Fillies Set For Friday Bluegrass Tilts

Juvenile trotting and pacing fillies will flock to the Red Mile this Friday (Sept. 28). The trotters are set to contest four divisions of the $373,000 Norman Woolworth Memorial Bluegrass Stakes, while the pacers will spar in three divisions of the $273,100 Artspeak Bluegrass Stakes.

Evident Beauty, who finished second in the $296,450 Peaceful Way at Woodbine Mohawk Park, will lead the first division of trotting fillies. The Richard ‘Nifty’ Norman trainee, who competes for owners Melvin Hartman, Little E LLC and R A W Equine Inc., has one win to her credit — a 1:58 nose victory in a $28,750 division of the Tompkins Geers at Tioga Downs. Earning $99,832 so far this season, the filly by Trixton will have David Miller in the sulky.

Jim Doherty Memorial winner The Ice Dutchess fronts the second division off of a 1:54.2 victory in the Peaceful Way. A filly by Muscle Hill, the Jimmy Takter pupil has recorded four wins from seven outings and has banked nearly $350,000 in earnings. Yannick Gingras will drive from Post 2 for owner Coyote Wynd Farms.

An upset winner in an elimination for the Jim Doherty Memorial, Special Honor, a filly by Father Patrick that is conditioned by Julie Miller, will head postward for the third division of filly trots. Owned by Brittany Farms LLC, Marvin Katz and Al Libfeld, she’s won two races from six starts and compiled $93,824 in earnings. She enters off a second-place finish in the $236,000 Kentuckiana Stakes from Post 1 at Hoosier Park and will now start from Post 9 with Andy Miller behind.

Kentucky Sire Stakes (KYSS) champ Whispering Oaks and Pennsylvania Sire Stakes winner Windy Corner will face off in the final division of filly trots.

Whispering Oaks, a Trixton filly trained by Jimmy Takter for owners Brixton Medical Inc, Herb Liverman and R A W Equine, has won three times from nine outings, including a 1:54 upset victory in the $250,000 KYSS Final, and accrued $224,574 in earnings. Yannick Gingras will drive from Post 2.

Windy Corner, a Yankee Glide filly trained by Erv Miller for owners Tony Holmes and Walter Zent, enters off a 1:57.4 win in a $32,833 division of the Keystone Classic at the Meadows. A winner of four of her 10 starts, she has earned $192,805 and will have Marcus Miller piloting from Post 6.

Trainer Brian Brown will send High Reward, who finished third in the $275,000 Ohio Sires Stakes Championship, from Post 1 in the opening division of the filly pace. The daughter of Yankee Cruiser has one win after seven starts — a 1:53.1 wire-to-wire victory in a sires stakes preliminary at Scioto Downs. David Miller will sit in the bike for owners Country Club Acres Inc., Joe Sbrocco and L&H Management Services.

A trio of star freshmen pacing fillies will compete in the second division, as Queen Of The Pride (the Ohio Sires Stakes champ) will start from Post 1, Zero Tolerance (second in the $207,000 Kentuckiana at Hoosier Park) from Post 3 and Beautyonthebeach (the KYSS champ) from Post 8.

A filly by McArdle trained by Kevin Lare, Queen Of The Pride has won five times from nine tries and has compiled $262,192 in earnings for owner Frank Chick. She enters off a fourth-place finish in the $454,300 Shes A Great Lady at Woodbine Mohawk Park and will have Tony Hall in the bike.

Trained by Joe Holloway, Zero Tolerance, a filly by Heston Blue Chip, has finished no worse than second in all eight of her races and has won on six of those occasions, including a track-record-equalling mile of 1:51.3 in a division of New York Sire Stakes at Vernon Downs. Owned by Val D’Or Farms and Ted Gewertz, she has earned $195,941 and will have David Miller in the bike.

Having swept the prelims and the final of the KYSS, Gregg McNair trainee Beautyonthebeach enters on a four-race win streak which has been capped with a two-length, 1:51 victory in the $250,000 KYSS final. She has notched five wins from her eight starts and currently sports $181,343 in earnings. The James Avritt Sr. homebred will have Doug McNair driving.

The McNairs will come back in the final division of the filly pace with Prescient Beauty, a homebred Art Major filly for James Avritt Sr. A winner of three of her eight starts and an earner of over $130,000, she ships in off runner-up finishes in the elimination and final of the Shes A Great Lady. Doug McNair will drive again for father and trainer Gregg McNair.

The divisions of the Norman Woolworth Bluegrass Two-Year-Old Filly Trot are sponsored by Arden Homestead Stable, Et Gerry & Peter Gerry, Margareta Wallenius-Kleberg, Stoner Manor, Inc., Menhammar Stuteri Ab, Jorgen Jahre Jr. and Lawrence DeVan & William DeVan Jr.

The divisions of the Artspeak Bluegrass Two-Year-Old Filly Pace are sponsored by the Artspeak Syndicate and Winbak Farms.

The 10-race program Friday night will get rolling with a first-race post time at 7:00 p.m. (EDT).

(Red Mile)

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