Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf: Lake Victoria tops group of 21 pre-entries
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The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf on Nov. 1 at Del Mar retained its status as one of the more popular races in the two-day series when pre-entries were announced Wednesday.
The race drew 21 pre-entries from Europe and throughout North America. Of the other 13 races to be run Nov. 1-2, only the Juvenile Turf with 23 drew more pre-entries.
The BC Juvenile Fillies Turf has several appealing contenders, led by Lake Victoria, winner of two Group 1 races in Ireland and England in September, and Thought Process, winner of two one-mile turf stakes at Del Mar and Santa Anita.
The most notable absentee is And One More Time, who earned a fees-paid berth with a win in the Grade 1 Natalma Stakes at a mile on turf Sept. 14 at Woodbine.
And One More Time sustained an injury earlier this month and is “out for the year,” trainer Mark Casse said Wednesday.
Casse, who won the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf at Keeneland in 2015 with Catch a Glimpse, has three pre-entries for this year’s race in Abientot, Nitrogen, and Vixen.
Of those, only Vixen, second by a neck in the Natalma, was among the 14 selected to start by a panel of Breeders’ Cup officials. There are seven fillies on an also-eligible list, including Abientot, who won the Grade 3 Matron Stakes at six furlongs on turf on Oct. 6 at Aqueduct; and Nitrogen, who was third in the Natalma.
Abientot was top-rated among the also-eligibles, meaning she will be first to gain a berth if one of the 14 fillies selected by the committee is withdrawn.
For a race that annually features several international runners, the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf has been dominated by American stables, who have won nine of the last 10 runnings, and 13 of 16 since the race was introduced in 2008.
New York-based trainer Chad Brown has won the race a record six times and this year will run Virgin Colada, who has finished second in her last two starts in turf stakes at 1 1/16 miles to BC Juvenile Fillies Turf contenders.
Virgin Colada was beaten a half-length by Totally Justified in the $150,000 P.G. Johnson Stakes on Aug. 28 at Saratoga, and by 2 1/2 lengths by Scythian in the Grade 2 Miss Grillo Stakes on Oct. 6 at Aqueduct.
Scythian, trained by Bill Mott, earned a fees-paid berth to the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf with her win in the Miss Grillo. Three other fillies have been pre-entered after winning races with automatic berths – Anshoda in the Group 3 Prestige Fillies’ Stakes at Goodwood Racecourse in England in August, Lake Victoria in the Group 1 Moyglare Stud Stakes in Ireland in September, and May Day Ready in the Grade 2 Jessamine Stakes on Oct. 4 at Keeneland.
May Day Ready edged Totally Justified and Destino d’Oro in the Jessamine. All three are well-regarded candidates.
Casse said that John Velazquez is booked to ride Vixen, with Dylan Davis on Abietnot, and Jose Ortiz on Nitrogen, if those fillies secure starting berths.
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