Bonny South should relish Alabama distance

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Trainer Brad Cox said he always felt “the longer the better” for his lightly raced 3-year-old filly Bonny South. And he’ll get his wish here Saturday, when the Grade 2 winner stretches out to 1 1/4 miles for the first time to take on Swiss Skydiver and five others in the Grade 1 Alabama.

Bonny South’s 3-year-old campaign began with an allowance win at Oaklawn Park and continued with a victory in the Grade 2 Fair Grounds Oaks. She was idle nearly four months after that race before returning to finish fourth in the Grade 1 Ashland at Keeneland. Each of her 2020 outings came at 1 1/16 miles.

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“I thought her last race was a good effort,” Cox said of the Ashland. “I don’t think it really set up that well for her. There really wasn’t a lot of pace. She ran on at the end, but wasn’t good enough to get a piece that day. But it was her first race in a while, and I thought she might need one.”

Cox said that Bonny South, who still earned a career-best 87 Beyer Speed Figure in the Ashland, continues to move forward with experience and maturity.

“She’s lightly raced and still figuring things out,” Cox said. “After the Fair Grounds race I had her at Keeneland preparing for the Ashland and I thought she really blossomed there, that she had gotten bigger and stronger. And I think she’s really going to like the mile and a quarter a lot.”

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Swiss Skydiver will be heavily favored to win the Alabama as she returns to her own kind following a solid second-place finish behind leading Kentucky Derby contender Art Collector in the Grade 1 Blue Grass on July 11 at Keeneland.

In post position order, the Alabama lines up from the rail on out with Envoutante (Jose Ortiz to ride), Spice Is Nice (John Velazquez), Crystal Ball (Javier Castellano), Bonny South (Irad Ortiz Jr.), Swiss Skydiver (Tyler Gaffalione), Harvey’s Lil Goil (Junior Alvarado), and Fire Coral (Ricardo Santana Jr.).