Scylla, Loved look to make a name for themselves in the Doubledogdare

LEXINGTON, Ky. – They’re known at the moment mainly by their family connections – Scylla, full sister to classic-placed, multiple graded stakes winner Tacitus, and Loved, half-sister to multiple Grade 1 winner Maxfield. But on Friday, they’ll try to add “graded stakes winner” to their own descriptions, outright, as they go in the Grade 3, $300,000 Doubledogdare Stakes at Keeneland.

Scylla is by Tapit and out of champion Close Hatches. The Juddmonte homebred is trained by Bill Mott, who also handled her dam and her accomplished half-brother. Scylla won her first two career starts last year by a combined 10 3/4 lengths, including her debut sprinting at Keeneland. She returned from a layoff of more than nine months in an allowance event at a mile March 17 at Gulfstream, and after dueling throughout, was second by a neck. She came out of that effort to fire off two bullet works, perhaps indicating that she is on the muscle after tasting competition again, and could be forwardly placed again. Friday’s 1 1/16 miles will be her longest race to date, but pedigree suggests that is no issue.

Godolphin’s Loved, who made one start in 2022, won her first three outings in 2023 – beginning with an 11 1/2-length romp in a Keeneland maiden at the Doubledogdare distance. She won her next two outings by a combined 16 1/2 lengths. In her graded stakes debut, she was fourth after leading early against a solid field in the Grade 3 Molly Pitcher last July at Monmouth. Loved, who is trained by Brendan Walsh – as was Maxfield – has worked the last several weeks at Keeneland in company with Kentucky Oaks winner and champion Pretty Mischievous, indicating her quality to hang right with that one in training.

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Loved, who has led early in her best efforts, breaks from post 4 under Tyler Gaffalione, and Scylla, breaks next door from post 3 under Javier Castellano. They are likely to be joined up front by Raging Sea, who may need to use her tactical abilities from the rail in the field of seven under Flavien Prat – or take back behind the others and risk behind hung wide when moving into the short stretch. Raging Sea flashed ability early in her career, which she put together for strong back-to-back efforts to end 2023. She first won an allowance race in October at Keeneland, a track she has long shown an affinity for, before narrowly winning the Grade 3 Comely at Aqueduct in the fall.

Grade 3 winner Hidden Connection, second in last year’s Doubledogdare, has been forwardly placed in some of her better efforts, and could also be prompting the pace.

Although these pace horses are the clear class of the field, and the Keeneland main track has favored front-running types this meet, a meltdown up front could see Queen of Missoula grabbing a piece of the action at a big price. The filly is making her stakes debut off back-to-back wins going 10 furlongs on Turfway’s Tapeta; horses coming off that surface have run well in stakes this meet. She goes out for the team of Ben Colebrook and Luan Machado, who have combined for multiple wins at this meet.

Saddle Up Jessie won the Carousel Stakes at Laurel and Heavenly Prize Stakes at Aqueduct over the winter. Curl Girl, a Keeneland maiden winner last fall and most recently second in a Turfway allowance, completes the field.

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