Flower Bowl confuses BC Filly and Mare Turf picture

A yielding turf course at Belmont Park for the Grade 1 Flower Bowl Invitational last Saturday did little to clarify the East Coast’s best hopes for the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf on Nov. 5.

Race winner Ave, who finished a head in front of Changing Skies, is bound for the Queen Elizabeth II Commemorative Cup over 1 3/8 miles on turf in Kyoto, Japan, on Nov. 13, trainer Roger Attfield said on Wednesday.

But Forever Together, who struggled on the wet turf course and finished sixth, is still a candidate for the BC Filly and Mare Turf, a race she won in 2008 and was third in last year.

“I hate to go to the Breeders’ Cup after a race like that, but I won’t rule anything out,” said Forever Together’s trainer, Jonathan Sheppard. “We’re not giving up, but it’s a tough call. I want to do the right thing by her.”

Changing Skies, third-place finisher Red Desire, and fifth-place finisher Shared Account remain candidates for the BC Filly and Mare Turf. Shared Account led after a mile, but faded through the final quarter-mile.

“I was disappointed with the way she ran,” trainer Graham Motion said. “I think the ground was bottomless, and I don’t think she handled it well. My whole year has been built to running in the Breeders’ Cup.”

The field for the Filly and Mare Turf is led by defending champion Midday, who won the Prix Vermeille in France on Sept. 12 and is being trained up to the race in England.