The Black Eyed Susan Stakes (Grade 2)- $300.000 Purse
PIM- For Fillies Three Years Old
One Mile and One Eighth on the Dirt
May 17, 2024

It’s PRK week at PIM, and to kick it off, we have several exciting races taking place on Friday, but none are bigger than the Grade 2 Black Eyed Susan Stakes for three-year-old fillies. The race is also considered the second leg of the Triple Tiara, or filly Triple Crown, and we will have nine heading to the starting gate for this year’s race. Since there is not any actual incentive to win the “Triple Tiara”, it is not a surprise that we will not see any fillies that ran in the KYO two weeks ago, but most of these were put on the trail and had varying degrees of success in those prep races over the past few months. In 2023, Blind Appeal won the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes for Nakamura Stables, and she’s gone on to have an otherwise successful career. Only one filly from that field ended up running in the BC in November, but it was not the BC Distaff. Up She Flew, the runner up to Blind Appeal, ended up running in the BC Fillies and Mares Sprint, and finished third. It’s early, but we will need to watch the weather forecast, as on Monday, there was a 65% chance of rain for Friday. Now, let’s meet this year’s runners:

1- Double Zee (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by S X Bridgmohan)- After starting out on the lead, Double Zee was passed late and fell to the fourth in the Grade 3 Gazelle last month, and with that, was not able to make the KYO field. She was better in January, when she was second in the Martha Washington, but her no show in the Davona Dale would cost her. Certainly, she is showing plenty of potential, but I am not sure if I could trust her in terms of putting money on her. Works are inconsistent, though she has not had many recent public ones.

2- Ragnar (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by D E Centeno)- She made her bid to get into the KYO by running in the Grade 1 Ashland at KEE, and did well to close for a third-place finish. That’s a strong result otherwise, but her 25 points on the KYO leaderboard would not be enough. I do like that she had that Ashland performance in the slop when looking at the potential for rain in this race, so that will be something to think about if we do end up having a wet track. That said, she can have her day against this company on a dry track, too. I would lean towards putting her among my picks, but not on top.

3- License To Kill (Fractious, ridden by R L Moore)- Joined the Fractious army in December, when the trainer purchased her for $75.000. She had some stake experience at that point but has eventually begun to get better results. It wasn’t an immediate success for Fractious, as License to Kill ran badly in the Forward Gal and would then win an open allowance. That led to her biggest win, the Grade 2 Beaumont at KEE last month. Only once has she gone over a mile and that was not a career highlight. But she does seem like she just needed a little more time to get it together and will run much better this time out when going long.

4- Ghost Writer (Nakamura Stables, ridden by A A Gallardo)- For the most part, this filly bypassed the KYO preps, though she did participate in the $150.000 Cincinnati Trophy Stakes at TP. That is not a career highlight, but it is also the only race of her last four that she did not win. Last month, she won the $125.000 Island Stakes at SUN, and that should put her in contention against the type of company that she sees here as Nakamura looks for his second straight Black-Eyed Susan win.

5- Hobo Blues (Alydar Stables, ridden by J R Velazquez)- Picked up in private sales after she broke her maiden and has immediately looked good when running in the silks of Alydar Stables. In their first race together, she would win the $250.000 Martha Washington Stakes at OP, and would later run third in the GP Oaks. That was not quite good enough to qualify for the KYO, as she finished 22nd on the leaderboard, a spot where you might be able to squeeze into the KYD, but not with the smaller Oaks field. Unfortunately, a dud in the Honeybee did her in for that, but she should have a great shot here.

6- Plenty Of Profit (Riggins Racing, ridden by P Husbands)- This is another filly that came out of the GP Oaks, and she would finish one spot better than Hobo Blues, being involved in a close photo with the winner. She was a late bloomer onto the scene, so that race was a bit of a Hail Mary to get into the field to begin with. Though she showed she could run with the best of them, her 50 points had her 21st, and at the bottom of a seven-way tie for 15th. Look for her to build on that GP Oaks effort, and she will be one to watch over the summer months.

7- Soho Doubt (Mb Stables, ridden by M Franco)- Joins a few others here that ran in the GP Oaks, but for Soho Doubt, there were no points gained in the race. She finished sixth, as she failed to respond in the stretch after a stalking trip. She seemed like she would have a good shot in that race and was the post time favorite after being the runner up in both the Suncoast and the Busher. In not getting points, she finished with 35 in total and 23rd overall, although Mb Stables did already have three in the KYO, so she might have always been heading here to begin with.

8- Elle (Wood Duck Stables, ridden by P Lopez)- Showed enough promise as a two-year-old to warrant an entry in the Grade 3 Adirondack at SAR, but after that we had not seen her at this level. There was an attempt in December at the $100.000 Untapable, but otherwise she has been running in overnights. She was not lights out in them and comes here off of an 85 SRF six weeks ago at a SA optional claimer where she was third. It does seem as though that figure was too low, but there is a reason for it and she hasn’t stepped up to this level. That can all change right here, but I will look elsewhere.

9- Your Next (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by F Geroux)- This filly looked good as a two-year-old, and ended the year by running third in the Grade 2 Demoiselle at AQU. Since then, she may be getting passed by, as multiple opportunities in KYO preps saw her fail to contend. In her last race, she could only beat one rival in the Grade 3 Fantasy and lost by five lengths. Perhaps she can be closer to the front here, but there seems to be several better options to pick here.

Prediction: 5-6-7-3

— NS

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES