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Plenty of contenders in Keeneland's QE II Cup
LEXINGTON, Ky. -- The royals
are big on anniversaries, which should make the 25th running of the
Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup at Keeneland a festive occasion. Thing
is, the QE II is always something fancy, to which another killer renewal
here Saturday can attest.
Eleven 3-year-old fillies
will step onto the turf course for the $500,000 QE II, the sixth and
last Grade 1 race of the Keeneland fall meet. Two of the starters,
Backseat Rhythm and Magical Fantasy, both enter off Grade 1 wins, but by
no means is this close to a match race.
In fact, in terms of
accomplishment and potential, not a whole lot appears to separate the
entire field, and although Backseat Rhythm and Magical Fantasy rang up
that all-important Grade 1 tally by capturing the Garden City and Del
Mar Oaks in their respective last starts, clearly there are others
capable of doing the same Saturday. Santa Anita Oak's winner Ariege,
Sefroua, Rosa Grace, and My Princess Jess seem to be sitting on big
efforts, and even a victory by a longer shot such such as Closeout,
Lickety Lemon, or Alwajeeha would not qualify as a huge surprise.
Ariege is already
familiar to Keeneland fans, having captured the Grade 2 Beaumont Stakes
over Polytrack here in the spring. Trainer Bobby Frankel said afterward
that Ariege probably would be just as effective on grass, if not more
so, and he eventually set out to prove it by running her in August in a
small stakes at Saratoga, which she won in impressive fashion. She then
ran in the Sept. 6 Garden City, in which she finished a close third
behind Backseat Rhythm.
"We took a tiny chip out
of her ankle after the Beaumont," Frankel said. "She was coming back
fairly quick in the Garden City, and she ran pretty good. This should be
a real good race for her, if she likes the surface. It's an extremely
good field, and I think the horse that gets the best trip is going to
win. I envision our filly laying just off the pace and making one run."
Trip-wise, Ariege
shouldn't have much of an excuse in the 1 1/8-mile QE II, considering
she will start from the favorable inside post when ridden by Alan
Garcia, arguably the hottest jockey in North America in recent months.
"I'll let the jock do
what he wants," Frankel said. "He's a pretty cool rider."
Another QE II filly
exiting the Garden City is My Princess Jess, a three-time stakes winner
who finished just a length behind Ariege in fourth. Trainer Barclay Tagg,
who won the QEoII last year with Bit of Whimsy, said he is not overly
concerned with My Princess Jess having been assigned to the opposite end
of the starting gate in post 11.
"If it works out where
she can get position and wait long enough to make that one short run she
makes, she could be pretty formidable," Tagg said.
The early pacesetter in
the QE II could be Alwajeeha, who was a close second to My Princess Jess
two starts back in the Grade 2 Lake George at Saratoga. After Alwajeeha,
the closest pursuers could be Ariege, Sefroua, Storm Mesa, and My
Princess Jess, while the rest tend to do their running from midpack or
even farther behind, including Backseat Rhythm, Magical Fantasy, and
Closeout.
Storm Mesa has put
together a noteworthy campaign for trainer Bret Calhoun. Her March
maiden win at Fair Grounds began a five-race run that culminated with a
victory in the Grade 2 San Clemente at Del Mar in July. Her streak came
to an end in the Del Mar Oaks, and she comes into the QE II off an
eight-week freshening.
The QE II occasionally
has produced a starter for the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf, but
with the races just 13 days apart and with shipping cross-country to
Santa Anita required, that may not happen this year.
The QE II is carded as
the ninth race on a card that also includes the Grade 3 Perryville
Stakes (race 7). Another spectacular day of weather is forecast for
Saturday, when first post is 1:10 p.m. Eastern. |
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