Untapable vs. Lovely Maria in battle of Kentucky Oaks winners
LEXINGTON, Ky. – FallStars Weekend at Keeneland winds down Sunday with yet one more sensational matchup as Untapable and Lovely Maria, the last two Kentucky Oaks winners, clash in the 60th running of the Grade 1 Juddmonte Spinster Stakes.
Both fillies will be looking to recapture some lost luster when they face seven other fillies and mares in the $500,000 Spinster, which anchors a 10-race card and will be televised live on a one-hour program (5-6 p.m. Eastern) on NBC. The Spinster is a Win and You’re In event toward the Oct. 30 Breeders’ Cup Distaff.
Untapable, 4, has won just once in five starts since she capped a championship season by winning the BC Distaff last fall for owner and breeder Winchell Thoroughbreds. Lovely Maria has finished off the board in two starts since she won the Oaks in May for former Kentucky Gov. Brereton Jones.
Winchell racing manager David Fiske said he and trainer Steve Asmussen are expecting a big effort Sunday from Untapable, who will break from post 3 in the 1 1/8-mile Spinster.
“From all indications, she’s the same filly she’s always been,” said Fiske. “She’s doing great. Her attitude is about half nasty, and she’s sound. We’re expecting her to show up.”
Lovely Maria (post 1, Kerwin Clark to ride), the only 3-year-old in the Spinster field, ran fifth in the Delaware Oaks and sixth in the Alabama, although trainer Larry Jones cautioned: “Sometimes what is on the past performances don’t tell the whole story.”
Jones said Lovely Maria might have been compromised by a virus that went through his barn prior to the July 11 Delaware Oaks, and that the 1 1/4-mile distance of the Aug. 22 Alabama “just might have been a little too far.”
Untapable (post 3, John Velazquez) has been pegged as the 9-5 morning-line favorite, with Lovely Maria the 7-2 co-second choice with Got Lucky (post 4, Irad Ortiz Jr.).
All three fillies are expected to remain at Keeneland following the Spinster to train for the Breeders’ Cup.
The last time Oaks winners raced against each other was in the Louisville Breeders’ Cup on the 2000 Kentucky Oaks undercard at Churchill Downs. Silverbulletday (1999 Oaks winner) was fourth, and Keeper Hill (1998 winner) was fifth behind the victorious Heritage of Gold.
The Spinster is carded as the ninth race, with post time set for 5:45. The Grade 3 Bourbon Stakes (5:10) directly precedes it as the eighth race.
After a couple of days of rain and chill to open this 17-day fall meet, the weather was supposed to break Sunday, with mostly sunny skies and temperatures in the low 70s in the forecast.
After Sunday, Keeneland goes dark for two days before the first full week of the meet kicks off with the Grade 3 Jessamine Stakes for 2-year-old turf fillies. The Jessamine is the eighth and final Win and You’re In race at the front-loaded fall meet.
KEY CONTENDERS
Untapable (Last 3 Beyers: 96-93-93)
◗ A bona fide star since becoming the early 2014 Kentucky Oaks favorite with huge efforts at Fair Grounds, this daughter of the red-hot sire Tapit most recently was third in the Grade 1 Personal Ensign on the Aug. 29 Travers undercard at Saratoga.
◗ Her tractability is always a useful trait.
Lovely Maria (Last 3 Beyers: 85-83-94)
◗ Daughter of the young sire Majesticperfection won the Grade 1 Ashland Stakes here in April in a performance that made her a genuine Oaks contender.
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 1 Lovely Maria. Trainer Larry Jones is 3-0-0-0 over the past five years with 3-year-olds facing elders in graded stakesClick for more details. – Mike Hogan
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Got Lucky (Last 3 Beyers: 96-96-85)
◗ Long regarded along the Todd Pletcher shed row as a major breakout threat, this 4-year-old A.P. Indy filly came to hand this summer with back-to-back stakes wins and a runner-up finish in the Personal Ensign.
◗ Her off-the-pace running style might suit this race shape.
Frivolous (Last 3 Beyers: 91-93-96)
◗ She has never been better, although her three stakes wins in the last year all have come at Churchill Downs.
◗ Her versatile running style should help negate her outside post.
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 9 Frivolous. Trainer Victoria Oliver is 15-0-2-1 over the past five years on dirt with last-out winners. Click for more details. – Mike Hogan
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 2 Tiz Windy. Trainer Carl Nafzger is 33-0-6-1 over the past five years in races at Keeneland. Click for more details. – Mike Hogan
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: No. 7 Mei Ling. Trainer Todd Pletcher is 28-6-5-3 with a $2.03 ROI over the past five years in graded stakes at Keeneland with last-out winners. Click for more details. – Mike Hogan