Chilukki- Grade 3 ($300.000 Purse)
CD- For Fillies and Mares Three Years Old and Upward
One Mile on the Dirt
November 15, 2025
Saturday’s racing at CD will include the 21st running of the Chilukki, which is a $300.000 Grade 3 sending female horses a mile on the main track. At inception in 2005, the Chilukki was a Grade 2, but ran for half the purse that it does today. 2019 was the year that it was downgraded to a Grade 3, and the purse was increased to its present level in 2021. Past winners of the race include Sinissippi Delite, Queenwood, and Terra Command, among others. Last year, it was Groovy getting the win for TwinTowersRacing, a filly that is still active and running in graded races, but has not won since that day. This time around, we have six heading to the starting gate. Here’s a look at them!
1- Menacing Shadow (La Canada Racehorses, ridden by L R Rivera)
This filly holds an excellent track record with ten wins out of 17 starts, with a great twelve month stretch between May 2024 and May 2025. In her last four races, she has seen that pace slow, with one win in four races, and that came when she was dropped into an open allowance. After a couple of runs on the grass, Menacing Shadow returned to the main track to run a respectable fourth in the Grade 3 Princess Rooney. Been idle since then and is plenty capable of getting another win here.
2- Childe Girl (Nakamura Stables, ridden by I Castillo)
Her four year old campaign saw her run in the Personal Ensign and the Spinster, but after a poor run in the latter, she would be given about five months off. Most, but not all, of her races have been in open allowances since then, with FL being the most frequent track that she has been at. However, three weeks ago, she was sent to AQU to run in the $250.000 Empire Distaff for NY-breds, and ran third. Whether she is truly back remains to be seen, but this race represents a return to graded competition for the first time since the Spinster last year.
3- Hoof On The Gas (Team 7 Illusions, ridden by I Castillo)
The trainer takes a leap of faith with this one, entering her here off of a maiden win at ELP three months ago. This is only the third start of her career, and an impressive mile work at KEE in late October is what would have the trainer send her to CD. She’s also only raced on the grass thus far, but the work was on the dirt, and she will look to make her presence known against some pretty accomplished competition.
4- Houseidentity (Noblepark, ridden by Jo Torres)
Around this time last year, Houseofidentity ran in the BC Juvenile Turf, but it has been all main track for her ever since. She began her three year old season well even though a couple of graded attempts, including the Black Eyed Susan at PIM, proved to be a little too much for her. Rebounded nicely with three straight wins in sprints, including the Prioress and Dogwood (Grade 3’s), but then just when you wanted to get excited for her again, she didn’t beat anyone in the Grade 2 Raven Run. Noblepark seems to be confident that won’t happen again, and no reason why she can’t put that behind her quickly.
5- Hunt The Stars (John Henry, ridden by D Davis)
Won three out of four earlier this year, including a victory against three others in the Grade 3 Miss PS at PIM. She was dropped into optional claimers after that win, and would ultimately be sold to John Henry on the last day of July for $250.000. John Henry moved her right back up into graded competition, and has led to her two third place efforts where she was within a length of the winner, coming in the Prioress and the Raven Run. Figures to continue this progress here in the Chilukki, and will be one to keep an eye on as a four year old, for sure.
6- Decimas Queen (Maxmillion Farm, ridden by D Z Gaskin)
First the good news, and that is that she is the most accomplished horse in the field, making over $1,300.000 for her career. Unfortunately, that was pretty much all in 2024, a year that saw her run second in the KYO, win the Hirsch, and appear in the BC Distaff. That has not carried into this year, where she has just one win in seven starts, and hit the board on only one other occasion. The victory was in her last race, coming three weeks ago in an open allowance with a good looking wire to wire win as a massive longshot. There have been plenty of examples of horses that have rediscovered past form after a dry spell, and Maxmillion is hoping that Decimas Queen can be the latest example.
Prediction: 5-1-3-4
— NS
Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES