Midnight Lute daughters atop Oaks leaderboard

After the dust settled from Saturday’s Kentucky Oaks prep races, a pair of fillies by Midnight Lute sat tied atop the leaderboard, each with 60 points.

Midnight Bisou shed any doubt about her two-turn ability in the Grade 3 Santa Ysabel Stakes at Santa Anita, winning her first start beyond seven furlongs by 2 1/4 lengths. On the other side of the country, Midnight Disguise maintained her status as New York’s top Oaks contender, winning the listed Busher Stakes at Aqueduct by 1 3/4 lengths.

Midnight Bisou did not get a chance to avenge her two nose defeats to presumptive Oaks favorite Dream Tree after her undefeated rival scratched out of the Santa Ysabel due to wet track conditions. However, Midnight Bisou made her case to challenge for the top spot, notching a 94 Beyer Speed Figure, the highest number by a 3-year-old filly in 2018.

The Santa Ysabel was Midnight Bisou’s second start this year. She earned an 89 Beyer for a 4 1/2-length win in the Grade 2 Santa Ynez Stakes on Jan. 7 at Santa Anita.

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Bred in Kentucky by Woodford Thoroughbreds, Midnight Bisou is the first winner from three runners out of the Grade 3-winning Repent mare Diva Delite.

Midnight Disguise picked up a 77 Beyer for her Busher score, extending her record to 4 wins in 5 starts, with her lone defeat being a runner-up effort in the East View Stakes at Aqueduct in January. She came into the Busher off a 4 1/4-length triumph in the Busanda Stakes, 11 days after running in the East View.

It has been a rapid ascent for Midnight Disguise, who debuted with a 6 1/2-length win in December for a $50,000 tag at Aqueduct.

Midnight Disguise races as a New York homebred for Drs. William Wilmot and Joan Taylor, who also bred her dam, the winning Yes It’s True mare Thin Disguise. All four of the mare’s foals are winners, also including multiple stakes winner Holiday Disguise.

Midnight Lute stands at Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms in Lexington, Ky., for an advertised fee of $15,000.

The 15-year-old son of Real Quiet’s Oaks hopefuls have a chance to join Midnight Lucky among the sire’s most prominent 3-year-old fillies. Midnight Lucky won the Grade 1 Acorn Stakes and listed Sunland Park Oaks in 2013, and she finished fifth in that year’s Kentucky Oaks.