Oaks Updates

Photo By: Benoit

Early Oaks favorite Balance breezed a swift five furlongs in 59.60 Saturday morning at her home base of Hollywood Park. The daughter of Thunder Gulch is set to ship to Churchill Downs next Saturday after her final tune up for the race on Friday for trainer David Hofmans.

BALANCE - Amerman Racing Stables LLC's Balance tuned up for her upcoming engagement in the $500,000-added Kentucky Oaks (Grade I) with a five-furlong work in :59.60 on Saturday morning at Hollywood Park.

Regular jockey Victor Espinoza was in the saddle for trainer David Hofmans. The move over a "fast" track by Balance was the second fastest of 33 at the distance.

"She went awesome," Hofmans said. "Her last three-eighths were in 34-and-three. We worked her with another horse and then another horse inadvertently tied in at the three-eighths pole."

It was the first work for the daughter of 1995 Kentucky Derby winner Thunder Gulch since she finished third as the 1-2 favorite in the Ashland (Grade I) at Keeneland on April 8.

"I think it was a lot like Bluegrass Cat and First Samurai last week in the Blue Grass, that she just didn't handle the track," Hofmans said. "She will work again Friday and then we will ship Saturday."

Balance won the Las Virgenes (GI) and the Santa Anita Oaks (GI) in her first two starts of the year.

BUSHFIRE - Homewrecker Stable LLC's Bushfire had an easy morning Saturday at Keeneland, a day after working a half-mile in :50.40 on the training track.

Trainer Eddie Kenneally said weather would hold the key to the next work for the daughter of Louis Quatorze, who won the Ashland (Grade I) at Keeneland and the Florida Oaks at Tampa Bay Downs in her last two starts.

Cornelio Velasquez, who rode Bushfire to the Ashland victory, has the call for the Kentucky Oaks.

DIPLOMAT LADY - Charles Cono LLC's Diplomat Lady galloped a mile and a half at Churchill Downs after the renovation break under exercise rider Alfredo Garcia.

Bonnie Paasch, wife of trainer Chris Paasch, is overseeing the daughter of Forestry's preparations until her husband returns to Louisville on May 1.

Winner of the Stonerside Beaumont (Grade II) in her most recent start and the Hollywood Starlet (GI) last fall, Diplomat Lady is scheduled to work Monday or Tuesday.

ERMINE - Oxbow Racing LLC's Ermine galloped Saturday morning at Churchill Downs with exercise rider Ronald Savoy up.

Trainer Ronny Werner said the Exchange Rate filly would work "probably Tuesday."

Ermine has no graded earnings and if more than 14 fillies are entered for the Oaks, she could be on the outside looking. "It would be a shame to miss this race because she is doing so good," Werner said. "If she does not run here, then we'd probably look at the Black-Eyed Susan (May 19 at Pimlico)."

EX CAELIS - Circle C Group Stables' Ex Caelis galloped before the renovation break under exercise rider Jesse Cirillo for four-time Oaks winning trainer D. Wayne Lukas. The daughter of 2000 Kentucky Derby winner Fusaichi Pegasus finished fourth the Fantasy (GII) at Oaklawn Park in her first start since November.

ITTY BITTY PRETTY - STD Racing Stable and Jason Wood's Itty Bitty Pretty, winner of the Santa Ysabel (GIII) and fourth in the Ashland (GI), walked the shedrow a day after working a half mile in 49.20 seconds over a track labeled "muddy" at Churchill Downs. The move was Friday's sixth fastest of 15 moves at the distance.

LEMONS FOREVER -Trainer Dallas Stewart sent his Kentucky Oaks hopeful Lemons Forever to the track after the renovation break and the daughter of Lemon Drop Kid responded with a five-furlong work in 1:01.80 over a track labeled "good" under exercise rider Pedro Velez.

"I thought she worked well," said Stewart. "She's been very consistent and I think she's got a shot."

The move ranked eighth among 13 at the distance.

The filly is co-owned by Stewart and Leon, Willis, and Terry Horton. Stewart said jockey Mark Guidry would have the mount on the third-place finisher in the Bourbonette Breeders' Cup (GIII) in the Kentucky Oaks.

PRESS CAMP - Peters Stables LLC, Rancho San Miguel and Matthew Shaver's Press Camp galloped a mile and a half at Bay Meadows Saturday morning with exercise rider Hector Martinez up.

Trainer Bill Morey has no work schedule planned at the moment because Press Camp has no graded earnings and could be excluded from the Oaks field. The 1 1/8-mile race for 3-year-old fillies is limited to 14 starters, with preference based on earnings in graded stakes races.

"Right now, it looks like we are sitting on the bubble," Morey said. "If we do get in, Rafael Bejarano would ride."

The daughter of Comic Strip has a record of 4-1-0 in eight races with earnings of $99,830. She has stakes victories in the Tiburon Handicap and San Ramon, but has no graded stakes earnings.

QUIET KIM - Chris Houchin's Quiet Kim, sixth as the favorite in the Fantasy (Grade II) and runner-up in the Santa Anita Oaks (GI), walked the shedrow at Barn 43 Saturday morning.

Trainer Bob Hess, Jr. is expected to arrive in Louisville from his California base either Wednesday or Thursday. RED CHERRIES SPIN - Contenders for the Kentucky Oaks rarely use a claiming race as their final key prep, but that could be the path that Naveed Chowhan's Red Cherries Spin could take to the May 5 race for 3-year-old fillies.

Chowhan and trainer Bernie Flint are assessing the daughter of With Approval who was claimed out of an April 15 win at Keeneland and could decide to supplement the filly to the Oaks for a fee of $25,000, or five percent of the race's $500,000-added purse.

If they decide to take that gamble, it would mark the second consecutive year in which Chowhan and Flint have participated in the Oaks. Runway Model, one of the top 2-year-old fillies of 2004, finished sixth as the 5-1 third choice in last year's seven-horse Oaks field.

Chowhan claimed Red Cherries Spin for $75,000 out of a 6 ½-furlong Keeneland race in which the filly stumbled badly at the start, but recovered quickly to win by nine lengths. Flint credits Chowhan for the decision to make the claim, and the owner said the move was made because he was intrigued by her pedigree.

"It's just so strange," said Chowhan. "She's bred to go long and she's bred to go on grass, and she keeps on winning short."

The victory was the third in four races for Red Cherries Spin, who won her only start at Churchill Downs when she made her debut in November in a $30,000 claiming race.

Flint is still getting to know Red Cherries Spin, who has been in the barn for only five days. But he and Chowhan have seen enough so far to make them at least toy with the notion of making her a supplemental entry to the Kentucky Oaks.

Although Red Cherries Spin has been sprinting throughout her brief career, Flint points to her pedigree - she's out of a mare by the grass specialist Generous - and her dosage index of 1.78 for evidence that she should be comfortable at distances like the Oaks' 1 1/8-miles.

"We don't know what's in there, but we've got an idea," Flint said. "It's an option we're going to look at. Look at the one that won the [Toyota] Blue Grass (former claimer Sinister Minister), or (1999 Kentucky Derby winner and former claimer) Charismatic. They're doing it."

Flint and Chowhan will continue to monitor their new acquisition over the next few days and she will probably breeze over the weekend. If they feel comfortable with her development, they could well take the chance to stretch out to the two-turn distance and take a shot at an Oaks field that will include most of the top 3-year-old fillies in America.

"When you look at Grade I races, there's a lot to look at - but she wouldn't be the first one that ever did it," said Flint. "It's there and she's done everything they've asked of her. In Thoroughbred racing, it's who's good on that day. It's always been that way. With the group that's going to be in the Oaks, how many of them can go long and really honestly be a true route horse?"

"We had one of the favorites last year, but if she gets in she'll be a longshot," said Chowhan. "We won't have any pressure on us."

TOP NOTCH LADY - Robert Wilson's Top Notch Lady galloped a mile and half after the renovation break at Churchill Downs with exercise rider Jose Castanon up.

The winner of the Bourbonette Breeders' Cup (GIII) at Turfway Park is not nominated to the Kentucky Oaks, but Wilson and trainer Mark Casse plan to make her a supplemental entry for a fee of $25,000, or five percent of the $500,000 purse.

WAIT A WHILE/READY TO PLEASE - Arindel Farm's Wait a While, the filly that appears to have the best shot of joining two-time champion Ashado as a Kentucky Oaks (Grade I) winner trained by two-time Eclipse Award-winner Todd Pletcher, tuned-up for her Oaks bid with a half-mile work on Saturday at Churchill Downs.

The gray daughter of Maria's Mon breezed just after the break for track maintenance and covered the four furlongs in :49 over a "good" track. The move was the third fastest of seven moves at the distance and Pletcher was pleased with the work.

"She's been a consistent filly," said Pletcher. "She's run some races in which it looked like she was good enough. When she hasn't been able to win, she's run hard."

Wait a While's strongest performance to date was a romping 14-length victory in the Davona Dale (GII) over a "sloppy" track at Gulfstream Park. She followed that with a third-place run behind Teammate in the Bonnie Miss, and then chased front-running winner Bushfire in a runner-up finish in the Ashland Stakes (GI) over the speed-favoring Keeneland course.

"She wouldn't mind an 'off' track," said Pletcher. "It wouldn't hurt our feelings if it rained for the Oaks, but we'll see."

James Scatourchio's Fantasy (GII) winner Ready to Please galloped at Churchill Downs on Saturday, but Pletcher continued to list her as "unlikely" to run in the Kentucky Oaks. He said the daughter of More Than Ready would probably breeze on Saturday, April 29.

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