Monomoy Girl's long-awaited return highlight of opening day

LOUISVILLE, KY. – Monomoy Girl is foremost among the opening-day entries for Saturday at Churchill Downs as the heavy favorite in race 4, one of four allowances on a terrific program. Winner of the Kentucky Oaks and an Eclipse Award as outstanding 3-year-old filly in 2018, the now 5-year-old mare will be making her first start since she won the Breeders’ Cup Distaff at Churchill on Nov. 3, 2018, a span of more than 18 months.

“It’s been a long time coming,” said Brad Cox, trainer of Monomoy Girl. “She’s been working great down at Keeneland since late March, and we’re looking forward to this first step back.”

Monomoy Girl will break from post 2 with Florent Geroux aboard when facing six other fillies and mares in a one-turn mile with an $85,000 purse.

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Horses such as Monomoy Girl are being exempted from the restrictive ship-in schedule if they are entered on the first two cards Saturday and Sunday. A four-day schedule of Thursdays through Sundays (plus the May 25 Memorial Day card) begins next week, when the stall capacity at Churchill and the nearby Trackside training annex will be reaching their limits.

Cox, whose stable has grown by leaps and bounds in both quantity and quality in recent years, can be expected to contend again for the meet training title. He’s reunited here not only with Churchill mainstays such as Steve Asmussen, Mike Maker, and Dale Romans, but high-profile trainers such as Bob Baffert, Chad Brown, and Todd Pletcher also will have active strings at Churchill.

The all-star quality of horses and trainers is equaled by the type of jockey colony usually seen only on major race dates such as the Breeders’ Cup or Derby. With New York racing still idle, John Velazquez, Javier Castellano, Jose Ortiz, and Joel Rosario are among the 48 riders named on the Saturday overnight.