Power Gal faces new opponents in Honeybee Stakes

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Power Gal put 10 points away for the Kentucky Oaks last month at Oaklawn Park when she won the $100,000 Martha Washington.

She’ll attempt to add to her stash Saturday with the track’s Grade 3, $200,000 Honeybee.

The Honeybee, run over 1 1/16 miles, awards its first four finishers Kentucky Oaks eligibility points on a scale of 50-20-10-5. The Honeybee also serves as the middle leg of Oaklawn’s series for 3-year-old fillies, which culminates with the Grade 2 Fantasy.

Power Gal is part of a 10-horse field that includes fellow stakes winners Raintree Starlet, who is going for her fourth consecutive win, and Sunset Wish, who was a close fourth as the favorite in the Martha Washington.

Honeybee (Race 9)

KEY CONTENDERS

Power Gal, by Empire Maker
Last 3 Beyers: 73-66-64

◗ She made her two-turn debut in the Martha Washington and rallied for a half-length victory. Power Gal defeated six others, and faces a handful of new rivals Saturday. They include Santa Anita invader Bizwhacks, with Mario Gutierrez to ride for trainer Doug O’Neill, and Motion Emotion, who could go favored off back-to-back wins at Oaklawn for which she earned Beyer Speed Figures of 83 and 84.

“Power Gal is a filly we liked from the beginning,” trainer Mark Casse said. “I thought her race in the Martha Washington was good, kind of had a bit of a wide trip. She’ll need to step up her game if she’s going to be competitive in the Honeybee, but we kind of feel like she’s heading in the right direction since her last start. We think she is going to come with a better effort. It will need to be with the competition.”

◗ David Cohen has the mount for Gary Barber.

Chocolate Kisses, by Candy Ride
Last 3 Beyers: 75-72-58

◗ She’s looking for her first stakes win after finishing third in the $100,000 P.G. Johnson on turf last summer at Saratoga, fourth in the Grade 1 Alcibiades one start later at Keeneland, then losing her rider in the Rags to Riches in October at Churchill Downs. Chocolate Kisses has made one start since, capturing a turf allowance route Jan. 18 at Fair Grounds.

“She’s a horse that’s trained well on the dirt,” Casse said. “She ran in the Alcibiades, had a really bad trip and was fourth. I thought about running her in the Breeders’ Cup. Instead, we ran her in the Rags to Riches. She stumbled at the start, lost her rider, and grabbed herself really badly that day. It’s taken time to get her back. She deserves another shot on the dirt.”

◗ Chocolate Kisses is out of the Grade 3-winning mare Brownie Points, who won the Martha Washington at Oaklawn and was second in the Honeybee.

◗ Orlando Mojica has the mount for owner Debby Oxley.

Ultimate Mo, by Uncle Mo
Last 3 Beyers: 72-80-45

◗ She was a 4 1/4-length winner of her two-turn debut Feb. 10 in a maiden special weight at a mile at Oaklawn.

“She’s doing terrific,” trainer D. Wayne Lukas said. “She just looks terrific. She’s really moving in the right direction.”