The Martha Washington (KYO)- $300.000 Purse
OP- For Fillies Three Years Old
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Dirt
January 31, 2026

Despite not being a graded stake, the Martha Washington offers 20 points for the KYO for its winner and is one of two such races on the overall Saturday schedule. It’s $300.000 purse is twice as much as the other KYO prep, the Kittens Joy, a shorter race that does have a graded designation. We’ve seen some early scratch activity for this year’s race, but as of right now we still do have a full field of twelve schedule to take part. Last year, the race was won by Confident Elegance, a filly then trained by Wood Duck Stables and is now owned by Maxmillion Farm. She would run well in preps but fizzled out in the KYO. However, with Maxmillion Farm, she was able to find a new calling: turf sprints and made the BC in that race. Now, let’s take a look at those starting on Saturday:

1- Zifi (Mb Stables, ridden by F Pennington)- Picked up by the trainer for $140.000 in the September auction, two months after she made her stake debut in the $125.000 My Dear and was seventh in the race. With Mb Stables, Zifi has since gone on to win two out of three, and the wins are in her last two starts. Utilizing a frontrunning style, Zifi destroyed the competition in the $200.000 Maid Of The Mist with a four-length romp, and then $500.000 Fifth Avenue by two. Those are each NY-Bred races, but those are typically strong and they make her battle tested for this.

2- Wicked Angelina (The Sidley Stud, ridden by M Franco)- Started her career hot, with wins in three of her first four races, a stretch highlighted by her victory in the Grade 1 DMR Debutante. She has not been as good since then, with a flat effort in the Frizette before a fifth place showing in the BC Juvenile Fillies. In the latter, she passed a few in the stretch and gained ground, missing only by a length. Used a similar strategy in the mud last time and settled for second to Firewall in the Grade 2 Demoiselle.

3- Firewall (Mb Stables, ridden R Santana Jr)- Did someone say Firewall? This filly did indeed win the Grade 2 Demoiselle last time out, and for her, it was only her third career start. Her first two races came on the turf, and she ultimately broke her maiden in her second race, coming at DMR in November. Three weeks after that, Firewall was moved to the main track for that Demoiselle start and proved herself as a 40/1 longshot. Now, she will look to show that wasn’t a fluke and establish herself as a KYO threat.

4- Face Plant (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by Mario Gutierrez)- When we last saw Face Plant, she was getting her photo taken at the wire in the BC Juvenile Fillies with Wants It All, but had to settle for second. It was her debut for TwinTowersRacing, as the trainer had purchased her in private sales for $600.000 about two weeks prior. Running second in the Adirondack, then third in the DMR Debutante went a long way in determining that purchase price. Now, Face Plant is set to build on her BC showing as she begins her three-year-old season.

5- She Is Into It (Jerry Garcia Racing, ridden by C H Borel)- After an inconsistent start to her career, one that saw a lone win be surrounded by three six place efforts in her first four races, She Is Into It has been a lot better in her last two. Coming at CD, the filly would win the $200.000 Rags To Riches in October and would follow that up by running second a month later in the second in the Grade 2 Golden Rod, to, given how she began her career, an ironically named opponent in Three Sixes.

6- Woman On The Moon (Arindel, ridden by A Fresu)- Won two out of her first three races, a stretch that would see her elevated into graded competition as a two-year-old. At SAR for the Grade 1 Spinaway in late August, Woman On The Moon ran a respectable fourth but would not be able to build on that in the Grade 1 Frizette. Last time out, about two months ago, this filly was up north for the Canadian-Bred $250.000 Princess Elizabeth Stakes and snagged the biggest win of her career to date.

7- Three Sixes (Pan Farms, ridden by R Bejarano)- When we looked at She Is Into It, we mentioned her win in the Grade 2 Golden Rod, when she beat that rival with a frantic come from behind effort, making up seven lengths in the stretch. That’s how she has been making her living early in her career, as her maiden win was with a similar style. However, it will not always pan out for her that way, as in the Rags To Riches, she only got up to fifth. Whether or not you pick her, you need to be looking for her in the stretch.

8- Santorini (Riggins Racing, ridden by P Lopez)- Once she got her debut race out of the way, Santorini would go on a four-racing winning stretch, starting at CD by breaking her maiden and finishing up at AQU with a massive win in the very competitive Grade 1 Frizette. With that victory, she was seen as a good option for the BC Juvenile Fillies and would run well in that race. Unfortunately for the trainer, she had some tough luck at the wire, settling for third in a three-way photo for the win. This is her first race since the BC and is one to watch.

9- Lady Lobo (Riggins Racing, ridden by J R Velazquez)- It seems like recently, we always have that two-year-old filly that can do nothing but win. Lady Lobo can hold that distinction this year, winning the first four starts of her career. She passed through a couple barns before making her way to Riggins, but that did not stop her from securing big wins in both the Adirondack and the Spinaway at the Spa. That led to the $1,125.000 purchase price that Riggins paid to get her, and their first race together was the BC Juvenile Fillies. Ran in the middle of the pack there, but there is no reason to think she can’t bounce back right here.

10- Rock Steady (Our Athletes, ridden by T Gaffalione)- Makes her debut in the silks of Our Athletes here for the Martha Washington. In her previous four starts with Rampage Stable, Rock Steady went two-for-four, highlighted by winning the $200.000 ELP Derby by two lengths. Did not follow that up well in the Frizette, and could only run in the middle of the field. After a couple of months off, she would end up in the December auction where Our Athletes picked her up for $185.990. Now, all eyes will be on her to see if she can improve in this new barn.

11- Wants It All- Scratched

12- Southfork- Scratched

13- Pineapple Puff (Nakamura Stables, ridden by Jam Rodriguez)- When this field initially drew, it looked like Nakamura Stables was not going to have any starters in the Martha Washington, but now with scratches, he will have these two. Pineapple Puff certainly belongs in this type of race, as she has hit the board in all seven of her starts and three of them have been victories. In late November, she won the $300.000 My Dear for FL-Breds at GP as her biggest such win. She also has three seconds, which, with a little more luck at the wire, all could have been wins as well. Definitely, she belongs here.

14- Theresaplaceinfrance (Nakamura Stables, ridden by A Cedillo)- Finally, we get this filly by Hogshead who will need to show a lot of improvement after being beaten by four lengths in the Demoiselle last time out. Prior to that, she did win the Grade 3 Mazarine BC Stakes, so the potential is there. However, that follows another tough race where she was defeated by eight lengths, although the conditions for that race are not really relevant for this one. Others in here excite me a lot more.

Prediction: 8-9-1-4

— NS

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded