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Mares on Monday: Classic Q on Her Game at Saratoga

6/8/2026

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​Classic Q has been a work in progress, and on June 6, she delivered the performance that trainer Mark Casse knew she had in her. Coming into the Just a Game Stakes Presented by Resolute Racing (USA-G1) off a win in the Longines Churchill Distaff Turf Mile Stakes (USA-G2), the daughter of 2016 American champion juvenile male Classic Empire went to the front from the start. The delicate-looking filly hung as tough as anyone could ask, scoring her first Grade 1 win by 1¼ lengths under a beautifully judged ride by savvy veteran John Velazquez. She has now earned US$1,349,865, an excellent return on the US$40,000 she cost as a 2023 Keeneland September yearling.

Bred by Winning Bloodstock, Classic Q came along too late to do anything for Classic Empire’s stud career, as he had been exported to South Korea following the 2023 breeding season. According to Thoroughbred Daily News, she is the seventh Classic Empire stakes winner produced from Scat Daddy mares but is the first representative of the cross of earn black type outside South America.

Lovely Em, the dam of Classic Q, won four of her 19 starts and apparently was not an impressive physical specimen, as she sold for only US$9,500 when offered at the 2020 Keeneland November mixed sale, in foal to Copper Bullet. The foal she was carrying (her second) was stakes-placed Copper Em. After producing Classic Q, Lovely Em visited Mo Town and then went back through the sale ring, selling for US$10,000 at the 2022 Keeneland November sale. In her most recent trip to the sales, Lovely Em, then in foal to Vekoma, sold to Barry Ostager for US$38,000 at the 2024 Keeneland November sale. Her Vekoma foal, now a yearling filly, has already been named Red Unit and has undoubtedly appreciated in value thanks to Classic Q, as has Lovely Em. The 13-year-old mare visited Solomini this spring.

A half sister to Bear Holiday (by Harlan’s Holiday), a two-time listed stakes winner as a juvenile, Lovely Em is also a half sister to Kajawa (by Cross Traffic), dam of restricted stakes winner No More Cents (by Goldencents). The siblings were produced from the winner Milagra (by Maria’s Mon), whose Grade 1-placed half sister Rhiana (by Runaway Groom) is the dam of 2008 Coolmore Lexington Stakes (USA-G2) winner Behindatthebar (by Forest Wildcat). Milagra, in turn, was produced from the Fappiano mare Tatiana, whose stakes-placed half sister Nu Myoozik (by Cure the Blues) produced 1996 Gran Premio Nacional Augusto B. Leguia (PER-G1) winner Sol Del Norte (by Local Talent).

Classic Q can be temperamental and quirky, but John Velazquez is now 2-for-2 with her in 2026 and appears to have her figured out. The big question now is the road map through the rest of the season. As a turf miler, her likeliest long-term spot would be the Breeders’ Cup Mile (USA-G1)—always a tough spot, but if anyone can develop this filly further, Casse can. Regardless of where she appears next, she will be one to watch.
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Mares on Monday: Japanese Derby winner Lovcen Hits a High Note for Embur's Song

6/1/2026

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​On May 31, Lovcen overcame a less-than-ideal start and being shuffled back further than desired in the early going to capture his third Group 1 win in the Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby, JPN-G1). Already the winner of the Satsuki Sho (Japanese Two Thousand Guineas, JPN-G1), he is now in position to make a run at history in the Kikuka Sho (Japanese St. Leger, JPN-G1) on October 25. Should he win that race, he would become the ninth winner of the Japanese Triple Crown.

Lovcen is by 2019 Kikuka Sho winner World Premiere, who is by Japanese Triple Crown winner Deep Impact out of a stoutly bred German mare, so he comes by stamina honestly. The question is more where he got the devastating turn of foot that allowed him to run down Basse Terre and Realize Sirius in the final strides to claim victory by a head. The answer just might be a Canadian mare who had a sharp flight of speed in her own right and a family with Classic connections in both the United States and Canada.

Lovcen’s dam, Songwriting, could not win in eight starts in Japan, but as a daughter of Giant’s Causeway, she was going to get good opportunities as a broodmare regardless. A European Horse of the Year, Giant’s Causeway had a fine turn of foot in his own right, and that ability to turn on the jets was reinforced by Songwriting’s dam, Embur’s Song.

Many of the progeny of Unbridled’s Song excelled as sprinter-milers, and that proved to be Embur’s Song’s forte. After placing in two of the three races of Canada’s Triple Tiara series as a 3-year-old, Embur’s Song began her 4-year-old season with tries on dirt and turf at Gulfstream Park finishing ninth and fourth, respectively. Taken to Keeneland, which still had a synthetic surface at the time, the filly came to life. Entered in the Hillard Lyons Doubledogdare Stakes (USA-G3) at a mile and one-sixteenth, Embur’s Song popped out of the gate first and stayed there throughout, winning by a neck in track record time of 1:41.62.

Following that race, Embur’s Song went back to Woodbine and its friendly all-weather surface. Cut back to six and one-half furlongs for the Hendrie Stakes (CAN-G3), she used different tactics than she had shown in the Doubledogdare, stalking the early pace and driving home in the last furlong. She then went to Presque Isle Downs for the one-mile Windward Stakes (a listed race), again over a synthetic surface, and again went gate-to wire, though she lasted by only a nose over a moderate field. Then she went back to Woodbine and went gate-to-wire in the Ontario Matron Stakes (CAN-G3) over a mile and one-sixteenth.

That was the last win of Embur’s Song’s career. Second in the Seaway Stakes (CAN-G3) over seven furlongs, she then tried to repeat her gate-to-wire performances in the Juddmonte Spinster Stakes (USA-G1) but found both the nine-furlong distance and the class of competition to be a bit much for her; after leading through six furlongs, she tired to finish next to last. She had her last race in the Bessarabian Stakes (CAN-G3) over seven furlongs at Woodbine but appeared to be over the top and ran third without showing her usual speed. Still, her season’s efforts were enough to land her a Sovereign Award as Canada’s champion older female.

Although Embur’s Song was not up to top-class competition, she had shown more than enough to make her a desirable broodmare prospect: she had speed, the ability to carry speed through an extended mile, and enough versatility to use different tactics if the situation demanded. When offered at the Keeneland November sale in 2015, in foal to More Than Ready, she fetched US$900,000. Unfortunately, she has been a disappointment as a broodmare, as reflected by her price of just US$22,000 (in foal to Knicks Go) when sold through Fasig-Tipton’s October digital sale in 2024, and it has been her first foal, Songwriting, and the brilliant Lovcen who have brought her a measure of redemption.

Embur’s Song had the genetics to suggest that lightning might strike among her descendants at any time, given reasonable opportunities. She is a half sister to Grade 3-placed juvenile listed stakes winner Ten Flat (by Meadowlake). She is also a half sister to stakes-placed Dawn Raid (by Vindication), the dam of multiple Grade 1 winner Exaggerator (by Curlin), whose victories include the 2016 Xpressbet.com Preakness Stakes (USA-G1).

Embur’s Song and her siblings were produced from multiple stakes-placed Embur Sunshine (by the hardy sprinter Bold Ruckus, a ten-time Canadian champion sire), whose half sister Private Villa (by Private Terms) is the second dam of 2011 Ecuadorean champion 3-year-old male Villa Madrid. Embur Sunshine, in turn, is out of Vevila (by The Minstrel), a half sister to three-time Canadian champion Eternal Search (by Northern Answer), who is the second dam of 2021 Canadian champion 2-year-old filly Mrs. Barbara (by Bodemeister), multiple Grade 2 winner Smokey Fire (by Smoke Glacken), 2012 Palos Verdes Stakes (USA-G2) winner Frumious (by Grindstone), and 2008 Dominion Day Stakes (CAN-G3) winner Jiggs Coz (by Cozzene).

Produced from Bon Debarras (by 1972 Manhattan Handicap winner Ruritania, by Graustark), Vevila is also a half sister to 1990 Queen’s Cup (AUS-G3) winner Raslaan (by Shareef Dancer), and to multiple Canadian stakes winner Gone to Royalty (by Royal Chocolate). In addition, Vevila is a half sister to Finally Found (by Lord Durham), dam of 2002 Jamaica Handicap (USA-G2) winner Finality (by Dehere) and 1991 Demoiselle Stakes (USA-G3) winner Stolen Beauty (by Deputy Minister) and second dam of 2009 Swale Stakes (USA-G2) winner This Ones for Phil. Finally, Vevila is a half sister to listed stakes-placed Savethelastdance (by Nureyev), dam of 2004 Queen’s Plate winner Niigon (by Unbridled) and second dam of 2004 Acorn Stakes (USA-G1) winner Island Sand (by Tabasco Cat) and 2006 Mexican champion 2-year-old male Pozo de Luna (by Famous Again).

Taken in total, Embur’s Song may not seem particularly memorable compared to the great ones of her breed. But if she has indeed contributed some of the speed and fire that have gone into making Japan’s latest racing hero, her name will linger longer in memory than those of many others who started off with greater reputations. Good things, it seems, still come to those who wait.



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Mares on Monday: Memorial Day

5/25/2026

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​In the United States, Memorial Day is set apart as a day to honor those who died in service to their country. For one day, we are called to remember those who gave all they had to give so that others might live and flourish in freedom. Their gravestones stand as memorials to sacrifice and heroism, and they call us to remember that principles truly worth living by and lives truly worth having come at a personal price in selflessness and self-control. Virtuous deaths should be remembered through virtuous lives.

On the world’s battlefields, horses have suffered and died alongside humans. Their sacrifices were involuntary and not imbued with the same meaning that attends the human cost of war. Yet they, too, are worthy of remembrance. From the fleet sons of Lexington that served and died as mounts for cavalrymen and raiders during the Civil War to the tens of thousands of animals bred by the Cavalry Bureau and Army Remount Service for use during the Indian Wars and the two World Wars, Thoroughbreds served alongside animals of many other breeds who bore soldiers into battle, carried messengers and supplies across rough country, and pulled artillery and supply wagons. Their innocent deaths bear witness to our failure to steward God’s creation as He intended and to love our fellow human beings; yet they also bear witness to the close bond between horse and man that held firm even in the horrors of war.

Today, a few scattered memorials have been raised to the memory of the legions of horses that served in America’s wars. Perhaps the most famous is that of Korean War veteran and decorated Marine sergeant Sgt. Reckless—the only horse to hold official rank as a Marine—who gained fame for resupplying her platoon with ammunition while making dozens of riderless trips through gunfire and up and down a 45-degree incline. Her statue stands in honor at the Kentucky Horse Park, preserving the memory of a remarkable friend and battle comrade and, through her, paying tribute to the unnumbered thousands of gallant horses who also served with America’s soldiers.
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Mares on Monday: Black-Eyed Susan Winner My Miss Mo Could Be a Treasure Chest in the Paddocks

5/18/2026

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​My Miss Mo’s connections were disappointed when deciding to pass on the Longines Kentucky Oaks (USA-G1) because of veterinary concerns that might have landed the filly on the vet’s list had they persisted in trying to make the filly Classic. But they got a nice consolation prize last Friday when, given two extra weeks to clear up any nagging little issues, My Miss Mo had no trouble landing the trophy in the George E. Mitchell Black-Eyed Susan Stakes (USA-G2). The win was the first of 2026 for the filly, who was second in the Davona Dale Stakes (USA-G2) and Gulfstream Park Oaks (USA-G2) in her other outings this season, and raised her lifetime record to two wins and three seconds from six starts.

The Black-Eyed Susan Stakes (or Pimlico Oaks, as it was originally known) has had some excellent broodmares on its list of winners, among them Gallorette, Nellie Morse, Real Delight, Serena’s Song, and Vagrancy. It is questionable as to whether My Miss Mo has the talent to equal this list of equine queens, all of whom were champions on the track as well as matriarchs of the breed, but she has the pedigree to suggest that becoming a top broodmare is easily within her reach. A daughter of the late Uncle Mo, whose daughters have already produced the likes of Thorpedo Anna and Journalism, she comes from the female line of Iltis, which forged its way from the blue-collar ranks of a regional market to the heights of international breeding.

A daughter of War Relic, Iltis showed only moderate form as a racehorse, running for claiming tags as low as US$4,500, but it was her good fortune to be purchased by Ocala Stud in 1956 following her racing career. Mated repeatedly to Rough’n Tumble, she produced three key daughters by that sire. The first, My Dear Girl, was the American champion 2-year-old filly of 1959 and helped build Rough’n Tumble’s reputation as the first Florida-based stallion of national importance. My Dear Girl was also a blue hen mare, producing seven stakes winners including the excellent racer and sire In Reality (by Intentionally).

My Dear Girl’s full sister Me Next produced two stakes winners and became the granddam of 1985 Preakness Stakes (USA-G1) winner Tank’s Prospect (by Mr. Prospector), but it was Treasure Chest, the result of Iltis’s 1961 mating to Rough’n Tumble, who elevated the family to international acclaim. The winner of the 1966 Modesty Handicap in track record time during her own racing days, she produced 1975 Margate Handicap (USA-G3) winner Diomedia (by Sea-Bird), 1984 Princess Elizabeth Stakes (ENG-G3) winner Kanz (by The Minstrel), and stakes winner Gold Treasure (by Northern Dancer). She is also the dam of stakes-placed Crown Treasure (by Graustark), whose sons Glint of Gold and Diamond Shoal (both by Mill Reef) were both champions and multiple Group 1 winners in Europe.

Gold Treasure is the dam of juvenile stakes winner Crown Silver (by Spectacular Bid) and of stakes-placed Golden Guinea (by Fappiano), dam of the sharp sprinter Bop (by Rahy). In addition, Gold Treasure is the dam of Isle of Spice (by Diesis), dam of 2001 Oaks d’Italia (ITY-G1) winner Zanzibar (by In the Wings) and second dam of 2009 Elkhorn Stakes (USA-G2) winner Spice Route.

Gold Treasure’s 1987 Slew o’ Gold daughter, No More Ironing, also became a stakes producer, foaling multiple listed stakes winner and Kentucky Oaks third Sneaky Quiet (by Seeking the Gold) and multiple stakes winner Ironman Dehere (by Dehere). In addition, No More Ironing is the dam of Polyester (by Tiz Wonderful), dam of 2020 Pimlico Special Stakes (USA-G3) winner Harpers First Ride (by Paynter). Polyester’s 2018 filly by Quality Road, In a Dream, won one of her three starts and produced My Miss Mo as her first foal. Her subsequent foals are a 2025 filly by Flightline and a colt by Flightline that arrived on March 2, 2026.

Future racing plans have yet to be announced for My Miss Mo, who to date has not yet shown quite the same level of ability as the top fillies of the division. Nevertheless, a Grade 2 win is nothing to sneeze at, and her combination of pedigree, performance, and conformation make her a very attractive broodmare prospect. Any further laurels that she adds to her record will only boost her marketability—and that of her future foals—when her racing career is done.
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Mares on Monday: Marjoram Serves Up Some Spice in Senorita

5/11/2026

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​A savory herb from the mint family, marjoram adds an often overlooked but tasty note of its own to soups, stews, vegetables, and poultry dishes. The herb’s namesake filly, Marjoram, also belongs to a noteworthy family, and if her performance in last Saturday’s Senorita Stakes (USA-G3) is any indication, she may be on the verge of adding her own sort of distinction to the family annals.

Unleashing a sharp kick between horses in the stretch of the 6½ furlong race on Santa Anita’s famous downhill course, Marjoram put the memory of a terrible trip in her first venture over the course behind her as she nipped favored Light Won Up on the wire. The winner of two of her three lifetime starts and with excuses aplenty in the other, the daughter of Quality Road appears to have a bright future in the sprint ranks for breeder-owner Juddmonte Farms and trainer Michael McCarthy.

A full sister to 2025 Mahony Stakes (USA-G3) winner Spiced Up, who likewise scored his biggest win going short on turf, Marjoram is from the family of Coup de Genie, which, in turn, is a branch of a most distinguished clan tracing back through Coup de Folie, Raise the Standard, and Natalma—all modern matriarchs in their own right—to Almahmoud, perhaps the most important American-born mare of the twentieth century. Sired by Mr. Prospector and, thus, a full sister to 1989 French champion juvenile male and important sire Machiavellian, Coup de Genie was rated the best French juvenile of her sex after winning the 1993 Prix Morny (FR-G1) and Prix de la Salamandre (FR-G1) against colts, and her success in the breeding shed was also a close parallel to her brother’s. She produced four stakes winners, headed by 2003 Prix Marcel Boussac (FR-G1) winner Denebola (by Storm Cat), whose granddaughter Senga won the 2019 Prix de Diane Longines (French Oaks, FR-G1).

Glia, a daughter of A.P. Indy, couldn’t match Denebola in talent but won listed stakes in both France and the United States and was G2-placed. She produced six foals, of which the most important has been her firstborn, the Touch Gold mare Soothing Touch. Unable to win in six starts, Soothing Touch produced multiple Grade 1 winner Emollient (by Empire Maker) as her first foal, and Emollient is, in turn, the dam of 2022 Prix de Malleret (FR-G2) winner Raclette (by Frankel) and French listed stakes winner Ardent (by Frankel). Soothing Touch is also the dam of the stakes-winning half brothers Courtier (by Pioneerof the Nile) and Hofburg (by Tapit), both of which are showing promise as sires in South America.

Soothing Touch is also the dam of daughters who are breeding on, most notably Emollient’s full sister, Calm Water. Unable to win in eight tries, Calm Water is the dam of 2024 Dubai World Cup (UAE-G1) winner Laurel River (by Into Mischief), a fragile but talented horse who is now at stud in Japan. Cardamom, a two-time winner by Pioneerof the Nile, hasn’t been represented by anything in that league yet, but with Spiced Up and Marjoram already on her produce record, she is off to an excellent start. Since Marjoram’s birth, she has foaled the 2024 Into Mischief filly Velvet Spice (who has yet to race) and has a yearling colt and a suckling filly by Flightline.

So far, Marjoram’s speed figures have improved with every start of her brief career, and there is no evidence that she has reached her ceiling yet. If she continues improving, she may be a spicy addition to a lively female sprint division, as well as an excellent future addition to the Juddmonte broodmare band.
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Mares on Monday: Always a Runner Lives Up to Her Name in the Kentucky Oaks

5/4/2026

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​Well, this is embarrassing. During the last four months, I profiled a dozen potential candidates for the Longines Kentucky Oaks (USA-G1). Eventual third choice and race winner Always a Runner wasn’t among them, proving once again that handicapping is not my forte. Nevertheless, she is a worthy winner of the lilies, and all the more so in that she was able to pull a Classic win off in just her third lifetime start. Having overcome the serious illnesses that kept her from racing at 2 and limited her action going into the Oaks, Always a Runner has shown remarkable tenacity already, and the best may be yet to come as she continues to develop.

Always a Winner led a 1-2 sweep for 2017 American Horse of the Year Gun Runner, who also sired second-place Meaning. The premier stallion of Three Chimneys Farm is currently third on the American general sire list by both progeny earnings (US$8,250,243) and number of stakes winners (10). His other stars of the spring include Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (USA-G1) winner Further Ado, Grade 2 winners Life of Joy and Paladin, and Grade 3 winners Disruptor and Perfect Shot. A good 3-year-old during his own racing days, Gun Runner came into his best form at age 4 and retired early in 2022 having won five straight Grade 1 races.

Three Chimneys bred Always a Runner from its homebred mare Always Carina. Designated as a Thoroughbred Daily News “Rising Star” after blowing away an optional claimer field by nearly 10 lengths in her second start, Always Carina went on to run a good second in the 2021 Mother Goose Stakes (USA-G2) in her third lifetime outing but was nagged by injuries afterward and retired after three more starts without finishing in the money. Always a Runner is her first foal, and she has since produced three more foals by Gun Runner, including an unraced 2-year-old filly that has not been named after failing to make her reserve on a US$850,000 bid at the 2025 Keeneland September yearling sale. The most recent of Always a Runner’s siblings, a filly, arrived on April 19, just 12 days before her big sister’s heroics.

Always Carina is by the successful Seattle Slew son Malibu Moon, who had an even shorter racing career as he scored an impressive maiden win but then suffered a career-ending injury in his second start. He was probably lucky to get to the races at all, for his dam stepped on him when he was just a few days old and inflicted significant injury to a hind leg. Given a chance at stud in Maryland thanks to an excellent pedigree and the talent he had flashed, he made the most of it, leading the American general sire list in 2010 according to Arion Pedigrees and the Daily Racing Form’s 2011 edition of the American Racing Manual. The sire of 2004 American champion 2-year-old male Declan’s Moon, 2018 Canadian champion female sprinter Moonlit Promise, and 2013 Kentucky Derby (USA-G1) winner Orb, Malibu Moon typically sired big, strong, attractive horses but was suspect as a transmitter of soundness, though his daughters generally withstood training better than his sons.

A half sister to 2019 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (USA-G1) winner Structor (by Palace Malice), Always Carina is out of the winner Miss Always Ready, a full sister to 2010 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (USA-G2) winner More Than Real (dam of Australian listed stakes winner and multiple Group stakes producer Miss Debutante, by Fastnet Rock). The sisters’ sire, More Than Ready, won the 2000 King’s Bishop Stakes (USA-G1) and was an international success at stud, leading the juvenile sire list in both Australia and the United States. Best at distances up to a mile himself, he was a versatile stallion who was recently named a Brilliant/Classic chef-de-race by Dr. Steve Roman.

Miss Always Ready was produced from multiple listed stakes winner Miss Seffens, whose sire, Dehere, was the American champion 2-year-old male of 1993. Miss Seffens, in turn, is out of Canadian restricted stakes winner Noise Enough (by 10-time Canadian champion sire Bold Ruckus), a full sister to 1992 Equipoise Mile Handicap (USA-G3) winner Katahaula County.

Given this family’s history of success on turf, Always a Runner could well have potential on that surface also, but given the success she has had already on dirt, she is unlikely to ever see grass except as something to eat. As it is, she gives the distinct impression that she has yet to reach her full potential. She has improved from start to start in her brief career, taking a maiden race at Tampa Bay Downs and the Gazelle Stakes (USA-G3) at Aqueduct before her Oaks win, and although her margin in the last-named race was not huge (1¼ lengths), she won with complete authority. She is Saratoga bound now with a summer campaign in mind, and barring misfortune, we should hear plenty more from a talented filly who thus far is always a winner.


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Mares on Monday: Two More Contenders for the Lilies

4/27/2026

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With four days remaining before the Longines Kentucky Oaks (USA-G1), two fillies that have not yet been covered in this blog appear likely to go off at odds of less than 10-1. Both have legitimate chances and legitimate question marks.

Explora may have the most raw talent of any filly in the field, but her ability to deliver it may be in question. This daughter of 2010 American champion older male and reliable Claiborne stallion Blame has not raced since March 1, having gone down with an illness prior to a planned start in the Fantasy Stakes (USA-G2). Her final work for the Oaks was a nice move, though, breezing five furlongs in :58.80 on 4/26 at Churchill Downs (third best of 23 works at the distance). Up to now, Explora has been as consistent as anyone could ask, with four wins and three seconds from her seven lifetime starts, and the runner-up in her Honeybee Stakes (USA-G3) win, Counting Stars, franked the form next out by winning the Fantasy impressively. Second in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (USA-G1) last fall, Explora also has experience with a big field and with keeping her mind on business despite the distractions of a large crowd, intangibles that may stand her in good stead on Oaks Day.

Having Blame as the sire is generally the mark of a filly that is likely to move forward as she matures, and there is a bit of Oaks history tied up in Explora’s female line as her fifth dam, White Star Line, won the Kentucky Oaks in 1978. Sent to Europe after producing five foals in the United States (including stakes winner Native Wizard, by In Reality), White Star Line produced 10 more foals, among them 1990 Prix de Pomone (FR-G2) winner Whitehaven (by Top Ville) and multiple Group-placed White Star (by Darshaan). She also produced the winner Hill of Snow (by multiple champion Reference Point, whose wins included the Derby Stakes and St. Leger Stakes—both Group 1 races that are part of England’s Triple Crown series).

Hill of Snow proved quite a good broodmare, her three stakes winners including 1999 Moyglare Stud Stakes (IRE-G1) winner Preseli (by Caerleon). Hill of Snow’s stakes-placed daughter Snowfire (by Machiavellian) was not too far off that level of ability, running second in the 2002 One Thousand Guineas (ENG-G1), and from just three foals, she produced multiple Grade 1-placed stakes winner Model (by Giant’s Causeway). Model, in turn, produced the winner Collections Choice (by Bernardini), who produced Explora as her fifth foal after throwing three other winners from her first four foals of racing age. This is a deep, strong pedigree laced through and through with quality, and if she runs to her bloodlines and the talent she has already shown, Explora should have a strong chance of earning the lilies.

Prom Queen is much less seasoned than Explora, but she stamped herself as a legitimate contender for the Kentucky Oaks with a solid win in the Gulfstream Park Oaks (USA-G2) that didn’t look as if it reached the bottom of her gas tank. Davona Dale Stakes (USA-G2) winner She Be Smooth (who had beaten Prom Queen into second in that race) was back in third, and Prom Queen’s final pre-Oaks move on 4/24 was five furlongs in :59.80, good enough for fourth of 17 timed works at the distance over the Churchill Downs strip. She has improved substantially with every start thus far; however, she will be making only her fourth lifetime start in the Kentucky Oaks, and how she will react to the huge crowd and a much larger field than any she has faced so far will be anyone’s guess.

Prom Queen is a daughter of multiple Grade 1 winner Quality Road, a stallion who is no stranger to the Classic scene as the sire of 2017 Kentucky Oaks winner and American 3-year-old champion filly Abel Tasman and of 2023 Preakness Stakes winner (USA-G1) and 2024 American champion older dirt male National Treasure. Through her dam, Miss Bling Bling, Prom Queen is a maternal granddaughter of three-time American champion sire Tapit, whose credits include four Belmont Stakes (USA-G1) winners. Stamina should not be an issue here, especially seeing that Miss Bling Bling is a full sister to 2017 Black-Eyed Susan Stakes (USA-G2) winner Actress.

Prom Queen is the second foal of Miss Bling Bling, whose dam, Milwaukee Appeal, was Canada’s champion 3-year-old filly in 2009 after winning the Woodbine Oaks and running second in the Alabama Stakes (USA-G1), the Juddmonte Spinster Stakes (USA-G1), and the Prince of Wales Stakes (the second leg of the Canadian Triple Crown). Milwaukee Appeal’s sire, the Wild Again horse Milwaukee Brew, won two editions of the Santa Anita Handicap (USA-G1), so again, there seems no reason to question that Prom Queen will stay as far as she needs to.

My pick? I confess to having a soft spot for Counting Stars, who really caught my eye with her Fantasy win. However, I am no handicapper and won't have anything but a little pride riding on the result, so take that for what it's worth. Whoever wins, the Kentucky Oaks should be an excellent race. Here’s wishing all the contestants and their jockeys a safe trip, and may the best filly wear the lilies!
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Mares on Monday: A Zany Win in the Kentucky Oaks Wouldn't Be Crazy

4/20/2026

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​With the Longines Kentucky Oaks (USA-G1) now less than two weeks away, this seems a good time to reflect on another potential member of the field who has good credentials but has not yet been reviewed in this column. This week, the spotlight falls on Zany, who fell from the unbeaten ranks in the Central Bank Ashland Stakes (USA-G1) on April 3 but still has the potential to be a serious contender on May 1.

Owned by Mike Repole, Zany has raced only four times but has quite a solid resume, After airing in her first start, a 6½ furlong maiden special weight on November 2 at Gulfstream Park, the filly shipped to Aqueduct and closed out her brief 2-year-old season on December 6 with an 8½-length score in the 9-furlong Demoiselle Stakes (USA-G2). In that race, she dusted stakes winners Jumping the Gun and Shilling as well as Ivy Girl, who has won two stakes races in 2026.

Zany returned at 3 on February 7 in the Suncoast Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs and added that to the win column too, coming home by 2 ¾ lengths over Life of Joy. That rival franked the form in her next outing with an impressive score over multiple Grade 2 winner Bella Ballerina in the Fasig-Tipton Fair Grounds Oaks (USA-G2).

Although Zany found Percy’s Bar (who clearly loves the Keeneland surface) to be too much for her in the Ashland on April 3, she was a solid second and posted a new career high Equibase figure without making a huge jump. Her lone work since then almost exactly matches her last work prior to the Ashland, suggesting that she hasn’t knocked herself out. Thus, she comes into the Kentucky Oaks with the impression that she can still improve. The question is whether she can post further improvement at the right time to prevail in what looks like a wide-open race.

One point in Zany’s favor is that she is already a winner at the 9-furlong distance, and her pedigree indicates that this was not a fluke. Bred by D. J. Stable, she is a daughter of 2015 American Triple Crown winner and Horse of the Year American Pharoah, whose ability to get runners capable of going 9 furlongs or more is not in question. Her dam is 2017 Top Flight Invitational Stakes (USA-G3) winner Mo’ Green, whose signature win was over 9 furlongs and whose previous three winners all scored at a mile or more. So far, so good.

A half sister to juvenile stakes winner She’screative (by Creative Cause), Mo’ Green is by 2010 American champion 2-year-old male Uncle Mo, whose top-level winners ranged from Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint (USA-G1) winner Golden Pal to Belmont Stakes (USA-G1) winner Mo Donegal, out of stakes-placed She’s a Rebel Too. A more speed-oriented sort, She’s a Rebel Too is a full sister to listed stakes winner Two Punch Sonny and is by the good Maryland sire Two Punch, a stakes-winning sprinter.

The dam of She’s a Rebel Too, the Dixieland Band mare Dixieland Queen, appeared to throw toward the proclivities of her mates, as her stakes-winning Smarten daughter, Ragtime Doll, and her stakes-placed Formal Gold colt, Cheverley Gold, stayed better than either She’s a Rebel Too or Two Punch Sonny. A full sister to 1988 Tempted Stakes (USA-G2) winner Box Office Gold, Dixieland Queen is out of 1978 Bed o’ Roses Handicap (USA-G3) winner Fearless Queen (by Never Bend’s good son Iron Ruler).

Now standing in Japan, American Pharoah has had Classic success in Australia, getting 2023 Victoria Derby (AUS-G1) and Australian Derby (AUS-G1) winner Riff Rocket and 2024 Victoria Derby (AUS-G1) winner Goldrush Guru, but he has yet to come up with the winner of a race of Classic stature in the United States. At this point in his career, a Kentucky Oaks win by Zany is unlikely to change the trajectory of what has been a fairly successful but not top-drawer stallion career, but to Pharoah’s fans, a bouquet of lilies from his daughter would surely be a lovely addition to his legacy as well as, perhaps, a stepping stone to a legendary career of her own.




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Mares on Monday: Does She Really Mean It?

4/13/2026

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​As the Longines Kentucky Oaks (USA-G1) approaches, it seems worthwhile to go back and have a look at fillies who will rightfully be among the favorites but have not yet been reviewed in this column. Among them is Meaning, who races for the same connections as last year’s Preakness Stakes (USA-G1) winner, Journalism. She is lightly raced but has not put a foot wrong so far in 2026, winning the Las Virgenes Stakes (USA-L) over Explora in her first outing of the season. In her second, she won the Santa Anita Oaks (USA-G2) on April 4 in professional style. Her only loss in four lifetime starts was a respectable fourth in last year’s NetJets Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (USA-G1); in that race, she was beaten three-quarters of a length, three lengths, and a head by Super Corredora (who will not contest the Oaks), Explora, and Percy’s Bar. That’s slightly less than four lengths in all for a filly who was making only her second lifetime start, and against some very tough company.

Meaning’s task in the Santa Anita Oaks was probably made easier by the absence of Explora, who had won the Honeybee Stakes (USA-G3) on March 1 at Oaklawn Park over Counting Stars, then had to miss the March 27 Fantasy Stakes (USA-G2), in which the improving Counting Stars scored an impressive win. Nevertheless, Meaning has shown both consistency and gameness, dueling Explora into defeat in the Las Virgenes and finishing willingly under a hand ride in the Santa Anita Oaks while appearing to have something left in the tank after a brief tussle with Brooklyn Blonde in upper stretch.

As a daughter of Gun Runner (also the sire of likely Kentucky Oaks contenders Life of Joy and Always a Runner), stamina seems unlikely to be an issue for Meaning. A key figure here is her third dam, Colcon. Sired by Kentucky Derby (USA-G1) and Preakness Stakes winner Pleasant Colony, Colcon was produced from Continental Girl, a stakes winner sired by 1977 Irish St. Leger (IRE-G1) winner Transworld out of a mare by the staying Sicambre son Shantung. This is a concentration of bloodlines from horses that definitely liked a distance of ground, and often the more the better.

A stakes winner over 9 furlongs on grass, Continental Girl is a half sister to 1980 Charles H. Strub Stakes (USA-G1) winner Super Moment (by Big Spruce), whose Strub win came at a time when the race was contested at 10 furlongs. Likewise, Colcon is a half sister to 1990 Strub winner Flying Continental (by Flying Paster), also victorious over the 10-furlong distance.

Colcon herself was a three-time Grade 3 winner over 9 furlongs on turf, and given the wealth of staying blood in her background, it was no wonder that she was mostly put to speedier sires. She was a disappointing broodmare, and her 2009 daughter by the record-breaking sprinter-miler Elusive Quality did not help her record. Named Starlight Lady, she never even made it to the races, but she did produce Figure of Speech, an Into Mischief filly who ran third in the Spinaway Stakes (USA-G1) in her second lifetime start. Figure of Speech ran twice more at three without success and was retired. Meaning is her second foal and first winner, and Figure of Speech has since produced a 2024 filly by Curlin and a 2025 colt by Flightline.

With staying power looking like a non-issue, the main question for Meaning is how much of an upside she has. In an Oaks field in which any of a half-dozen fillies could lay claim to favoritism on a given day, the winner may well be the one who can produce the best step forward from her previous form when the lilies are on the line. On paper, Meaning, who was able to get a solid win last out without needing a personal best to do it, seems to be in a good position to find some improvement at the right time. Whether or not she can actually do so—well, that’s why they run horse races.
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Mares on Monday: Raise a Toast to Percy's Bar

4/6/2026

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​The most-hyped potential member of this year’s Longines Kentucky Oaks (USA-G1) field has probably been Zany, who came into the Central Bank Ashland Stakes (USA-G1) unbeaten following a Suncoast Stakes romp over next-out Fasig-Tipton Fair Grounds Oaks (USA-G2) winner Life of Joy. Following the Ashland, Zany is almost certainly still bound for the Kentucky Oaks, but it will not be as an unbeaten. Keeneland specialist Percy’s Bar, who has never finished anywhere but first at her favorite track, kept that record intact with a 2¼-length score over Zany. A sharp inside move on the turn for home gave Percy’s Bar the jump on her rival, and she had no difficulty in staying clear of Zany and her other four rivals to claim the victory.

Technically, Percy’s Bar (named in honor of the late Percy Poole, a popular Keeneland bartender) is not unbeaten at Keeneland, having been disqualified to second in last fall’s Darley Alcibiades Stakes (USA-G1) for bumping official winner Tommy Jo. But there is no question that she likes the track; her average margin in her three starts there has been three lengths. Friday’s win was her first official Grade 1 score and raised her overall record to three wins, two seconds, and one third from six lifetime starts.

Percy’s Bar is the second Grade 1 winner for multiple graded stakes winner Upstart, a son of the successful A.P. Indy horse Flatter. Coincidentally, Upstart’s other Grade 1 winner is Zandon, who got his top-level brackets in the masculine counterpart to the Ashland, the Blue Grass Stakes. Upstart got his chance at stud thanks to former Kentucky governor Brereton Jones, who brought the horse into the stallion lineup at his Airdrie Stud near Midway, Kentucky.

Jones, previously the breeder and owner of Kentucky Oaks winners Proud Spell (2008) and Believe You Can (2012) and the owner of 2015 Oaks heroine Lovely Maria, bred Percy’s Bar from unraced Honestly Deb, a daughter of 2010 Kentucky Derby (USA-G1) winner Super Saver who was acquired for just US$16,000 from the 2020 Keeneland November mixed sale. Produced from 2003 Alcibiades Stakes (USA-G2) third Deb’s Charm, a daughter of 1997 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes (USA-G1) winner Silver Charm, Honestly Deb is a half sister to stakes winners Simply Spiteful (by Speightstown) and Praetereo (by Giant’s Causeway) and is also a half sister to More Mojo (by More Than Ready), dam of stakes winner Tabeguache (by Into Mischief).

Deb’s Charm, in turn, is a half sister to multiple Grade 3 winner Tasha’s Miracle (by Harlan’s Holiday) and to stakes-placed Early Vintage (by Jump Start), dam of Canadian stakes winner Conquest Top Gun (by Pioneerof the Nile). Produced from the winner Ms. Cuvee Napa (by Relaunch out of Grade 2 winner A Penny Is a Penny, by Temperence Hill), Deb’s Charm is also a half sister to Harve de Grace (by Boston Harbor), dam of 2016 Mother Goose Stakes (USA-G1) winner Off the Tracks (by Curlin) and 2010 West Virginia Derby (USA-G2) winner Concord Point (by Tapit), and to Tasha’s Star (by Spanish Steps), dam of Japanese listed stakes winners Esmeraldina (by Harlan’s Holiday) and Consigliere (by Drefong).

Now owned by Hat Creek Racing after being picked up for a modest US$52,000 from the 2024 Keeneland September yearling sale, Percy’s Bar has earned just over a million dollars and appears poised to earn more for her owners and trainer Ben Colebrook. She already has a win over the Churchill Downs surface and is Grade 1-placed at both Saratoga and Del Mar, suggesting that she does not have to take her track with her. Considering that the Ashland was her first start in five months, she should have plenty in the tank to take with her to the Kentucky Oaks—and if she is successful there, no one will blame Keeneland staff for raising a toast to their “house horse” and to the memory of her namesake.


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    I'm Avalyn Hunter, an author, pedigree researcher and longtime racing fan with a particular interest in Thoroughbred mares and their contributions to the history of the breed.

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