The Diana – (Grade l)

Purse $500.00 – For Fillies And Mares Four Years Old And Upward

1⅛ Miles  – Turf

Saratoga – July 18, 2026

What a race we have this weekend at The Spa as the best turf routing fillies and mares duke it out in the 22nd running of The Diana. The talent on display is undeniable, with this year’s eight entrants combining for 17 Grade One wins and more than $20,000 in career earnings. Poetic Panther is one of the top headlines in the field after capturing The NY last month and will be seeking a third consecutive victory in The Diana. This race has built a rich legacy as one of HRP’s premier turf races, featuring some of the best fillies and mares in the game’s history. It also has a very storied tradition of repeat success, producing four back-to-back champions throughout its history. The great Smokey Stover sits atop the owner leaderboard with four victories, sweeping The Diana each year from 2019 through 2022. The stakes record was set back in 2011 when Night Mare Racing’s A Little Oblivion stopped the clock for the 1⅛-miles in 1:45.08. With a field this accomplished, every horse has a story. Let’s take a look at each contender!

1. Lady Hilltopper – (Black N Gold Stable, E. Esquivel) Incredible mare with eighteen graded stakes victories. She has twenty wins in forty two career starts and over $5,500 in purse earnings. Lady Hilltopper went on an impressive four-race win streak at the end of 2025 into the start of 2026. It included the Breeders Cup Fillies and Mares Turf and the Pegasus F&M Turf. Since then, the daughter of Pinnacle West has two third place finishes against Grade One company. Her most recent effort was in The NY going 1 3/16 on the turf. She was sitting the perfect trip off the pace and was ultimately outkicked in the final stages. Having not finished off the board in a year, Lady Hilltopper will be my top pick.

2. Poetic Panther – (Maletto, Jam. Rodriguez) Winner of this stakes in back-to-back years and is coming off a Grade One victory. This six-year-old mare has over $5,000 in career earnings with fourteen wins. After taking down the Kentucky Downs Ladies Turf in August 2025, Poetic Panther hit a 10-month drought between victories. Many second place efforts behind Lady Hilltopper and Beach Towel. However, she got back to her winning ways going wire-to-wire in The NY at Saratoga. She set a new stakes record for the 1 3/16 mile distance and tied her career-high 101 speed figure. This is exactly what connections wanted to see coming into this race. Poetic Panther doesn’t like to finish off the board, so she’ll be a serious contender.

3. Smokin Cherie – (TwinTowersRacing, M J. Sanchez) The least experienced runner in the field with fourteen career starts. Connections gave this daughter of Smokin Luka six races on the dirt before making the move to the turf. Smokin Cherie went on to win five races in a row, showcasing her versatility in both sprint and route events. Things went a little sideways after she turned four as TwinTowersRacing focused on two-turn graded stakes. Her best finish so far this year was back in February with a third place in The Very One at Gulfstream Park on soft ground. Smokin Cherie’s last two starts weren’t much as she was never a factor in either. A huge step up is needed to compete against these older mares.

4. Credit Crime – (Aer Stables, I. Ortiz Jr.) Not many fillies and mares can match what this Ontario-bred has accomplished, becoming a multiple Grade One winner on both dirt and turf. Credit Crime won the Kentucky Oaks last year as the favorite and has now racked up close to $5,000 in career earnings. She ended her three-year-old year with a milestone victory in the American Oaks at Santa Anita. In 2026, this daughter of War Chant has not shown any signs of slowing and won The Bayakoa and Jenny Wiley stakes with a career-high speed figure of 101. However, Credit Crime hasn’t found the winner’s circle in her past two starts against Grade One company. She’ll be dangerous if she gets her preferred trip.

5. Aime La Nature – (Our Athletes, P. Lopez) Became a Grade One winner last time out capturing The Just A Game at Saratoga. The turf was rated “good” that day, and Aime La Nature took full advantage of the rail draw with a wire-to-wire score. That was her second graded stakes victory of her career, and she also put up a career-high 101 speed figure. Earlier in the year, this daughter of Our Dark Knight was an easy winner coming from off the pace in the Sand Springs at Gulfstream Park. I don’t think this filly is a need-the-lead type of horse, but no doubt she will be forwardly placed. It’s worth noting that her speed figures have been getting better with every start this year. Is Aime La Nature ready to fire again?

6. Beach Towel – (Winning Link Stables, B. Curtis) Connections struck gold when they moved this five-year-old mare to the turf last year, where she has excelled against the best in HRP. Beach Towel had an impressive 2025 campaign with two graded stakes victories, including a Grade One win in The First Lady. She ended the year in the Breeders Cup Fillies and Mares Turf, but proved to be too far of a distance. The daughter of Livinonthebeach hasn’t finished off the board in 2026 and has put up four triple-digit SRF speed figures in a row. Her most recent triumph came two starts back in the Grade Two CD Distaff Turf Mile, beating Poetic Panther. Beach Towel’s stalking running style will make her a formidable threat.

7. Mami – (Alydar Stables, V. Espinoza) Multiple Grade One winner who is three for four at the 1⅛-mile distance. This Texas-bred had a very successful 2025 season winning three stakes, including the QE ll Challenge Cup at Keeneland. Mami ended her year running second in the Breeders Cup Fillies and Mares Turf to Lady Hilltopper. She hasn’t had the best start to her four-year-old campaign, getting seventh and fifth against graded company. However, things turned around last time out when connections put this filly closer to the lead in The Gamely Stakes. Mami took the lead at the top of the stretch and cruised all the way home by a length. Her recent form makes her impossible to ignore.

8. Neon Sara – (TwinTowersRacing, R M. Hernandez) An up-and-coming filly who is seeking her first stakes win. This daughter of Neon Wolf has run mostly on the dirt through her eighteen-race career against allowance company. However, her past two starts have come on the grass. Neon Sara finished second in an open allowance sprint at Santa Anita against a four-horse field. The key takeaway from that effort was that she lost to the multiple stakes winner When Doves Cry. Connections felt comfortable stretching her out to a mile after that performance and running in The Just A Game stakes. The turf came up as “good” that day and Neon Sara just wasn’t able to make an impact. This represents a much tougher assignment.

– AJM

Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES