A big day of racing in North America is on the menu today and horseplayers and racing fans are hoping for a profitable day of betting.
The lineup includes Alabama Day at Saratoga Race Course, featuring the $600,000 Alabama Stakes (G1) for 3-year-old fillies on a 12-race card; the $1 million King’s Plate for Canada-bred 3-year-olds and the $750,000 E.P. Taylor Stakes (G1) at Woodbine that carries a “Win and You’re In" all-fees paid berth into the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf (G1); and the $300,000 Del Mar Oaks (G1) on turf for 3-year-old fillies at Del Mar.
The Alabama Stakes, first held in 1872, is one of the most important races in the 3-year-old filly division.
This edition has one of its best fields ever with Kentucky Oaks (G1) winner Good Cheer (8-5) and multiple Grade 1 stakes winner La Cara (5-1) meeting in a rubber match, with Nitrogen (9-5-) a rising star in her own right.
Good Cheer, 7-for-7 before finishing fifth in the Acorn Stakes (G1) over a sloppy track as the overwhelming 3-10 favorite.
Was the wet track her undoing? Or were other factors at play? Like we handicappers, assistant trainer Blake Cox -- standing in for dad Brad -- is still groping for answers.
“She’s doing great,” Cox said of Good Cheer. “She was perfect until the Acorn and we can’t really come up with an excuse – maybe the racetrack, I guess, but you could tell she wasn’t traveling well throughout the race, so we’ll give her one more shot here going a mile and a quarter.
“She should like it, and we’ve given her plenty of time. She’s done well up here, so fingers crossed we get her back in the win column.”
The field of six also includes Cox-trained Margie’s Intention (8-1), winner of the Black-Eyed Susan (G2) at Pimlico followed most recently by a second-place finish in the Delaware Oaks (G3).
“She’s been doing extremely well – her works have been good, her weight is good, and she’s trained great,” Cox said.” We’re hoping she gets a piece of it. She couldn’t be doing any better.”
Hall of Famer Mark Casse trains Acorn winner La Cara and Nitrogen. He is brimming with confidence.
“It's a dream come true,” Casse said of having two top contenders in the race as he seeks his first Alabama win. “I've been watching the Alabama since I was eight, and to have two legitimate chances ... I think it's not set in stone, but this race is going to be a big deciding factor in who's going to be champion 3-year-old filly. Obviously, someone can go on and win the Breeders' Cup and that would trump whatever happens in the Alabama, but we'll have a clear-cut leader once the dust is settled.”
The field for the 166th running of the King’s Plate is led by the filly No Time, the 7-2 favorite as she takes on the boys in the first leg of the Canadian Triple Crown.
Trained by Hall of Famer Mark Casse, No Time comes into the race off a convincing win over fellow fillies in the Woodbine Oaks last month. Hall of Fame rider John Velazquez returns to ride her again.
Fillies have fared well in this 1 ¼-mile race, having won 39 times. In fact, two of the last three winners were fillies – Caitlinhergrtness in 2022 and Moira in 2022, both trained by Kevin Attard.
Attard has three entries Saturday – 10-1 Mansetti and 30-1 longshots Dewolf and Faber.
Post time foe the King’s Plate is 5:34 p.m. ET. The race is contested over the all-weather synthetic surface at Woodbine.
Expect a thrilling race and don’t expect No Time to have an easy time. Notorious Gangster at 9-2 and Runaway Again at 12-1 seem capable of delivering a top performance.
“I feel like she really has grown up and has gotten stronger and better as time goes on,’’ Casse said of No Time.
Not as intriguing as the Alabama, but the Del Mar Oaks drew a field of 11 with an also-eligible, making it good betting race if you can beat the favorite.
And that favorite is Thought Process (8-5) for trainer Phil D’Amato. Thought Process won the San Clemente Handicap (G2) last out and is the deserving top choice with five victories in seven starts.
Lush Lips, the Tepin Stakes winner last out, is the second choice at 3-1 for trainer Brendan Walsh. Don’t count out Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, who sends out 10-1 shot Casalu.
Post time for the Del Mar Oaks is 8:33 p.m. ET
The 60th running of the 1 1/4-mile E.P. Taylor Stakes for fillies and mares is features a field of seven. The 3-5 heavy favorite is She Feels Pretty, trained by Cherie DeVaux.
The 4-year-old filly already is a strong candidate for champion turf female: Her four-race win streak came to end after a tough beat in the Diana Stakes (G1) at Saratoga.
A tough beat ended her four-race winning streak last time out in the Diana Stakes (G1) at Saratoga. She lost by a head to Excellent Truth on a “good” course that may have compromised the 4-year-old.
There's no rain in the weekend forecast for Toronto, so She Feels Pretty will get the ground she prefers. She's 2-for-3 at 1 1/4 miles and a head and a neck away from six consecutive stakes victories, so she'll be very tough.
Looking to make a little history, Caitlinhergrtness (8-1) could become the first filly to win the King’s Plate (she won in 2024) and the E.P. Taylor.
Post time for the E.P. Taylor is 4:14 p.m.
The writing team at US Racing is comprised of both full-time and part-time contributors with expertise in various aspects of the Sport of Kings.
