Dayoutoftheoffice to Make 2021 Debut in Eight Belles

In a delayed start to her 3-year-old campaign, grade 1 winner Dayoutoftheoffice  is scheduled to face 11 other 3-year-old fillies in the $300,000 Eight Belles Stakes presented by Smithfield (G2) April 30 at Churchill Downs.

Last year Dayoutoftheoffice cruised to victories in the first three starts of her career, scoring by a combined 12 3/4 lengths in that sequence capped by clear victory in the one-turn mile Frizette Stakes (G1) at Belmont Park. Off that effort she stretched out to two turns for the first time in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) at 1 1/16 miles at Keeneland, and finished second after leading into the stretch before yielding to a late inside rally by Vequist .

Co-owned by her breeder, Siena Farm, and trainer, Tim Hamm, Dayoutoftheoffice will enter Friday's seven-furlong test off a five-furlong breeze in :58 April 23 at Keeneland. The daughter of Into Mischief   earned the bullet from 26 horses to work the distance that day at Keeneland.

While Dayoutoftheoffice attempts to win off the long break, JoAnn and Alex Lieblong's Abrogate  will try to build off her recent half-length victory in the Purple Martin Stakes April 3 at Oaklawn Park. Trained by Steve Asmussen, Abrogate secured the first stakes win of her career in the Purple Martin and will try a graded stakes for the first time Friday.

Asmussen also has entered Cantata , who rallied to a narrow victory in an allowance level race March 12 at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots. The Racing Hall of Fame trainer has sent out three winners in this race, including most recently Mia Mischief  in 2018.

Slumber Party  certainly could improve off her runner-up finish in the Beaumont Stakes presented by Keeneland Select (G3) April 2 at Keeneland. A homebred daughter of Malibu Moon   for Gary and Mary West, Slumber Party was favored in the Beaumont off her 7 1/2-length debut maiden win Jan. 24 at Gulfstream Park. 

In her stakes debut for trainer by Kelly Breen, Slumber Party rallied from fifth to finish second to Twenty Carat in the Beaumont.

Another filly entered in the Eight Belles who came up short in her most recent start is Live Oak Plantation's Souper Sensational , who enters off a third-place finish to Travel Column in the Twinspires.com Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) March 20. The daughter of Curlin   won a stakes last season on the synthetic surface at Woodbine.

Souper Sensational is trained by Mark Casse, who also has entered Gary Barber's Make Mischief . The grade 2-placed daughter of Into Mischief   posted a clear victory in an open allowance race March 28 at Aqueduct after defeating other state-breds in the Maddie Mae Stakes there in February.

Trainer Bob Baffert will send out the speedy Kalypso  for Rockingham Ranch, David Bernsen, Gainesway Stable, and Chad Littlefield. The daughter of Brody's Cause   won the Santa Ynez Stakes (G2) at seven furlongs in January and since then has earned a pair of  grade 3 placings racing two turns at Santa Anita Park. 

Entries: Eight Belles S. presented by Smithfield (G2)

Churchill Downs, Friday, April 30, 2021, Race 9

• Grade II
• 7f
• Dirt
• $300,000
• 3 yo Fillies
• 4:04 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Make Mischief (NY)	Tyler Gaffalione	118	Mark E. Casse	15/1
2	2Cantata (KY)	Javier Castellano	118	Steven M. Asmussen	30/1
3	3Souper Sensational (KY)	John R. Velazquez	118	Mark E. Casse	6/1
4	4Euphoric (NY)	James Graham	118	Bernard S. Flint	20/1
5	5Windmill (KY)	Mike E. Smith	118	J. Larry Jones	10/1
6	6Slumber Party (KY)	Irad Ortiz, Jr.	118	Kelly J. Breen	6/1
7	7Obligatory (KY)	Jose L. Ortiz	118	William I. Mott	10/1
8	8Kalypso (KY)	Joel Rosario	120	Bob Baffert	5/1
9	9Li'l Tootsie (KY)	Flavien Prat	118	Thomas M. Amoss	8/1
10	10Dayoutoftheoffice (KY)	Gerardo Corrales	122	Timothy E. Hamm	3/1
11	11Abrogate (KY)	Ricardo Santana, Jr.	118	Steven M. Asmussen	8/1
12	12Caramel Swirl (KY)	Luis Saez	118	William I. Mott	12/1