Who wants to take on Aidan O’Brien?
That could be the query facing the owners and trainers with 2-year-old fillies successful in three prep races in the United States this weekend leading to the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf on Oct. 31 at Del Mar.
The races represent the domestic playoffs, of sorts, and will determine which runners are sent to Del Mar to take on what has the making of a tremendous team from O’Brien’s powerful Irish stable.
There are fees-paid berths to the Juvenile Fillies Turf available to the winners of Friday’s Grade 2 Jessamine Stakes at Keeneland and Saturday’s Grade 2 Miss Grillo Stakes at Aqueduct. The Grade 3 Surfer Girl Stakes on Sunday at Santa Anita also is expected to produce a runner or two for the Juvenile Fillies Turf.
The list of North American-based contenders recently has lost two prominent stakes winners. Corsia Veloce, winner of the Grade 1 Natalma Stakes on Sept. 13 at Woodbine, is out of action for the year, according to trainer Josie Carroll. The same goes for Meringue, who won a four-horse photo in the $996,000 Kentucky Downs Juvenile Fillies at a mile on Aug. 31, trainer Rodolphe Brisset said Monday.
A decision had not been made as of earlier this week regarding the Breeders’ Cup participation of Ultimate Love, easy winner of the Selima Stakes last Saturday at Laurel in her stakes debut, according to trainer Michael Trombetta.
In the Jessamine, Time to Dream, the five-length winner of the P.G. Johnson Stakes on Aug. 27 at Saratoga, is part of full field along with Red Beretta and Rose Room, who were a close second and fourth in the Kentucky Downs Juvenile Fillies.
Rose Room also is entered in the Miss Grillo, where the competition includes Quiet Street, winner of the $996,650 Untapable Stakes at 6 1/2 furlongs on Sept. 7 at Kentucky Downs, and Deep Learning, a fast-closing fifth after a wide trip in the Natalma.
Dreaming of Alys and Pentle Bay, first two finishers of the $103,000 Del Mar Juvenile Turf on Sept. 6, are entered in the Surfer Girl at a mile.
With success, some of those fillies will race against O’Brien’s expected pair of Precise, who won the Group 1 Moyglare Stud Stakes at The Curragh in Ireland on Sept. 14, and True Love, winner of the Group 1 Cheveley Park Stakes at Newmarket Racecourse in England on Sept. 27.
Beating one or both of them will not be easy.
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