Lady Shipman auditions for Breeders’ Cup in Franklin County
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Lady Shipman has never run in a graded stakes, nor against males. And yet with one more powerhouse performance, the 3-year-old filly might well be the favorite when the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint is run at Keeneland on Oct. 31.
Regardless of grade or gender, Lady Shipman has ascended to the highest echelon of the division by reeling off triple-digit Beyer Speed Figures in each of her last three starts. On Friday, she will prepare for what trainer Kathleen O’Connell hopes is a Breeders’ Cup berth as part of an outstanding field in the $100,000 Franklin County Stakes.
“I couldn’t want her to be doing any better,” O’Connell said this week from her Florida base. “She’s training like a machine, really full of herself.”
Lady Shipman has shown blazing speed in winning eight of 10 career starts, including back-to-back stakes in August at Saratoga, both times as an odds-on favorite. Breaking from post 4 with regular rider Eduardo Nunez aboard following a one-race absence, she won’t be quite as heavily backed Friday when facing such proven commodities as Ageless (post 5, Julien Leparoux) and Free as a Bird (post 6, Joe Bravo) in the 5 1/2-furlong Franklin County – although her flashy record will be difficult for many fans to resist.
As far as race shape goes, the late runners Ageless and Free as a Bird will need something to soften up Lady Shipman, and Richies Sweetheart (post 1, E.T. Baird) is the obvious candidate for that duty.
The Franklin County, first run in 1997, goes as the ninth of 10 races and is part of a late pick four (races 7-10) with a $200,000 pool guarantee. First post is 1:05 p.m. Eastern, with the feature set for 5:30. Three allowances (races 4, 7, 8) also are on tap.
After summer-like weather earlier this week, an 80 percent chance of afternoon showers was in the long-range forecast for this region Friday.
Franklin County, Race 9
KEY CONTENDERS
Lady Shipman (Last 3 Beyers: 104-102-104)
◗ Kentucky-bred daughter of Midshipman has been nothing short of phenomenal, with her only defeats coming in her career debut and in a seven-furlong stakes that stretched her distance limitations.
◗ She might have a slight tactical edge when drawn outside of the other apparent speed, Richies Sweetheart.
Ageless (Last 3 Beyers: 95-95-95)
◗ The top earner in the field with more than $650,000 for the Lael Stables of Barbaro fame, this 6-year-old mare has one win and two seconds from three tries over the Keeneland turf, all in stakes.
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 5 Ageless. Trainer Arnaud Delacour is 13-6-1-0 with a $4.26 ROI over the past five years in turf sprints between five and six furlongs following a layoff of 45 days or more. Ageless is 4-3-1-0 in those races. Click for more details. – Mike Hogan
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Free as a Bird (Last 3 Beyers: 96-95-91)
◗ This Elizabeth Valando homebred has been a standout in her niche while showing remarkable consistency, having reeled off a six-race win streak that finally came to an end here last spring.
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 6 Free as a Bird. Trainer Ian Wilkes is 15-1-1-2 with a $0.37 ROI over the past five years in all races with Joe Bravo aboard.Click for more details. – Mike Hogan
Shrinking Violet (Last 3 Beyers: 67-104-87)
◗ Chestnut mare puts forth the occasional huge effort and comes favorably drawn in the outside post as a fringe consideration for owner and trainer Wesley Ward and jockey Kent Desormeaux.