Brown formulating plans for Ball Dancing, Lady Eli

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The winners on another eventful stakes weekend at Keeneland emerged in good shape, and all will go their separate ways in the coming weeks.

Ball Dancing, who won the Grade 1 Jenny Wiley on Saturday, and Lady Eli, who breezed to victory Sunday in the Grade 3 Appalachian, will go to trainer Chad Brown’s main base in New York. There is no definite next race for Ball Dancing, but Brown was very pleased with her 2 1/2-length triumph over Filimbi in the Jenny Wiley, a 1 1/16-mile turf race.

“The way she ran, we could possibly cut her back to a mile,” said Brown. “She’s a very versatile horse. I’d say she could run anywhere from a mile to a mile and a quarter.”

Lady Eli remained unbeaten in the Appalachian, a one-mile turf race which was her first start since winning the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf last fall. The May 31 Wonder Again at Belmont Park likely will serve as a prep for her main mid-season goal, the $1 million Belmont Oaks on July 4, said Brown.

Divining Rod won the Coolmore Lexington on Saturday, but owner-breeders Roy and Gretchen Jackson and trainer Arnaud Delacour are passing up a possible run in the Kentucky Derby. Divining Rod will return next week to Fair Hill in Maryland, where the colt will be considered for the Preakness or the Sir Barton, both May 16 at Pimlico.

Donworth, the Lexington runner-up, also will be considered for the Sir Barton, said trainer Graham Motion. Scratched from a first-level allowance Thursday, the highly touted colt was making just his second start.

“I think we did the right thing and proved he’s a good horse,” said Motion. “I think his inexperience caught up with him.”

Todd Pletcher had two highly impressive stakes winners here this weekend in Jack Milton (Grade 1 Maker’s 46 Mile) and Protonico (Grade 3 Ben Ali). Each came out of his race in good order.