Humana Distaff (Grade 1)- $300.000 Purse
CD- For Fillies and Mares Four Years Old and Upward
Seven Furlongs on the Dirt
May 5, 2018

The first Saturday in May at CD brings us plenty of great races, not only the KYD. As we look at the undercard, we comes to the Humana Distaff, a race that could also be dubbed the Blonde Dynamite Stakes if we wanted. That legendary mare won this race three years in a row between 2007 and 2009. Now, as time goes on, her accolades start to get forgotten a little more, but she ran off what is probably the greatest winning streak ever in the history of the game. Unfortunately, she never produced a great foal over her breeding timeline, though did produce some catch foal names along the way. Last year, the race, run in the slop, was run by Lea, proving to the be the last win of her career. On the jockey side, R J Albarado will look for his third straight win, and we won’t have to go far down the list of horses to get to his mount, so here is our field of eight!

#1- Temple Of The Brave (Crocker Ggs, ridden by R J Albarado)- Albarado looks to pull off his personal Blonde Dynamite threepeat with Temple Of The Brave, the runner up in the BC Fillies and Mares Sprint last fall. Since that result, she has not hit the track all the much, making two starts, and making them count, running second in the Fritchie Stakes (to Gottahotone) in February, then won the Grade 2 Inside Information a month later. She knows how to get results, with eight wins overall in 17 starts. Expect her to be good here.

#2- Dreaming Of Lys (Smokey Stover, ridden by I Ortiz Jr)- This four year old by El Gran Broomstick found her way to the BC Distaff last year. She has not raced much since then, and was acquired by Smokey Stover for $175.000 at the end of February. They have had one race together, a solid third at the Grade 2 Santa Monica, being beaten by Dashboard Rahy and You Are My Sunshine, so she has the chance to turn the tables on both of them here. She is a full sister to La Gran Kirky, the dam of Ivanka, one of the favorites from the KYO.

#3- Gottahotone (Team 7 Illusions, ridden by L H Colon)- This mare shows incredible consistency, with 19 in the money finishes out of 24 career starts, with nine of them ending up in the winners circle. This earned her a start in the BC Fillies and Mares Sprint, where she would run third, just slightly behind Temple Of The Brave. She returned the favor on that one, however, in the Grade 2 Fritchie at LRL back in February. With one race since then, she is fresh, and while the chance of rain Saturday has dropped to 20%, Gottahotone will hope that there is not a fluky storm that passes through.

#4- You Are My Sunshine (Stone Creek Farm, ridden by E Jaramillo)- Consistency can be said for this one as well, as she has run off three consecutive 97 SRF’s in her last three races. Those have earned her spots in the top three all the time, though she keeps seeming to be narrowly beaten by at least one of those we see in the field today. She is due to have her day against them, and perhaps that comes here. You Are My Sunshine also ran in the BC Fillies and Mares Sprint, but finished near the back.

#5- Baby Goes To Rio (Aml Racing, ridden by Alan Garcia)- The Sneaky Little Pirate filly has consistently raced against the best, so several of the less impressive lines in the past performances can be forgiven. It is races like the Grade 2 Fritchie, where she was a distant sixth to rivals she faces here again, such as Gottahotone and Temple Of The Brave that concern me a little bit. She has flashed greatness, looking sharp in the Jammed Lovely several months back, but needs a new result like to put on her resume. A second place run in the five horse Distaff Handicap last month is a good start for that.

#6- Natural Zone (Mb Stables, ridden by J R Velazquez)- On BC day, Mb Stables was certainly in a zone, and one of his winners was Natural Zone, taking the BC Fillies and Mares Sprint, one of four that reunite from that race here six months later, including the top three. That alone makes for an interesting race within a race to see how they all hold up against one another half a year later. Natural Zone has been lightly raced since the win, running three times, and winning once. That came in the mud at KEE last month against three others in the Grade 1 Vinery Madison, topping Gottahotone.

#7- Dashboard Rahy (John Henry, ridden by R Bejarano)- Over her last seven starts, Dashboard Rahy has finished either first or second in all of them, which are a mixture of open allowances and stakes. In fact, her last three graded stake races have ended up as wins, including her last two starts. Most recently, we saw her at SA for the Santa Monica Stakes, a Grade 2, and that victory saw her defeat Dreaming Of Lys and You Are My Sunshine. She seems to be on her best form right now, and while this is a very competitive race, I think she is going to get it done.

#8- Lady Opus (Smokey Stover, ridden by J R Leparoux)- This five year old also knows how to win, doing so nearly half the time, with seven victories in 16 starts. Only one start has come with current trainer Smokey Stover who picked her up very cheaply, just $50.000 given her accolades, from Luz International. She did not waste any time returning to the winners circle, taking the Grade 3 Distaff Handicap, over Baby Goes To Rio, last month. Plenty to like, and just one more reason this field is loaded.

Prediction: 7-3-6-1

— NS

Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES