Our Pretty Woman tries to get back on track in Monomoy Girl

Our Pretty Woman, who looked like a progressive sort heading into the Kentucky Oaks, faces Intricate, trying to reset her campaign after missing the Oaks, in the $175,000 Monomoy Girl Stakes on Saturday night at Churchill Downs.

The Monomoy Girl, for sophomore fillies, and the $175,000 Chorleywood Stakes, a route for older horses on the turf, are the co-features on the final night racing program Churchill will conduct this meet. First post for the 10-race card is 6 p.m.

Our Pretty Woman won her first two career starts before finishing a strong second in the Grade 2 Fair Grounds Oaks, beaten just three-quarters of a length by Tarifa, who was the morning-line favorite for the Kentucky Oaks. Our Pretty Woman drew into the Kentucky Oaks the week of the race as an also-eligible and was thus relegated to the outside post in the field of 14. The filly “just couldn’t overcome the post,” trainer Steve Asmussen said, and finished 11th. She emerged in good order and has been back on the work tab with a series of strong five-furlong moves at Churchill Downs.

Meanwhile, Intricate wound up missing the Kentucky Oaks after looking like an early candidate for the filly classic with her win in the Grade 2 Golden Rod Stakes last November at Churchill Downs. She finished a fine second to Tarifa in the Grade 2 Rachel Alexandra Stakes in February. However, rather than moving forward in her second start off the layoff, she finished fifth in the Fair Grounds Oaks. She emerged from that race with “a significant amount of mucus” when scoped, according to trainer Brendan Walsh – enough to excuse her performance.

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Rather than rushing to make major races in the last month, Walsh took his time getting Intricate right. The filly returned to the work tab in May and has had four breezes in Kentucky for her return.

The other stakes winner in this field of six is Band of Gold, winner of the Martha Washington Stakes at Oaklawn. She has been off the board in her three outings since, but two of those efforts were on synthetic and turf. She is likely getting back to her preferred surface at the track where she won her maiden.

Band of Gold would like pace to rally into – and Intricate, who sat in third before splitting foes in her best effort in the Golden Rod, wouldn’t mind a target, either. Our Pretty Woman, well drawn in post 2 under Luis Saez, looks like the controlling speed in this small field of six. The wild card is Lucky Speech, drawn just to her outside in post 3 and could provide pressure. That filly is stepping up in class, but she pressed the pace before drawing off to win her maiden by 7 3/4 lengths going this 1 1/16-mile distance on May 17 at Churchill.

Chorleywood Stakes

Later in the evening, Webslinger, who has a solid record at Churchill Downs, looks to lean on that record in the Chorleywood as he faces Bold Act, looking to avenge a recent loss on this course as the favorite.

Webslinger showed his affinity for Churchill’s turf by winning the Grade 2 American Turf and the Audubon Stakes here in 2023 for Mark Casse. He has placed in three Grade 1 races since. After a pair of narrow defeats at that level last year, he was most recently third in the Grade 1 Old Forester Turf Classic on Kentucky Derby Day, beaten two lengths by Program Trading and Naval Power.

The distance of the Chorleywood is a question for Webslinger. The last time he went as far as 1 1/4 miles, he was fourth in the Grade 1 Belmont Derby last year; he subsequently was second, beaten a head, in the Grade 1 Saratoga Derby at 1 3/16 miles.

Many in this field have proven success at 1 1/2 miles, including Sugoi. The gelding has hit strong form at age 7, winning four straight races. That includes a claiming race on the Keeneland dirt on April 25, when trainer Mike Maker picked him up for $50,000. Maker, known for astute claims, promptly wheeled him back to win the Grade 3 Louisville Stakes going 1 1/2 miles on the Churchill turf May 18. The gelding won with his ears pricked, earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 92, which stacks up well in this field. Finishing third in the Louisville was The Grey Wizard, who came back to win the Grade 2 Belmont Gold Cup last week.

Sugoi likes to be forwardly placed and could find company early from Tawny Port, although he is well drawn outside that additional speed. Tawny Port, who was a graded-performing 3-year-old on the main track in 2022, has reinvented himself as a turf marathoner. He was a stakes winner at 1 5/8 miles on the grass last year and has two narrow graded stakes defeats earlier this year.

Bold Act traveled to Keeneland for Charlie Appleby to win the Grade 3 Sycamore Stakes last fall and to finish third in the Grade 2 Elkhorn Stakes this spring. In between, he won the Group 2 Dubai City of Gold; all of those efforts were at 1 1/2 miles. Most recently, he was fourth in the Louisville as the favorite after being steadied at the start.

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