Dueling Grounds Oaks ($1,500.000 Purse)
KD- For Fillies Three Years Old
One Mile and Five Sixteenths on the Turf
September 11, 2024

Let Me Explain has done it again! This talented filly came into the $1,500.000 Dueling Grounds Oaks with ten wins in fifteen races, and had won the Acorn, BEL Oaks, and SAR Oaks in succession. This made her the favorite as well as being our pick to win, and she did not disappoint. It was not a wire-to-wire effort like her last two races, but it did not need to be, and she would go on to win by half a length for her eleventh career win. She is trained by Mb Stables, and the trainer is now a perfect 3-for-3 in winning this race. Jockey J R Velazquez was aboard for his first such win. Congratulations to them! The winning time was 2:05.73, and while that is slower than the previous two editions, it is all that was needed. Let’s take a look at it now!

(½ Mile- :47.35)- Asgar’s Don’t Mind A Dime is the quickest out of the gate, and she is able to move all the way to the rail from the 10-post before the opening turn. Her lead is a length over The Desire, who is by herself in second for Sheffler Stables. Behind these two, we have a four wide group, and on the outside here, and running in third, is our eventual winner from Mb Stables, Let Me Explain. Right As Rain is right next to her for Alydar Stables, and closer to the rail, we have the Team 7 Illusions pair of Supine and Za Kiyah. Wonderful World (Smokey Stover) is directly behind Right As Rain, in seventh. It’s another length to One Spirit (Nakamura Stables), and another to Little Stinker (TwinTowersRacing), who hoped to not live up to her name. Next come Status (TwinTowersRacing) and Lakota Wind (Mo Mentum Farm). Further back are When Doves Cry (Big Jd Racing) and Happy Be Great (Our Athletes).

(3/4 Mile- 1:11.35)- The field heads down the backstretch and prepares for the final turn with Don’t Mind A Dime still leading the way with The Desire right behind her. Inching closer to them is Let Me Explain, who pulls a full length ahead of the other three that she had been running with, as she can now set her sights on the top two within the turn. Right As Rain, Supine, and Za Kiyah are still running right behind them, and Wonderful World continues to run right behind them while One Spirit is next on the rail. We have a small gap now to the rest of the field, which sees Status running in ninth, a length ahead of his stablemate Little Stinker, and Lakota Wind is nearby to them. At the moment, Lakota Wind is about eight lengths behind Let Me Explain, a deficit she will be trying hard to make up later. When Doves Cry and Happy Be Great continue to trail.

(Top Of Stretch, 2F To Go)- The top group of horses get jumbled up a lot closer to one another as we enter the top of the stretch. Don’t Mind A Dime would lead for the majority of the final turn but would be pass by Let Me Explain approaching the top of the stretch. Once there, Let Me Explain has a head in front, but for now, The Desire is also preparing to pass Don’t Mind A Dime, so she also seems like a strong threat. Supine and Za Kiyah are only a length behind them now, and One Spirit has come off the rail looking for room. Right As Rain is part of this pack as well and runs five wide while Wonderful World makes it six. There’s a two-length gap to the next pair, which includes Lakota Wind as that one moves up to run evenly with Status. When Doves Cry and Happy Be Great are at the back, and Little Stinker is really beginning to struggle.

(Finish- 2:05.73)- Let Me Explain is outkicking those who had been the closest to her and is a full length in front of seven fillies who were lined similarly to how they would look when leaving the starting group. Those horses did not include Lakota Wind quite yet, as she had been moving forward. Getting closer to the wire, Let Me Explain was not able to pull further ahead, and One Spirit was looking very interesting in that she could possibly have enough time to complete the pass. Supine was also looking like a threat, and Lakota Wind continued to get closer. But Let Me Explain knows how to win, and she was not going to cough this one up late. She’s run well enough to the wire to win by half a length over One Spirit and Lakota Wind, who are credited with a second-place dead heat. Supine takes fourth over The Desire and Wonderful World. Next would come Za Kiyah, Right As Rain, and Status. Don’t Mind A Dime faded in the stretch, but still beat When Doves Cry and Happy Be Great. Oh, wait, there was one more, as the virtual crowd applauded Little Stinker for finally finding the finish line eight lengths behind Happy Be Great.

About The Winner- Let Me Explain, trained by Mb Stables and ridden to victory by J R Velazquez, is a three-year-old filly by People Pleaser and is out of Because. She was bred in New York as a yearling by Mb Stables, the only trainer for which she has ever known. Congratulations to the connections! The win is her eleventh in 16 starts, and her tenth stake win. Her career earnings are now $3,567.78.

Track: Firm
Time: :47¹  1:11¹  1:35³  2:05³

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 8 – 3 Paid 14.60, 8 – 11 Paid 14.80
$1 Trifecta: 8 – 3 – 11 Paid 161.30, 8 – 11 – 3 Paid 129.20

Scratched: Nurse Hatchet

— NS

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded