Keeneland Barn Notes — Wednesday, Oct. 11; QEII Stakes Preview

By Amy Owens —-

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 11
Keeneland’s 17-day Fall Meet concludes Saturday, Oct. 28, with racing
on Wednesdays through Sundays. Post time for the first race each day is 1:05 p.m. ET.
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· “EQUAL” CASSE FILLIES TARGET QUEEN ELIZABETH II CHALLENGE CUP PRESENTED BY LANE’S END
· IRISH IMPORTS PAYING OFF FOR SLAM DUNK RACING
· 10TH ANNIVERSARY MAKE-A-WISH DAY TOMORROW AT KEENELAND
· @BETKEENELAND GUEST HANDICAPPERS READY FOR RACING
· GALLOPING OUT
· PROBABLE FIELDS FOR UPCOMING STAKES
· FALL MEET SPECIAL EVENTS
· FALL MEET LEADERS

“EQUAL” CASSE FILLIES TARGET QUEEN ELIZABETH II CHALLENGE CUP PRESENTED BY LANE’S END
Dream Dancing and La Coronel – two 3-year-old fillies owned by John C. Oxley and trained by Mark Casse — will face each other in Saturday’s Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Presented by Lane’s End (G1) for the first time since their 1-2 finish in the Edgewood (G3) at Churchill Downs on May 5, where La Coronel beat her stablemate by a half-length.
Five months after that race, Casse sees both fillies as having similar talent.
“It’s funny, all along when they’ve ever ran against each other, La Coronel has beat Dream Dancing,” Casse said. “Obviously Dream Dancing’s last race (winning the Del Mar Oaks-G1 on Aug. 19) was very good. I think they’re pretty equal. Hopefully, if one of them comes with their best race, it will be good enough. It’s going to be a very tough race.”
After placing in the Wonder Again (G3) at Belmont, Dream Dancing finished off the board in the Lake George (G3) at Saratoga before traveling to Del Mar to win the Del Mar Oaks by a nose.
“We flew her to California, and honestly the only race that she could have possibly run in would have been the race at Belmont (the Sands Point-G2) that La Coronel was in.,” Casse said about the Tapit filly. “We didn’t want to run against each other, plus we didn’t want to come back that quickly with her.”
In June, La Coronel traveled to England to contest the Coronation (G1) at Royal Ascot, where she finished fifth. Running fourth in the Lake Placid (G2) at Saratoga, the daughter of Colonel John was most recently second in the Sands Point at Belmont Sept. 16.
La Coronel has won twice over the Keeneland turf, having captured the JPMorgan Chase Jessamine (G3) in 2016 and the Appalachian (G3) Presented by Japan Racing Association in April. Dream Dancing was fourth in the Appalachian. Casse hopes that getting La Coronal back onto a course she likes will be a positive influence.
“I find that there are some horses that like Keeneland’s course better than others,” he said. “And that was one of the real positives is that she does like Keeneland’s turf course.”
The Casse fillies shipped to Keeneland from Churchill Downs Tuesday and visited the main track for the first time Wednesday morning.

IRISH IMPORTS PAYING OFF FOR SLAM DUNK RACING
Two offspring of the Irish stallion Sir Prancealot will be going postward in Saturday’s $500,000 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Presented by Lane’s End (G1) for Slam Dunk Racing: Beau Recall (IRE) and Madam Dancealot (IRE).
“It is just a coincidence both are by Sir Prancealot,” said Nick Cosato, the managing partner for Slam Dunk. “We were looking at them as individuals, but if we get a few more Sir Prancelots, it no longer will be a coincidence. He is a new sire and we wanted to see how they would handle firm turf over here.”
Madam Dancealot, who will be ridden Saturday by Jamie Theriot, comes into the QE 2 off a third-place finish in the Del Mar Oaks (G1) that was on the heels of a victory in the San Clemente (G2). Beau Recall, who will be ridden by Joe Talamo, has run second in three graded stakes and was beaten only a nose in the Del Mar Oaks.
“They have both panned out,” Cosato said. “We got Beau Recall for a good price after she just broke her maiden and we brought her over here with the idea of running in a starter race down the hill (the 6½-furlong course at Santa Anita). But they didn’t write any such races, so we put her in over her head and she won. She has far exceeded our expectations.
“We were actually thinking of running her in a Grade 3 in two weeks (the $100,000 Autumn Miss at Santa Anita Oct. 29), but we think she deserves to be in a Grade 1. She has shown that.”
Madam Dancealot was purchased earlier and made her debut in last fall’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1) at Santa Anita.
“She broke poorly that day and Johnny (Velazquez) just rode her around there and took care of her,” Cosato said.
After the Breeders’ Cup, Madam Dancealot mainly sprinted down the hill at Santa Anita before hitting her stride at Del Mar.
“Corey Nakatani, who had been riding her, thought she’d rate going a mile and an eighth and Jamie (Theriot) thinks she will be better the farther she goes,” Cosato said.
Both fillies had their final works for Saturday’s race at Santa Anita on Sunday and flew to Lexington Tuesday. They limited their Wednesday morning activity to light exercise on Keeneland’s all-weather training track.
Simon Callaghan trains Beau Recall, and Richard Baltas trains Madam Dancealot. Both trainers are seeking their initial Keeneland stakes victories.

10TH ANNIVERSARY MAKE-A-WISH DAY TOMORROW AT KEENELAND
Thursday marks the 10th anniversary of Make-A-Wish Day® at Keeneland, the culmination of a rewarding experience for a special group of deserving children. Click here for a video about the event at Keeneland.
Each year, local Thoroughbred farms and organizations team with Keeneland to grant wishes for children from the ages of 2½ to younger than 18 with life-threatening medical conditions. At Keeneland, the children and their families are treated to a VIP experience, complete with presenting a trophy after each race, meeting jockeys and experiencing all the excitement of a day at the races.
“We are very fortunate to have had an amazing 10-year partnership with Keeneland and the local Thoroughbred industry through Make-A-Wish Day,” said Keith Lerme, Make-a-Wish’s Vice President, Regional Director of Kentucky. “The track and our Thoroughbred community partners have granted wishes and transformed the lives of more than 72 Kentucky children over the past 10 years. We look forward to granting an additional 10 wishes this year, and changing even more lives in the years to come.”
Keeneland fans can participate in Make-A-Wish Day by cheering on these children at Keeneland; placing a donation for Make-A-Wish® Ohio, Kentucky & Indiana into the “Wishing Well” near the Keeneland Paddock; and by clicking here to visit Make-A-Wish® Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana’s website for more information and to donate.
Sponsors of this year’s event are Ashford Stud, Flaxman Holdings/Frizzy Foundation, Gainesway Farm, Godolphin, Hagyard Equine Medical Institute, Keeneland, Lane’s End Farm, Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital, Shadwell Farm and Shawnee Farm.

@BETKEENELAND GUEST HANDICAPPERS READY FOR RACING
Keeneland’s new Twitter handle, @BetKeeneland, is delivering real-time handicapping tips and tools directly to wagering fans and featuring a Handicapper of the Day series that benefits the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF).

Keeneland is providing each Handicapper of the Day with a $200 bankroll to wager over the course of the race day, with winnings going to support PDJF. Set to participate as guest handicappers this week are:

Wednesday – Chris “The Bear” Fallica of ESPN. Fallica is a research producer for the six-time Emmy Award-winning “College GameDay,” college football’s longest-running and most-celebrated pregame show.

Thursday – Steve Byk, host of “At the Races” daily Thoroughbred racing newsmagazine on SiriusXM.

Friday – Byron King of Daily Racing Form.

Saturday – Craig Milkowski of TimeformUS.

Sunday – Michael Beychok, 2012 Daily Racing Form/National Thoroughbred Racing Association Handicapper of the Year. Beychock won the 2012 DRF/NTRA Handicapping Championship.

@BetKeeneland includes the Keeneland NOW Podcast, with noted handicapper Jeremy Plonk of Horseplayernow.com. In this podcast, lasting 60-90 seconds, Plonk offers final thoughts 10 minutes prior to every race. He also is on call to field questions from fans in addition to providing traditional tweets and commentary throughout the race day.

The 30-minute race-day Preview Podcast airs live at Keeneland.com each race day from noon-12:30 p.m. and is available at @BetKeeneland.

The @BetKeeneland handle also provides scratches, changes, clocker reports, track conditions, race results, expert picks and carryover information.

GALLOPING OUT
It is a go for the Breeders’ Cup for G. Watts Humphrey Jr.’s Romantic Vision.
Trainer Rusty Arnold confirmed that Sunday’s Juddmonte Spinster (G1) winner would be pointed to the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1) to be run Nov. 3 at Del Mar.
Romantic Vision represents the ninth Breeders’ Cup starter for Arnold and his fifth in the Distaff. Brian Hernandez Jr., who rode Romantic Vision to her victory Sunday, will have the mount.
PROBABLE FIELDS FOR UPCOMING STAKES
$150,000 PIN OAK VALLEY VIEW (G3) (Entries taken Tuesday; race Friday, Oct. 20) – Defiant Honor (trainer James Toner), Desert Duchess (Mike Maker), Fault (Michelle Lovell), Fizzy Friday (GB) (Ignacio Correas IV), Grizzel (IRE) (Michael Doyle), Lovely Bernadette (James DiVito), Oh So Terrible (Bradley Ross).
$250,000 LEXUS RAVEN RUN (G2) (Entries taken Wednesday, Oct. 18; race Saturday, Oct. 21) – Classy Tune (Simon Callaghan), Faypien (Bob Baffert), Minnie Blip (Al Stall Jr.), Miss Sunset (Jeff Bonde), Nonna Mela (Todd Pletcher), Sandy’s Surprise (Doug O’Neill), Tequilita (Michael Matz) and Yorkiepoo Princess (Edward Barker).

FALL MEET SPECIAL EVENTS
Wednesday, Oct. 11
WINS-Day Challenge. An inexpensive way for beginning handicappers to test their skills and give handicapping contests a try, the WINS-Day Challenge has a $2,500 guaranteed pool. Enter for $10 at Wagering Central (first floor of the Grandstand) and place a mythical $2 win and place wager – no actual money required – on Keeneland races 3-8.
Thursday, Oct. 12
Official Keeneland Tours – During the Fall Meet, guided tours are offered Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays beginning at 8:30 a.m. ET. Fans also can receive an insider view of racing on the Behind-the-Scenes Racing Tours and a Backstretch Tour and Day at the Races on other days.
10th Anniversary Make-A-Wish Day. Keeneland and area Thoroughbred farms and organizations are proud to partner with Make-A-Wish in this annual event, which this year celebrates its 10th anniversary by granting wishes for 10 deserving children. Fans can support the Make-A-Wish Foundation and cheer on these children as they present the trophies after each race as part of their VIP day at the races. Sponsors are Ashford Stud, Flaxman Holdings/Frizzy Foundation, Gainesway Farm, Godolphin, Hagyard Equine Medical Institute, Keeneland, Lane’s End Farm, Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital, Shadwell Farm and Shawnee Farm.
Friday, Oct. 13
Jockey Autograph Signing. From 11:30-12:30 p.m., meet jockeys competing during the Fall Meet as well as retired jockeys – from history makers to Keeneland favorites – and participate in an autograph signing to benefit the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund. Scheduled to participate are Racing Hall of Famer Chris McCarron and Triple Crown winner Jean Cruguet along with Kaye Bell, James Bruin, PJ Cooksey, Tony D’Amico, Carl Faulconer, Michael Heath, Mike Manganello, Larry Melancon, John Oldham, Suzie Oldham, Mickey Solomone, Joe Steiner, Kaori Tsuchiya and Charlie Woods.
Buffalo Trace Giveaway. Patrons may enter to win a VIP Buffalo Trace Distillery Experience: a private behind-the-scenes tour of Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky; lunch with Master Distiller Harlen Wheatley; and a private whiskey tasting. The first 2,000 people to register will receive a free Buffalo Trace drawstring bag. Registration table is located Trackside near Elevator C beginning at noon and continuing while supplies last.

The Keeneland Shop’s Milliners Corner presents a trunk show with Darren K. Moore adjacent to the Walking Ring from 11 a.m. to 30 minutes after final post.
Tailgating on The Hill. Keeneland’s popular tailgate lot, located adjacent to the Keene Barn & Entertainment Center, features local food trucks, a jumbo television screen, wireless wagering and wagering terminals, race-day programs, The Keeneland Shop kiosk and free shuttles to the track. BETologists will be available to answer fans’ handicapping questions.
Friday Pick 4 Presented by TVG. A $200,000-guaranteed pool will be offered on the final four races of the day.
Saturday, Oct. 14
Keeneland Fall Challenge. The handicapping contest has a $400 buy-in with a live bankroll of $250 and $150 prize fund fee. Players may wager any amount on any Keeneland race with no minimum wagers or number of races.
Sunrise Trackside. Keeneland shares a special side of Thoroughbred racing that is worth getting up early to enjoy. Sponsored by LEX18, Sunrise Trackside is a free, family-friendly event with activities for all ages: Breakfast With the Works features breakfast for purchase and trackside commentary (7-8:30 a.m.) while Thoroughbreds train on the main track; children’s activities in the Kids Club Corner (7-9 a.m.); Keeneland tours (7:30-10 a.m.); Paddock demonstration with Stuart Muir, a farrier at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital (9 a.m.); trackside handicapping seminar with Paddock Host Katie Gensler (11 a.m.); and Q&A session with a jockey in the Paddock (12:05 p.m.).
The Keeneland Shop’s Milliners Corner presents a trunk show with Darren K. Moore adjacent to the Walking Ring from 11 a.m. to 30 minutes after final post.
The Keeneland Shop presents a book signing with Caleb Fares, illustrator of the new Made South Keeneland Coloring Book, from 2-4 p.m. Both children and adults will enjoy this entertaining way to explore the history and beauty of Keeneland through maps and illustrations. Click here for a video about the Keeneland Coloring Book.

Keeneland is holding a Keeneland Coloring Contest in celebration of the new Coloring Book. Fans can enter by uploading a photo of their finished work to Instagram: Tag @shopkeeneland and include the hashtag #keenelandcoloringbook. Keeneland will announce winners via Instagram on Oct. 19. The lucky winner receives a reserved Grandstand box for up to six and a Keeneland Kids Club gift crate.

Tailgating on The Hill. Keeneland’s popular tailgate lot, located adjacent to the Keene Barn & Entertainment Center, features local food trucks, a jumbo television screen, wireless wagering and wagering terminals, race-day programs, The Keeneland Shop kiosk and free shuttles to the track. BETologists will be available to answer fans’ handicapping questions. On Saturdays, the area’s favorite bluegrass bands perform from 12-4 p.m.
$350,000 Guaranteed Pick 4 Presented by TVG. Features races 7-10, including the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Presented by Lane’s End (G1).
Sunday, Oct. 15
Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge/National Handicapping Challenge – The prestigious event awards cash prizes and as many as six spots in the Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge at Del Mar and 10 spots in the National Handicapping Challenge in Las Vegas in February 2018. The contest can accommodate up to 170 players, with a total entry fee of $3,000 ($2,000 live bankroll and $1,000 prize fund).

Kids Club Family Day. The Keeneland Kids Club is the Official Kids Club for fans 12 and younger. Kids Club members and their families are invited to enjoy a special day at the races by receiving free general admission and access to reserved Grandstand seating. Children’s activities will take place in the North Terrace from noon to 3 p.m.

The Keeneland Shop’s Milliners Corner presents a trunk show with Darren K. Moore adjacent to the Walking Ring from 11 a.m. to 30 minutes after final post.

Wuheida (GB) and New Money Honey Headline Field of 11
for $500,000 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Presented by Lane’s End

LEXINGTON, KY (Oct. 11, 2017) – Godolphin Racing’s Group 1 winner Wuheida (GB) and e Five Racing Thoroughbreds’ Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1) winner, New Money Honey, headline a stellar roster of 11 3-year-old fillies entered Wednesday for Saturday’s 34th running of the $500,000 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Presented by Lane’s End (G1).

The race, run at 1 1/8 miles on the Keeneland turf course, will be the ninth on Keeneland’s 10-race Saturday program with a 5:30 p.m. ET post time. First post time Saturday is 1:05 p.m.

Trained by Charles Appleby, Wuheida broke her maiden at first asking last year at Newmarket and then won the Total Prix Marcel Boussac-Criterium des Pouliches (G1) with the jockey who will ride her in the QE II, William Buick.

This year she has knocked heads with the best fillies and mares in Europe, racing exclusively in Group 1 company. In her most recent start, she finished fourth, beaten only a half-length, in the Prix de l’Opera on Oct. 1 at Chantilly.

Wuheida will break from post position seven.

New Money Honey, who also has a victory in the Grade 1 Belmont Oaks Invitational on her resume, returns to the grass following a fifth-place finish in the Alabama (G1).

Trained by Chad Brown, New Money Honey has Grade 3 turf wins in the Miss Grillo and Wonder Again and returns to Keeneland, where she made her 2017 debut with a sixth-place finish in the Appalachian Presented by Japan Racing Association (G3).

Regular rider Javier Castellano has the mount and will break from post position 11.

Brown has one other starter in the race in Uni (GB). Owned by the partnership of Michael Dubb, Head of Plains Partners, Robert LaPenta and Bethlehem Stables, Uni has raced three times in the U.S. and enters Saturday’s race off a victory in the Sands Point (G2) at Belmont on Sept. 16.

Irad Ortiz Jr. has the mount on Uni and will break from post position 10.

The field for the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Presented by Lane’s End, with riders, is: Con Te Partiro (Mike Smith), Proctor’s Ledge (Corey Lanerie), Daddys Lil Darling (Robby Albarado), Dream Dancing (Julien Leparoux), Unforgetable Filly (GB) (Josephine Gordon), La Coronel (Jose Lezcano), Wuheida (GB) (Buick, 121), Madam Dancealot (IRE) (Jamie Theriot), Beau Recall (IRE) (Joe Talamo), Uni (GB) (Ortiz Jr.) and New Money Honey (Castellano). All starters will carry 121 pounds.

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For more than 80 years, the Keeneland Association has devoted itself to the health and vibrancy of the Thoroughbred industry. As the world’s largest Thoroughbred auction company, Keeneland conducts sales every January, September and November. Its sales graduates dominate racing across the globe at every level. In April and October, Keeneland offers some of the highest caliber and richest Thoroughbred racing in the world. In 2015, Keeneland hosted the Breeders’ Cup World Championships. Uniquely structured, Keeneland is a private, for-profit corporation that returns its earnings to the industry and the community in the form of higher purses, and it has donated millions of dollars in charitable contributions for education, research and health and human services throughout Central Kentucky. To learn more about Keeneland, visit Keeneland.com.