Rushing Fall's debut points her out in Jessamine

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Another FallStars Weekend is in the record books – but not quite all the Win and You’re In races.

As an encore to the opening three-day weekend, which produced a slew of contenders for the Nov. 3-4 Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar, the Grade 3 Jessamine for 2-year-old fillies will anchor an eight-race Wednesday card as the ninth and final Win and You’re In of the Keeneland fall meet.

Rushing Fall, an impressive winner at first asking on the Belmont Park turf last month for Chad Brown, could be a lukewarm favorite in the 27th running of the $150,000 Jessamine, a 1 1/16-mile turf race offering an expenses-paid berth to the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf. Favorably drawn in post 2 as part of a full field of 14 in the Jessamine, Rushing Fall earned an 85 Beyer Speed Figure in that lone start, tops in this field.

For bettors who prefer to opt for something more imaginative than a Chad Brown-trained favorite, there are solid alternatives.

Sunny Skies, winner of the Debutante on the Churchill dirt, and Lady O’Toole, winner of the Happy Ticket on the Louisiana Downs turf, are the only stakes winners in the group, while Sugar Queen, a Saratoga allowance winner for Todd Pletcher, is the only other starter ineligible for a first-level condition.

Sunny Skies, unraced on turf, breezed a half-mile over the Keeneland turf last week with regular rider Robby Albarado aboard, and trainer Kenny McPeek hardly could contain his enthusiasm afterward.

“Robby was absolutely crazy about her,” McPeek said. “He said it was like being on a different horse. He thinks she’s going to relish moving over to the grass.”

Another filly set to make her turf debut Wednesday is the Pletcher-trained Stainless, third in the Grade 3 Schuylverville and fourth in the Grade 2 Adirondack at Saratoga.

First post Wednesday is 1:05 p.m. Eastern, with the Jessamine carded as the seventh (4:24). Rain forced the male counterpart to the Jessamine, the Bourbon Stakes, off the turf here Sunday, and with more rain in the forecast, there’s a chance a similar scenario could unfold Wednesday. The Bourbon retained its Win and You’re In designation despite the surface change.

Thursday is the first of the 17-day meet without a stakes, with the Franklin County (Friday) and Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup (Saturday) rounding out the stakes schedule for this five-day week.

KEY CONTENDERS

Rushing Fall, by More Than Ready

Beyer: 85

◗ Bet down to 9-5 favoritism in a full field in her Sept. 16 unveiling, this filly rallied like a pro to win going away under Javier Castellano, who has the return mount here.

Lady O’Toole, by Colonel John

Last 3 Beyers: 72-68-56

◗ The only three-time winner in the field, this Brad Cox-trained filly will have Corey Lanerie aboard from post 1 looking to duplicate her dominant effort in the Happy Ticket.

Miss Mo Mentum, by Uncle Mo

Last 3 Beyers: 80-49-66

◗ Her last-out maiden win around two turns over the Churchill Downs turf earned a solid Beyer.

◗ She is trained by Mark Casse, whose stable is off to a red-hot start at this meet.

Sunny Skies, by Animal Kingdom

Last 3 Beyers: 62-59-75

◗ A flashy debut winner on the dirt here in the spring, this daughter of the 2011 Kentucky Derby winner has a pedigree to suggest that grass will agree with her.

Mentality, by Freud

Beyers: 61-70

◗ This New York-bred filly set the pace before fading in the P.G. Johnson on the Saratoga turf last month for Wesley Ward, the leading trainer here in the spring.

Layla Noor, by Midnight Lute

Beyers: 68-55

◗ Her victory in a two-turn maiden race over the Saratoga turf surely is enough to recommend this Lael Stables homebred as a capable sleeper for trainer Arnaud Delacour.