Empress Josephine wheeling right back in Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Coolmore has done it before. Ten years after an Irish-bred filly named Together wheeled back on six days’ rest to win the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup, the worldwide powerhouse stable will give it a go again Saturday.
The 3-year-old filly Empress Josephine, who was beaten just a length for all the money when third Saturday in the Grade 1 First Lady at Keeneland behind the older Chad Brown tandem of Blowout and Regal Glory, will run back a week later as one of the principals in the 38th running of the Grade 1, $500,000 QE II.
Empress Josephine, an Irish-bred trained by Aidan O’Brien for the Coolmore team of Michael Tabor, Susan Magnier, and Derrick Smith, emerged from the First Lady in good shape, according to traveling lad Kieran Murphy. She is expected to be among 11 invitees when QE II entries are drawn here Wednesday.
Empress Josephine, by the late Galileo, earned a 101 Beyer Speed Figure as the only 3-year-old in a field of 12 fillies and mares in the First Lady, which was run at a mile over good turf. The QE II is restricted to 3-year-old fillies at 1 1/8 miles.
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“She was very encouraging,” Murphy said. “I think the extra furlong should benefit her.”
Murphy also represented the O’Brien stable here 10 years ago when Together, ridden by Colm O’Donoghue, rebounded from a late-closing runner-up try in the First Lady to post a 1 1/4-length triumph in the QE II over Marketing Mix and jockey Garrett Gomez. Together, also a daughter of Galileo, never raced again after her QE II win.
Together remains just one of two European fillies who have won the QE II since it was first run in 1984 with Queen Elizabeth II in attendance. The first was Ryafan, who prevailed in 1997 for Juddmonte Farms and trainer John Gosden.
To become the third European winner, Empress Josephine will have to overcome a different tag team from the Brown stable in Shantisara and Technical Analysis, both of them Irish-breds as well. They’re the likely favorites in a lineup also expected to include Army Wife, Burning Ambition, Closing Remarks, Cloudy Dawn, Flippant, Lady Speightspeare, Nicest, and Queen Goddess.
Both of the Brown fillies worked five furlongs over the Keeneland turf Saturday morning, several days after arriving here from New York, and both will enter off back-to-back stakes wins. Shantisara captured the Grade 3 Pucker Up (with an 87 Beyer) at Arlington Park and the Jockey Club Oaks (93) at Belmont Park in her last two starts, while Technical Analysis won the Grade 3 Lake George (90) and Grade 2 Lake Placid (92), both at Saratoga.
Following a 60 percent chance of rain Friday, the local forecast for Saturday calls for showers possibly continuing and high temperatures in the mid-60s.
The QE II, the sixth and last Grade 1 race of the 17-day fall meet, will anchor a 10-race card. General admission for Saturday was sold out as of Monday afternoon.
◗ Trainer Dallas Stewart enjoyed a terrific opening weekend, not only by winning a Friday turf allowance with Cavalry Charge and a Saturday maiden race with Strava, a 2-year-old Into Mischief colt making his debut, but also with the third-place finish by Sequist in the Alcibiades on Friday.
Stewart said he wants to run Sequist back in the BC Juvenile Fillies on Nov. 5. As for Cavalry Charge, Stewart said he’ll wait to run him back at Fair Grounds because there will be no turf racing at the Churchill fall meet.
◗ Trainer Ken McPeek reiterated Sunday that he isn’t sure whether he’ll run Rattle N Roll in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, even after the colt earned a berth with his Saturday triumph in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Futurity.
“I’m non-committal on the Breeders’ Cup and want to think on it for a little bit,” McPeek said.
◗ Many television viewers of Keeneland racing probably have noticed a new camera angle being employed, mostly for replay. A mobile camera on a cable affixed to opposite ends of the grandstand can move alongside the field during a race, providing fans with something other than standard angles. The equipment is the property of TVG, which has allowed NBCSN and the Keeneland in-house video to also showcase its effects.
◗ There will be no Keeneland Turf Pick 3 on Thursday after racing officials decided to run only two turf races on the 10-race card. The new $3-minimum wager with a 15 percent takeout is expected to be held every subsequent day during the meet, which runs through Oct. 30, even when turf racing is canceled.
◗ Oaklawn Park officials Jason Milligan and Jennifer Hoyt visited the stable areas at Keeneland and Churchill last weekend to encourage horsemen to participate at the Arkansas track. The Oaklawn meet runs Dec. 3 to May 8.