The Comely (Grade 3)- $200.000 Purse
AQU- For Fillies Three Years Old
One Mile and One Eighth on the Dirt
December 7, 2025

Sunday’s action at AQU will include the 21st running of The Comely, which is for three-year-old fillies at a mile and an eighth on the main track. There will be ten that take part, hoping to get the winner’s share of the $200.000 purse. While the purse for the race did peak at $400.000 in 2014, the present level is in the general range it has been in since 2016. Last year, Paradise Stable celebrated the victory when Rosi won by a length, but at this time it looks to be her last hurrah. She’s still active but has not made a penny as a four-year-old. Let’s look at those looking to add their name to the winner’s list in 2025, now.

1- Nicolette (Alydar Stables, ridden by J Rosario)- After breaking her maiden on Christmas Eve last year, Nicolette would win the $250.000 VA Oaks at CNL, but has not been able to return to the winner’s circle. The story of her three-year-old season has more been one of consistently hitting the board, rather than winning. Ran second in both the Grade 2 Black Eyed Susan and the Grade 3 DEL Oaks and would later run second again in the Grade 3 Pine Stakes. It all adds up to $346.000 in earnings on the year, but with a little more luck at the wire, that amount could be significantly more. Expect her to be in the mix once again, but I’m looking for her to prevail over all of them.

2- Jinkzy (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by F Geroux)- For the majority of her career, Jinkzy has been running on the turf, and is similar to Nicolette in that she is more reliable for hitting the board rather than winning. Her last victory came in an N1X allowance at WO, but she did not follow that up well in the Grade 3 Lake George. Jinkzy has had a handful of stake opportunities, and she has failed to step up in them. When in overnights, she is very consistent and will hope to make the most of this graded chance.

3- Cam Code (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by D Davis)- In thirteen starts, Cam Code has won twice and neither of them are in the stakes that she has participated in. This will be the fourth time that she has run at the graded level, and she is like her stablemate in that she has not yet done much in them. However, she has been better in ungraded races and comes here off of a third-place performance in the $50.000 Betta Be Rite Stakes for NY-Breds at FL. That’s not going to intimidate anyone here, but it is certainly a step in the right direction f or her.

4- Paddington (Black N Gold Stable, ridden by F Prat)- Claimed by Black N Gold Stable for $22.000 in September and made her debut for the trainer on Halloween. That came at CD in a starter allowance, where she won by a length. Prior to that, she had run in a bunch of claimers with success but also got a chance to run in the $100.000 Ruling Angel in May at WO, where she was second. This has all the looks of being a great claim for the trainer, and she will not be out of place here even though it is her graded debut. She’ll like the distance, too.

5- Lucille (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by J R Velazquez)- After an outstanding two-year-old season that saw her win close to $900.000, Lucille has been underwhelming in 2025 as she has been winless in nine starts, and has only hit the board twice. Following a run of mediocre, at best, efforts, Lucille ran the best she has all year last time out in the Grade 2 River Run, where she was second. It will be important for her to follow that up with a strong run here, and not one of the duds like she had in the Cotillion two back.

6- Anoushka On Tap (Winning Link Stables, ridden by R Santana Jr)- Picked up in private sales in February for $40.000, and has gradually moved up the ranks since then. In June, she earned her biggest win to date in the Grade 3 Summertime Oaks, but her most impressive performance actually came two months later when she was the runner up at SAR in the Grade 1 Alabama. Only Soliloquy Sunset was better than her that day. Unfortunately for the trainer, Anoushka On Tap failed to cash a check in her two races that followed, including last month right here in the Grade 2 Mother Goose. Needs to rediscover that Alabama form.

7- Black Regazze (Nakamura Stables, ridden by M Franco)- Last month, Black Regazze was a wire to wire second place horse in the Grade 2 Mother Goose right here. She has had a strong three-year-old campaign, with four wins out of ten races while hitting the board in eight of them. Those victories began in a modest manner, with two happening at TUP, but she would continue to step up and run well when Nakamura Stables ran her for bigger and bigger purses. To date, her biggest career win came August at the $200.000 Audubon Oaks from ELP. The Mother Goose performance shows that she belongs at this level and will be one to watch here and going forward.

8- Vision Believer (Nakamura Stables, ridden by K Carmouche)- Looking to follow in the path of her stablemate and show that she will continue to perform well against tougher competition. This is her first stake attempt, and it comes following a stretch of three wins in four races. That began in a $7.500 maiden claimer, and then a claimer at FP for the same amount. Nakamura Stables is happy now that no one did claim her for that tag after an optional claiming win at PRX. Still needs to prove herself, but she has earned the chance to do so.

9- Never In Change (Jkk Racing Stables, ridden by J J Castellano)- A lightly raced horse that will be making just her fifth start here. Made her debut in the fall of last year but was then sat for nine months and that rest has done her good. Once she got back to the track, she has known nothing other than going to the winner’s circle afterward, with three consecutive victories. That includes a N1X allowance right here and then heading out to PRX to win an optional claimer last month, a race where she defeated Jinkzy along the way. Now, she will be making her stake debut.

10- Petroleum (The Sidley Stud, ridden by Jam Rodriguez)- Last to load into the gate will be this highly consistent filly that has run ten times and has finished in each of the top three positions a total of three times. All of that came once she got her debut race out of the way, as well. In September, she was moved into the stakes ranks and would win her first one a month later in the Ballerina BC at HST, a $100.000 race. Followed that up by running graded for the first time and was in a dead heat for second in the Grade 3 Maple Leaf. Ran a different tactical race there than we had seen from her right before that, so it remains to be seen how she will run this race.

Prediction- 1-7-10-5

— NS

Categories: Grade III, STAKES ARTICLES