Smile Happy, Played Hard pointed to big July 1 card at Churchill
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Smile Happy and Played Hard, both of whom scored major victories on the first weekend in May, are among those expected to line up for another marquee card at Churchill Downs on the first weekend of July.
Trainer Kenny McPeek confirmed that Smile Happy is pointing to the Grade 1, $1 million Stephen Foster on July 1, a race that will award its winner a berth in the Breeders’ Cup Classic this November at Santa Anita.
Smile Happy, a Grade 2 winner as a juvenile and Grade 1-placed early last year, has won 2 of 3 starts this year since returning from a lengthy break following the 2022 Kentucky Derby. He scored a two-length victory over Art Collector in the Grade 2 Alysheba Stakes on the Kentucky Oaks undercard May 5 at Churchill Downs, earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 110. That is the highest figure this year at a mile or longer on the main track.
Meanwhile, Phil Bauer, a former assistant to McPeek, is targeting the Grade 2, $400,000 Fleur de Lis on the July 1 card with his stable star Played Hard. The mare held off 2022 Kentucky Oaks winner Secret Oath for a neck win in the Grade 1 La Troienne on May 5. That was her first start of the year following a strong fall in Kentucky in which she won the Grade 3 Locust Grove and Grade 3 Falls City at Churchill, and was third in the Grade 1 Spinster at Keeneland behind champion Malathaat.
“She came out of the race in great shape, especially with it being her first start of the year,” Bauer said. “She loves the track at Churchill and we have big goals for her this year.”
Along with the Stephen Foster and Fleur de Lis, the July 1 card at Churchill Downs will include the Grade 2, $400,000 Wise Dan, $225,000 American Derby, $225,000 Kelly’s Landing, and $225,000 Tepin. Corresponding prep races for all six of those stakes races will be contested on a preview card June 3 at Churchill, with nominations closing Saturday.
The June 3 card includes the $225,000 Aristides Stakes, the prep for the Kelly’s Landing. Expected for the Aristides is two-time defending winner Bango, who scored his 10th win at Churchill Downs in the St. Matthews Overnight Stakes on May 4. According to Churchill Downs records, Ready’s Rocket holds the modern-day record as the winningest horse at this racetrack, with 11 wins, all at the claiming or starter-allowance level, in a career spanning from 2005-12.
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