Corningstone gets bigger test against shippers in Bayakoa

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Corningstone has taken ownership of the filly and mare route division this meet at Oaklawn Park by winning the first two stakes in the series, and to maintain her grasp Saturday in the Grade 3, $250,000 Bayakoa, she will have to defeat a slew of invaders led by Loved.

Loved enters the 1 1/16-mile race that drew six off a win in the Grade 3 Falls City at Churchill Downs. Others set to start include Free Like a Girl, a 19-time stakes winner who has earned $2.1 million, and last-out stakes winners Wild Bout Hilary and Little Jamie.

Corningstone opened her meet Dec. 14 with a win in the $150,000 Mistletoe at one mile. She proceeded to capture the $150,000 Pippin at 1 1/16 miles in her most recent start Jan. 19.

“Hopefully, she can keep the momentum going,” trainer Kenny McPeek said.

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Corningstone is a five-time stakes winner and has won stakes at the ages of 2, 3, 4, and 5. She races for the partnership of Payson Stud Inc. and RTA Family Trust and has earned more than $750,000.

“I think she continues to get better with age, and she’s always been ultra-consistent,” McPeek said. “We’d like to think we could win a graded race with her. It’s a little bit of a step up with her, but all good.”

Julien Leparoux has the mount on Corningstone, who breaks from the rail. She wired the field in the Pippin and before that rallied from a stalking position in the Mistletoe.

Loved also has shown versatility, as she’s had success on the front end and from off the pace. She won the Falls City from a stalking position and earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 94 for her effort in the 1 1/8-mile race, the best last-race number in the Bayakoa.

In another distinction, Loved is the lone graded winner in the field by virtue of her win in the Falls City. The start came Nov. 28, so she gives up recency to Corningstone and others, but Loved had stakes success off the bench in July.

Loved is a daughter of Medaglia d’Oro and a half-sister to Maxfield, a multiple Grade 1 winner who earned $2 million. Brendan Walsh trains the 6-year-old for her breeder, Godolphin. Tyler Gaffalione has the mount from post 6.

Free Like a Girl has won stakes at 2, 3, 4, and 5 and is now looking for her first such win at 6 after opening her season with a fourth-place finish in the Grade 3 Houston Ladies Classic on Jan. 25.

Free Like a Girl, who ranks as the all-time richest Louisiana-bred, is back at Oaklawn for the first time since last meet. She won an allowance over the local strip and also finished third in the Grade 1 Apple Blossom Handicap.

Ricardo Santana Jr. has the mount from post 5 for trainer Chasey Deville-Pomier.

Little Jamie won the Wayward Lass at Tampa Bay Downs in her last start Jan. 11, and horses coming off that main track often fare well over the surface at Oaklawn. Little Jamie has actually raced in Hot Springs before, winning a maiden special weight at one mile last March.

Wild Bout Hilary became a stakes winner last out by taking the off-turf Pago Hop at Fair Grounds.

Stakes-placed Bow Draw completes the six-horse field.

◗ Yes Ma’am, a half-sister to Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan, makes her two-turn debut in the 10th race Saturday. It’s a maiden special weight for 3-year-old fillies going one mile. The probable favorite is La Fantastica, a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Speed Boat Beach, coming off a runner-up finish to eventual Martha Washington Stakes winner Take Charge Milady.

◗ There is no racing Sunday due to the Super Bowl. Racing will resume Friday.

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