Dueling Ground Oaks (Grade 3)- $2,000.000 Purse
KD- For Fillies Three Years Old
One Mile and Five Sixteenths on the Turf
September 10, 2025

The next large purse up for grabs at KD will occur on Wednesday with the Dueling Ground Oaks taking place for just the second time. That purse sees a $500.000 increase from last year, and the gate will be full of three-year-old females running long. The inaugural edition of the race was won by Let Me Explain, for Mb Stables, and at the time it capped off an impressive four race winning streak for the filly that began with the Acorn and also included the BEL and SAR Oaks. She’s still active, and we saw her here last week for the KD Ladies Turf, where she ran sixth. Now, we need another winner for the Dueling Grounds Oaks, and here are those that will battle it out!

1- Happy Dancer (Nakamura Stables, ridden by R Bejarano)- After struggling in the slop at the Gazelle, Happy Dancer was moved to the turf for the Grade 3 Regret. It was not technically her turf debut, but it had been a while since she had been on the surface, and it would go well as she placed second at CD that day. She since has had two more successful races on the surface and went wire to wire last month in the Grade 3 Pucker Up Stakes at ELP. Now, she can potentially pucker up to massive win.

2- Credit Crime (Aer Stables, ridden by I Ortiz Jr)- Probably not a name that you were expecting to make a trip to KD, but the top three-year-old filly in the game today is going to try and take down this purse. She’s done just about everything she could be asked to do up to this point and won the biggest race of them all for her division, the KYO in May. After that, she took on the boys in the BEL and cashed a third-place check, showing that she is not afraid to take on any opposition. Now, it’s the turf horses that can’t escape her. Last year, when Let Me Explain won, she was not a turf newbie like Credit Crime was, but she was certainly a main track star, and now Credit Crime can follow that lead. I don’t think anyone here really scares her, but racing on the turf is new to her.

3- Charlenes Way (La Canada Racehorses, ridden by A Jimenez)- Acquired by the trainer for $20.000 in April, and she has made three starts since then. She had not done much before the sale, but we can’t call her rags to riches to story now either. Did have a nice allowance win at PIM, and after a subpar outing, ran third in the San Clemente Handicap (Grade 3). Normally, I’d be more excited about that performance in a Grade 3, but that was a bit of a soft field for a graded race. Charlenes Way may step up but still has something to prove.

4- Firefish (Team 7 Illusions, ridden by Ar Bocachica)- After finishing second in her debut race, Firefish was entered into the ELP Turf two weeks ago and broke her maiden that way. Here she is again, now making her third start in about 40 days, but they are only starts that she has made. It’s a nice story to break your maiden in that manner, but the ELP Turf was a five-horse field without any real star in it and she had a four-pound weight allowance on everyone.

5- Peignoir (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by J Rosario)- The third horse in a row here that has not surpassed $100.000 in career earnings. Peignoir has two wins in six starts, coming out of a win against three others in a LAD optional claimer. Three of her previous races have been in four horse fields, and she’s never run in a stake before, making this by far the biggest challenge that she has ever dealt with.

6- Fierce Competitor (Mb Stables, ridden by D E Centeno)- Now, we get back to horses with significant graded experience. Fierce Competitor has more than just experience in these races, but also has it with winning them, as she captured the Grade 1 DMR Oaks last month. It was her third win in nine starts, and she has hit the board in seven of them. The People Pleaser filly now heads to KD looking to follow that up. This is also the largest field that she has ever seen.

7- Spanish Empire (Arindel, ridden by B Curtis)- Last month, Spanish Empire was up at SAR and would win the SAR Oaks for her third win in four races. B Curtis was aboard that day and will hope for the same outcome here with a SAR Oaks winner as had happened last year with Let Me Explain. Also picked up a graded win back in May in the Grade 3 Honeymoon Stakes at SA. Awesome turf pedigree, too, being by Boardwalk Empire and out of the late Hopewell Tradition, each former BC runners on the grass.

8- Ruths House (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by R M Hernandez)- After running fourth in the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf last fall, Ruths House has gone on to have a solid three-year-old campaign. However, it could use a few more wins, as her lone victory this year came in February at the $150.000 Sweetest Chant from GP. She’s been hitting the board as of late and had a tough luck second place effort in the BEL Oaks when Mean Girl nipped her at the wire. Bounced back from that by running third in the SAR Oaks, so it is probably just a matter of time before she revisits the winner circle.

9- Blakeney (Royalty Stables, ridden by T Gaffalione)- This is another filly that ran in both the BEL and SAR Oaks up at SAR. For Blakeney, those races came following a win in the Grade 3 Regret at CD where she went wire to wire. Ran a strong third in the BEL Oaks and cashed the fourth-place check in the SAR Oaks. Going further back, she can be remembered for running third in the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf as well. Seems to be on the best form of her career right now.

10- United Knightley (Saratoga Stud, ridden by F Prat)- After three straight second place finishes, including a heartbreaking second in the $100.000 Lyphard, United Knightley broke through at SAR with a come from behind effort to win the Grade 3 Lake George. She then followed that up by running second in the DMR Oaks at west, with another late run. In that one, she just missed and got her picture taken with winner Fierce Competitor at the wire. She, too, appears to be at her best right now.

11- Mean Girl (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by F Pennington)- Mean Girl packed plenty of punch this spring with a three-race winning streak. It began modestly but soon included the $100.000 Lyphard at PEN. Following that, she showed that she could back up her talk with a win in the Grade 1 BEL Oaks while coming from behind. All streaks will come to an end, and that would be the case in the SAR Oaks, where she did not make the same kind of late push and had a flat looking race line. For now, we can forgive that, and she’s beaten many of these before so no reason she cannot do it again.

12- Creepy Runner Party (Mb Stables, ridden by J R Velazquez)- It’s back to the turf for this filly after a subpar outing in the Grade 1 Alabama. Made four starts on the grass as a two-year-old and would end up running second in the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf. After that, Mb Stables pursued the KYO with this filly, and it proved to be the right call as a string of positive results led to a win in the Grade 1 Ashland. That got her into the KYO. Finished mid-pack there but rebounded beautifully by winning the Acorn. I’m sure we’ll see her back on the dirt at some point but for now she gets this opportunity to win a big purse.

13- Kash Bounty (Mb Stables, ridden by P Lopez)- This third quarter two-year-old has become a late arrival onto this scene. She did not make her debut until February, and after a couple of second place outings, she broke her maiden in June at CD. Encouraged by that, the trainer took a shot by entering her into the SAR Oaks as one of the just six that were entered there. It was another correct move by Mb Stables, as she ran well before settling for second Spanish Empire, but did run better than a few others she meets up with again here. Still has a large upside.

14- Vandine Road (Spb Racing, ridden by G Corrales)- Enters the Dueling Grounds Oaks with five wins in her last six races, but they have not been at the highest of levels. Her prior trainer got two smaller wins with her, though in May she was claimed by Spb Racing for just $5.000. The new trainer was not immediately in love with her, as he entered her for a $14.000 tag in their first race together, but that’s changed over her last two starts. Won an allowance at PRX in July, and oh by the way, Fierce Competitor was in the same field. Next, she won the $150.000 Solana Beach Stakes for CA-Breds at DMR and now takes another step forward.

Prediction: 7-2-11-8

— NS

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES