de Grace has a pair of Hall of Famers in her corner with trainer Todd Pletcher and jockey John Velazquez [outermost post 9].

“It's a tough race as you'd expect in a Grade 1 but there's a gap in the stakes schedule for older and fillies and mares going long at the moment, so not too many options. She's really stepped it up, her last race in particular, and I hope she can continue moving forward,” said Pletcher, who won this race in 2012 with Love and Pride and in 2006 with Fleet Indian.

Four-time Saratoga leading trainer Chad Brown will attempt to add the Personal Ensign to his redoubtable resume and will saddle Royal Flag and Dunbar Road, who also figure to benefit from some home cooking.

Will Farish' homebred Royal Flag, who breaks from post 5 under Joel Rosario, won the Grade 3 Shuvee here at 1 1/8 miles on July 25 when returning from a three-months layoff, and Peter Brant's 2019 Grade 1 Alabama winner Dunbar Road, who drew the rail, tries to regain her winning ways with new rider Flavien Prat.

“Hopefully, Royal Flag will have a similar trip where she has a big pace in front of her and she can come with her run,” Brown said of the daughter of the undefeated and four-time Grade 1 winner Candy Ride and the Mineshaft (2003 Horse of the Year) mare Sea Gull. “It would be the ultimate for her. It's quite a family. She's been an improving horse over the years, and it would be well deserved.”

Cammarota Racing's Miss Marissa, who is trained by Jim Ryerson and will be ridden by Daniel Centeno, completes the field and will leave from post 7. The 4-year-old daughter of He's Had Enough captured last year's Grade 2 Black-Eyed Susan and enters from a front-running score in the Grade 2 Delaware Handicap on July 10.

The Personal Ensign is slated as Race 10 on the 13-race card. First post is 11:35 a.m. Eastern. For the third consecutive year, FOX will air the Runhappy Travers as the centerpiece of a 90-minute telecast beginning at 5 p.m. The networks of FOX and FOX Sports will air 7.5 total hours of live racing and analysis on Runhappy Travers Day, with coverage scheduled to begin at 11:30 a.m. on FS1. For the complete Saratoga Live broadcast schedule, and additional programming information, visit https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/tv-schedule.

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Longshot Exacta In Jaipur Highlight Of Successful Belmont Day For Hall Of Famer Mott

Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott saddled a pair of longshot chances in Saturday's Grade 1, $400,000 Jackpocket Jaipur and ended up completing a personal exacta when Casa Creed [10-1] posted a two-length score over stablemate Chewing Gum [28-1] in the six-furlong inner turf sprint for 3-year-olds and up on Belmont Stakes day at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

Owned by LRE Racing and JEH Racing Stable, the 5-year-old son of Jimmy Creed registered a career-best 105 Beyer for his first win since capturing the one-mile Grade 2 Hall of Fame in August 2019 at Saratoga.

While Saturday's victory came with a “Win and You're In” berth to the five-furlong Grade 1, $1 million Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint in November at Del Mar, Mott said the distance is likely too short for Casa Creed, who may have found a new niche after winning the seven-furlong Elusive Quality in April on the Belmont green after a long string of races at one mile or greater.

“We'd been looking for some races that would be appropriate, he's not necessarily the greatest miler, I suppose,” said Mott. “We've known he doesn't want to get over a mile.

“He ran the seven-eighths here and ran good,” added Mott regarding the Elusive Quality score. “We'd meant to try him in shorter races in the past but it didn't work out for one reason or another, but it worked out yesterday.”

Mott said he was pleased with the condition of the turf for the Jaipur, which was rated as 'good' despite a deluge of rain on Friday that led to a yielding turf on Day Two of the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival in which the Mott-trained Harvey's Lil Goil finished an even fifth in the 10-furlong Grade 2, $750,000 New York.

Over a drying-out course in the Jaipur, Bound for Nowhere rattled off swift splits of 22.06 and 44.65 to the half-mile, setting up Casa Creed for a sharp closing kick, stopping the click in 1:08.04.

“Given the New York handicap the day before, I thought they might go three-quarters in 11 or 12,” said Mott. “The course held up really well. They weren't kicking up anything. I'll give the NYRA turf man a pat on the back for that. It was in good shape and handled the water well.”

Mott said he has no immediate target for Casa Creed.

“Maybe we'll have a chance to shorten him up to 5 ½,” he offered.

Junior Alvarado, who engineered the winning Jaipur trip, was at the Mott barn Sunday morning and expressed his joy at seeing Casa Creed break through at the top flight.

“He's been right there knocking on the door for a Grade 1 and finally he got it,” said Alvarado.

The veteran rider said it was good to hear the roar of the crowd on Saturday with 11,238 fans in attendance.

“It makes it more exciting,” said Alvarado. “We're competitive athletes and to have the fans there screaming and yelling, it definitely gets you more excited. We needed that yesterday.”

Wachtel Stable, Pantofel Stable and Jerold Zaro's Chewing Gum rallied from last-of-9 to complete the exacta. The 6-year-old multiple graded-stakes placed son of Candy Ride earned a personal-best 99 Beyer.

“He ran a super race, take nothing away from him,” said Mott. “For me, he's the same [as Casa Creed]; a mile stretches him a little bit and five and a half [furlongs] is a little bit sharp – he's coming, it's amazing what they can do in that last sixteenth.”

The Mott-trained exacta returned $335.50 for a $2 wager.

Mott said the Estate of Harvey A. Clarke and Paul Braverman's multiple graded-stakes winner Harvey's Lil Goil, winner of the Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup in October at Keeneland, didn't handle the yielding turf on Friday.

Michael Shanley's Nova Rags, runner-up in the nine-furlong Grade 3 Peter Pan in May at Belmont, turned back to seven-furlongs and finished third behind winner Drain the Clock and runner-up Jackie's Warrior in Saturday's Grade 1 Woody Stephens.

“Grade 1 placed and got a check,” said Mott, with a grin. “He wasn't good enough yesterday, but we took our shot. We knew they'd go fast and hoped they would back up more than they did, but they didn't. They kept going, two good horses.”

Juddmonte Farms homebred Obligatory, a sophomore daughter of Curlin, closed five-wide down the lane to finish second, by a half-length, to Search Results in Saturday's Grade 1 Acorn.

Dayoutoftheoffice posted moderate splits of 23.50, 47.23 and 1:11 in the one-turn mile before giving way to the Kentucky Oaks-runner-up, who got the jump on Obligatory.

“She ran well; no pace,” said Mott. “It was a pace-less race. Didn't suit her, but she still ran good. Take nothing away from the winner.”

Mott indicated Obligatory, winner of the Grade 2 Eight Belles in April at Churchill Downs, would target the seven-furlong Grade 1 Longines Test for sophomore fillies on August 7 at Saratoga.

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Harvey’s Lil Goil Holds Off European Import Lemista In Beaugay

Following a wildly successful sophomore campaign that saw her finish third in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf, Harvey's Lil Goil made a successful return to the races on Saturday, holding off European import Lemista to take the Grade 3, $150,000 Beaugay for older fillies and mares at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., by a half-length in her seasonal debut.

Winner of last year's Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup at Keeneland, Harvey's Lil Goil hadn't run since her surprise third-place finish in the 2020 edition of the Filly & Mare Turf in November at Keeneland, where she missed by just a neck to Audarya. As a 3-year-old, the daughter of American Pharoah also took the Grade 3 Regret at Churchill Downs and finished second in the Dueling Ground Oaks at Kentucky Downs in a productive year that commenced on dirt for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott.

Breaking from the rail in the Beaugay, run at 1 1/16 miles on Belmont's inner turf course, Harvey's Lil Goil was clearly fresh as she bounded out of the gate under Junior Alvarado, who reined her in to sit in second while longshot Platinum Paynter assumed control of the early lead and proceeded to set glacial splits of 26 seconds flat for the opening quarter-mile, 50.93 for the half, and 1:15.28 for three-quarters over the turf listed as good.

The tempo quickened appreciably as the compact field of six rounded the far turn, with the stalking Harvey's Lil Goil putting her neck in front of Platinum Paynter by the time they completed the bend, as Nay Lady Nay and Civil Union, fifth in last year's Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf, lined up to take their shots on the outside.

Lemista emerged from cover along the inside and threatened to spoil Harvey's Lil Goil's comeback party in the stretch. With an eighth of a mile to go Harvey's Lil Goil had inched away to establish a sizable advantage, but Lemista cut into that margin with every stride, making incremental progress throughout the final furlong before she ran out of ground late and had to settle for second behind her classy foe.

“There was a point around the half-mile pole where I checked to see where I was with my filly,” said Alvarado. “At that point, I figured out when I was going to pick it up. If I was going to be worried, it was going to be from someone from behind. This was a nice race for her comeback.

“She's one of those fillies that I've been waiting for this whole winter,” added the winning rider. “I'm glad she's back and that she pulled out the win today. I still feel that she wasn't 100 percent, but she was good enough to beat this group today. She's an awesome filly to have back again and I'm looking forward to this year with her.”

Owned by the Estate of Harvey Clarke and Paul Braverman, Harvey's Lil Goil notched her fifth win from 10 career starts, in the process bumping her bankroll over the $800,000 mark. She returned $4.30 on a $2 win wager as the favorite and completed the distance in 1:43.44, an effort that could set her up nicely for a prospective start in the Grade 2, $750,000 New York on the week of the Belmont Stakes, Mott said.

“It's the way we thought it would play out on paper,” said Mott. “The horse that was on the lead figured to be on the lead. When she felt those horses coming from behind her, she held them safe. It looked like she still had something in the tank.”

Making her North American debut for Brown and owner Peter Brant, Lemista ran lights-out in defeat as she nearly overcame a dawdling early pace beneath Irad Ortiz, Jr. to add to her growing trophy case, which already includes a pair of graded wins in Ireland. She finished three lengths to the good of Platinum Paynter, who continued her good run on the NYRA circuit with another on-the-board finish at long odds, this time in a graded stake.

Platinum Paynter checked in a nose ahead of Nay Lady Nay on the wire, who was followed home by Civil Union and Thankful.

Claimed for just $12,500 last fall by trainer Juan Vazquez and owner Just In Time Racing, Platinum Paynter missed by a length when fourth in the Forever Together at 82-1 to close out her 2020 campaign at Aqueduct, then came back with a second-place finish at 21-1 in the Plenty of Grace on April 11 at the Big A before she outran her odds yet again in the Beaugay.

“She always tries hard,” said Luis Rodriguez Castro, jockey aboard Platinum Paynter. “We got a good second last time and now she finished third. I thought she did everything right. The other horses just fired up. I'm really happy with the way she ran. The trainer did a great job with her. She's running really well and I think she can win one of these races.”

Live racing continues Sunday at Belmont with a nine-race card highlighted by the $100,000 Gold Fever for 3-year-olds going six furlongs on the main track. First post is 1 p.m.

Starting on May 1, Belmont Park re-opened to a limited number of spectators. All admission must be purchased in advance at nyra.com/belmont/tickets/.

For comprehensive information on health and safety protocols in effect for the Belmont Park spring/summer meet, please visit: https://www.nyra.com/belmont/visit/plan-your-visit.

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