The DEL Oaks (Grade 3)- $300.000 Purse
DEL- For Fillies Three Years Old
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Dirt
June 14, 2025

While the rain made MTH muddy and soft, just a couple hours away at DEL we were fast and firm for the running of the Grade 3 DEL Oaks. The race would see a very close finish at the wire, with Shericka getting the win by a head over second place Nicolette. Shericka is trained by Winning Link Stables, and was ridden by J R Velazquez, and it’s the first win in the race for both. Congratulations to them! The time of the win was 1:41.96, which is right in line with other recent winning times of the race. Let’s take a look at it now:

(1/4 Mile- :23.23)- Narcissa Malfoy takes the early lead for Mb Stables, and her lead is about a length over a couple of stalkers. First, we have Fire Chief running on the rail for Bigking, and to her outside is the race’s eventual winner from Winning Link Stables, Shericka. It’s another length to Quail Trot, who runs by herself in fourth for Maxmillion Farm, a length ahead of Rising Authority (Rock Creek) and No Ones Complaining (Mb Stables). Behind them are the two trailers, Nicolette (Alydar Stables) and Affair (D J C Racing Stables).

(½ Mile- :47.07)- Narcissa Malfoy continues to lead as we make our way down the backstretch, and both Shericka and Fire Chief are content to stalk the pace. In fact, there’s essentially no change in how they field is arranged at this point in comparison to how they were at a quarter mile, so let’s just move forward.

(Top of Stretch, 1.8F To Go) – The field was content to hold their positions for the duration of the backstretch, and it would not be until the top of the turn when we started to see some action. At the front, Shericka was asked for more run and was even with Narcissa Malfoy at that point of the race. Quail Trot got the same message and looked to follow Shericka through. No Ones Complaining was also more interested early in the turn. By the time we did hit the top of the stretch, Shericka was clear by a length, but her job was not done as they were four wide right behind her. Fire Chief came off the rail to try and pass Narcissa Malfoy, while both Quail Troy and No Ones Complaining were running very well in the outside lanes. Rising Authority and Nicolete had plenty of run coming but for them, the question would be whether or not they would find a lane to utilize. Only Affair was lacking any response at this point.

(Finish- 1:41.96)- Winning Link Stables was happy to see his filly holding that length advantage, because the field was very tight right behind her with about a furlong to go. Nicolette and Rising Authority were each able to find lanes, and with each of them now within a length of second, they seemed to be the biggest challengers to Shericka. Just when it looked like Shericka was going to hang on by about a length, Nicolette emerged from the pack to become a legitimate threat to swipe the win away from Shericka in the final strides. They’d be close at the wire, but the finish would come just in time for Shericka, as she hangs on in a photo over Nicolette. It was a length to No Ones Complaining in third, narrowly over a fourth-place dead heat between Rising Authority and Quail Trot. The rest of the order will read Fire Chief, Narcissa Malfoy, and Affair.

About The Winner- Shericka, trained by Winning Link Stables and ridden to victory by J R Velazquez, is a three-year-old filly by St Leo Bolt and is out of the late High Off Caffeine. She was bred by Winning Link Stables as a yearling in California, and they have been together throughout! Congratulations to the connections! The win is her fifth in 10 starts, her third stake win and first graded win. Her career earnings are now $629.200.

Track: Fast
Time: :23¹  :47  1:11²  1:41⁴

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 4 – 3 Paid 9.40
$1 Trifecta: 4 – 3 – 8 Paid 63.00

Scratched: None

— NS

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES