Five stakes close out meet Friday and Saturday

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Keeneland fall meet will end this weekend with a combined five stakes on Friday and Saturday, led by the Grade 2 Fayette for older horses on a Saturday finale also featuring the annual ontrack appearance by The Headless Horseman.

Art Collector is one of 20 nominees for the $350,000 Fayette but will bypass the race, according to owner Bruce Lunsford, leaving Defunded and First Captain as the top prospects for the 1 1/8-mile race.

Two other Saturday stakes, the Grade 3 Bryan Station for 3-year-old turf milers and the Bowman Mill for 2-year-old sprinters, will serve as supporting features on an afternoon when the Headless Horseman – actually a cleverly costumed rider atop a retired Thoroughbred – will gallop down the stretch between races in a pre-Halloween tradition that’s always well-received by local fans.

Entries for Friday are already out, and both stakes came up tough. The Grade 3, $300,0000 Valley View (race 8) drew an oversubscribed field of 3-year-old fillies going 1 1/16 miles on the turf, with Dolce Zel and California Angel among a core of lukewarm favorites. The $200,000 Myrtlewood (race 7) drew 11 2-year-old fillies, with Satin Doll, Key of Life, and Somebody’s Problem among the top contenders going six furlongs.

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While Saturday technically marks the end of the 17-day meet, Keeneland staff will be as busy as ever in the following days when preparing for the Nov. 4-5 Breeders’ Cup. Aside from the 14 Breeders’ Cup races, a pair of $350,000 undercard stakes will be run that weekend – the Grade 2 Thoroughbred Aftercare Allliance (formerly the Marathon) on Friday and the new Fall Harvest on Saturday.

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