LEXINGTON, Ky. – Talk about a key race. Interstatedaydream was returning from a lengthy layoff when third last month behind Secret Oath and Clairiere, who last Saturday reaffirmed themselves as two of the best filly-mare dirt runners on the continent in the Grade 1 Apple Blossom at Oaklawn Park. Interstatedaydream, winner of the Grade 2 Black-Eyed Susan and Grade 3 Indiana Oaks from five starts last year at 3, wasn’t quite ready for a rematch with those divisional titans following the March 11 Azeri at Oaklawn. Instead, owner Staton Flurry and trainer Brad Cox waited an extra six days to run the Ontario-bred filly Friday in the Grade 3, $300,000 Doubledogdare at Keeneland.  There will be a three-day pick six carryover of $859,584 that begins with race 5. Clairiere turned the tables on Secret Oath in winning a riveting renewal of the Apple Blossom on Saturday, earning a 102 Beyer Speed Figure. Interstatedaydream “ran good in the Azeri, but as of right now it’s clear Secret Oath and Clairiere are the class of the older mares,” said Flurry. “She’s been training great and we wanted to find a spot to give her her confidence back and hopefully get her back in the winner’s circle. We think this is the perfect spot for that. This could be a building block for a great summer with her.” :: Bet Keeneland with Confidence: Get DRF PPs, Picks, and Betting Strategies. Shop Now.  Interstatedaydream, with Florent Geroux riding from post 4, is one of eight fillies and mares in the 1 1/16-mile Doubledogdare, the anchor of an outstanding 10-race Friday program. Four allowances (races 3, 5, 8, 10), all with gross purses ranging from $110,000 to $130,000, are on the undercard. Interstatedaydream tends to do her best from right off the early lead, which seems the same style typically used by her chief opponent, Green Up. In fact, laying out a definite pace scenario in the Doubledogdare might be a little risky, with Traverse, Frost Point, and Hidden Connection all having essentially the same up-close running style. Green Up (post 2, Irad Ortiz Jr.), trained by Todd Pletcher for Team Valor, probably will go favored over Interstatedaydream, given her high-profile connections and the 100 Beyer she shows from winning an ungraded stakes at Parx Racing, an Aug. 23 race in which Interstatedaydream was second. Privately purchased following her first start in May 2021, the Virginia-bred filly has gradually developed into a potential major player among the filly-mare elite. “She’s the best horse in our stable,” said Team Valor president Barry Irwin. “She won those four races in a row, including a couple of stakes, but unfortunately she ran her peak race in the prep for the Cotillion, then fell apart in the Cotillion itself” as the 9-5 favorite. Irwin said Green Up exited the Grade 1 Cotillion with a pastern injury that required minor surgery, after which the Upstart filly got time off. She resumed working at Pletcher’s winter base of Palm Beach Downs in early March, and “this time around when she’s worked, she relaxes early and then turns it on in the middle of her works, then gallops out great,” said Irwin. “Todd let her roll in her last work” – last Friday – “and she got a bullet working alongside We the People. She’s an exciting horse.” An interesting subplot to this 28th running of the Doubledogdare is that Traverse and Frost Point will square off in a son-versus-father matchup among the Mott family of horse trainers. Traverse (post 1, Joel Rosario) has come to hand nicely for Claiborne Farm and Riley Mott, going through her second- and third-level allowance conditions at Oaklawn over the winter and earning her way into the graded ranks. Frost Point (post 3, Flavien Prat) also won her last two starts with relative ease for Riley’s Hall of Fame dad, Bill. The ultra-consistent Godolphin homebred seeks her first graded victory exiting a 6 1/4-length romp in the Heavenly Prize at Aqueduct nine weeks ago. Rounding out the lineup are Moon Swag, Music Street, Hidden Connection, and Shotgun Hottie. The Doubledgodare, which honors Claiborne’s two-time champion filly of the mid-1950s, is carded as the ninth of 10 races. Cox won it two years ago with Bonny South and Pletcher won it last year with the eventual divisional champion, Malathaat. First post is 1 p.m. Eastern, with the feature set for 5:16. All listed purses include sizable bonuses restricted to Kentucky-breds. The Doubledogdare base purse is $250,000, with all but the two favorites eligible for the added monies. Main-track races going 1 1/16 miles at Keeneland begin and end at what otherwise is the sixteenth pole. After unseasonably warm weather here midweek, the Friday forecast calls for a high of 74, followed by rain and low 60s for Saturday. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.