BC Fillies and Mares Turf (Grade 1)- $2,000.000 Purse
SA- For Fillies and Mares Three Years Old and Upward
One Mile and One Quarter on the Turf
November 4, 2023
A star-studded field that includes two prior winners of the race are set to meet in the 21st running of the BC Fillies and Mares Turf, which is run at a mile and a quarter when at SA. Neither of those two prior winners, La Terrifiant and Maggie Greene, were a winner over the last two years, so it is a testament to their incredible longevity. The other twelve in this field are not going to let them have it easy and look to achieve their own BC glory. Beyond the prestige of winning is the $2,000.000 purse, which has been at that level ever since 2006. Last year, Perfect Class got the win for Sccj Stables, capping of a truly incredible season. Surprisingly, she has been winless in 2023, and that has led to her not qualifying for this race. Don’t write her off, though, even though right now she is not at her best. 2021 winner, Number Nine, retired after last year’s running of the race but we still have the winners of the two years before her running here. Here’s a look at all of our talented female turf stars!
#1- Painville (Mo Mentum Farm, ridden by F Geroux)- Picked up by the trainer in December for $150.000, and rewarded Mo Mentum Farm with three straight wins which was highlighted by the Grade 2 Buena Vista right here eight months ago. The streak may have ended, but the pain for the competition would continue as she went on to score her biggest career win to date, the Grade 1 Just A Game at BEL in June. All of her races this year have seen her run competitively, and most have her no more than a length off of the win. However, this race is longer than she has been running, so that could play a role. I would not be worried about her going ten furlongs normally, but she is up against experienced veterans of the distance, or longer.
#2- Techfluence High (The Sidley Stud, ridden by D E Centeno)- Winner of the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf last year, and she has been able to continue to be successful in her three-year-old season even if it has meant some duds along the way. Three weeks ago, at AQU, she captured the Grade 2 Sands Point, one of her two wins on the year, and she has also been second twice. Unfortunately for the trainer, her most common finish of 2023 has been eighth, placing in that spot three times and we’re not talking about finishes of eighth where it was a blanket finish at the line, either. Which side of her shows up is key, but there are safer options out there for me, and one is a stablemate.
#3- Maggie Greene (The Sidley Stud, ridden by F Pennington)- I’ll address the elephant in the room first: she was terrible in her last start, the Rodeo Drive right here last month. That was a shocker, because leading up to that, she had three wins and three seconds in six starts, with two of the wins combining to be by seven lengths. She’s a legend of the game, with 21 wins in 69 starts, and earning over $5,000.000 during her lifetime. with a lot of that being from her 2020 win in this very race, which she is now running in for the sixth time! And she did run in the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf, too. Everything’s great, and every now and then she has a blip on her past performances, though nothing recently as bad as the Rodeo Drive. A recent work would have made me feel better.
#4- Mon Dieu (Mo Mentum Farm, ridden by P Lopez)- Opened her four year old season by winning the Grade 3 La Prevoyante Handicap at GP, and continued to run well into the spring, hitting the board in three more graded races. In August, she would then win the Grade 2 Dance Smarty Stakes at WO, and it is efforts like that which were able to get her into this race. Her last race was not as exciting, as she was beaten by four lengths at the Grade 1 Taylor Stakes while running ten furlongs on the WO turf, but it did still get her a fourth-place check. Plenty good enough to be in the mix here, but I’m not confident that she can top this field but may get a piece.
#5- Lady Hilltopper (Black N Gold Stable, ridden by R A Vazquez)- While Maggie Greene threw a dud in the Rodeo Drive here last month, Lady Hilltopper topped them all, winning by a length. It was one of her three wins on the year, with a pair of Grade 3’s in the spring being the other two. One thing that grabbed my attention right away about her is her track record at SA, and I am a believer that means something, even in our game. In four starts here, she has three wins, all in graded races, and if she had little more luck with the head bob at the Grade 1 American Oaks last December, it would be a perfect 4-for-4. Has not been as good at other tracks, but fortunately for the trainer, the BC is here this year!
#6- Always Condottieri (Maletto, ridden by El Gonzalez)- This is the second time that Always Condottieri has run in the Fillies and Mares Turf, as last year she just missed out in taking a piece of it, by running fifth. Since then, she has won three times, highlighted by taking the Pegasus F & M Turf at GP in January as well as winning the Royal Heroine here in April. There have been no wins since then, but she has remained productive, hitting the board in four of her last five since the win. My concern is the one race that she was not as good in was the Diana, and that’s the closest in field quality to what she is seeing here. While there’s nothing wrong with the $125.000 Floral Park, I would have preferred to see her coming out of something more exciting. She was only third of four there, too.
#7- Untidy (Mb Stables, ridden by T Gaffalione)- After running in both the KYO and the Acorn, Untidy was sent to the turf and was handed a tough assignment in the BEL Oaks in July. She did well there, running fourth, showing her potential on the grass and things only improved from there. She would pick up back-to-back wins at SAR, coming in the SAR Oaks and the Flower Bowl, the latter of which was won by four lengths. Up next would be the Grade 1 Taylor, and when I looked at her in that race, I really liked her chances of getting a win. Despite still finishing third, she was four lengths behind the winner, Stinky Rene, who she sees here again. That one is probably the one to beat here, too, and I think that Untidy will be more competitive against her, here.
#8- Raw And Real (Mb Stables, ridden by Mario Gutierrez)- Everyone wants to come into the BC on top form, and Raw And Real is certainly doing that, as she has won her last three races, all of which have come at the graded level. The streak began at SAR in the Lake George in July, and heading west to the DMR Oaks would not change her fortunes, as she won that, too. Her last race is the most impressive of the group because of the way she won. At the Grade 3 JC Oaks, she opened up a four-length lead early, and never was challenged, comfortably going wire to wire. Sure, that was not a big field, and it was a little soft for a Grade 3, but still, it’s a good effort. Overall, this filly has won eight of fourteen.
#9- Sinister City (The Freakshow, ridden by M Franco)- Starting in November of last year, Sinister City rolled off a five-race winning streak that began in a GG allowance before ending with the Grade 2 Appalachian at KEE in April. The streak would end, but she’s continued to run very well, with two more wins, as well as finishing third in both the BEL Oaks and the QE II Challenge Cup, each of which are Grade 1’s. In fifteen starts, the three-year-old filly has eight wins, so she knows how to get it done and The Freakshow would love to pick up his first BC win. She won’t be the first name to pop up as a favorite here, but she has more than enough ability to run with this crowd and maybe even, get that ninth win.
#10- Toxins (London Racing, ridden by F Prat)- London Racing will be hoping that Toxins can find her form from earlier in the year, when she won three in a row, including the Grade 1 Just A Game at BEL in June. Since then, she’s been fine, earning two fourth place checks in her last three races, but you have to better than that to beat the quality of field that she sees here. Now, the good news might be the distance for her, as she has had a late running style in each of her last two races, closing to be a length out of it at a mile. In theory, more room to run for her will be a positive. Still must be at her best.
#11- Stinky Rene (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by R M Hernandez)- Going into her last race, the Grade 1 Taylor, I thought that if she was able to win that, that she would be the favorite in the BC. I didn’t know then that the BC Fillies & Mares Turf would be one of my races, but my thoughts of her have not changed. Not too shabby for a horse that I once wrote off, but it’s very obvious now that TwinTowersRacing has figured out how to make her a little bit better, and when you do that in our game, that can lead to the type of results that she has been seeing. The win streak is now three, coming in the Beverly D, Ladies Marathon, and the Taylor, and I’m picking her to make that four.
#12- La Terrifiant (Smokey Stover, ridden by J R Velazquez)- Arguably the greatest female horse that the game has ever seen. Eventually, there will come a time that she is sent off to the shed, and I think we are all excited to see her first foals when that does happen, but the 2019 winner of this race still has some racing left to do. I wonder though, if this is going to be it for her, simply because Smokey may decide it’s time to make that call and move on with her, as she would be nine next year. If you’re reading this, I don’t need to hype her up to you, she’s La Terrifiant, and when she is in a race, she is a top choice to win the race. Her last start, the KD Ladies Turf was not one of her best and was the first double digit finish of her 60-race career. Back in July, she was second in the Diana, a month after winning the NY, each of which are Grade 1’s. I’m not writing her off on the track, but I just think this could be a nice send off.
#13- Demanding Commander (Mb Stables, ridden by L Saez)- After finishing fifth in the Beverly D, Demanding Commander has bounced back and won her next two, earning a triple digit SRF in each of the Grade 2 Mabee Stakes and the Grade 1 First Lady. This gives Mb Stables a pretty powerful trio of horses in this race, and you could see any of them winning. That said, I would probably take the other two over this one, but this a credit to them, not a knock on her. On occasion, Demanding Commander seems to not show up in a race and when it happens, it seems to come out of nowhere.
#14- Zalinda (Threshold, ridden by J Lezcano)- Over her last six races, Zalinda has been going back and forth between winning and finishing fourth, so the post draw decided to put both a “1” and a “4” in her starting position for the race. She’s also made 41 career starts if we wanted to continue with that parallel. When we last saw her, it was at the start of September, and she won the Grade 2 Canadian Stakes, going from 14 to 15 career wins. Ran in this race back in 2021, and started on the other side of the gate, drawing the rail, and that didn’t go well, so maybe it will be good that she starts out here. Very much capable of the win here, especially if she runs the way she did here in the Gamely.
Prediction: 11-9-12-7
— NS
Categories: BC 2021-2023
