Oliver, Bejarano Shine on First KY Downs Preview Day

Trainer Vicki Oliver and jockey Rafael Bejarano proved the stars of the first day of Kentucky Downs Preview Weekend Aug. 7 at Ellis Park, teaming for three victories, with the rider winning four overall. 

Oliver brought two 3-year-old fillies from her Keeneland base. But instead of running both Flippant  and Core Values  in the $100,000 Kentucky Downs TVG Preview Dueling Grounds Oaks, she opted to put Core Values in against boys in the $97,500 Kentucky Downs Preview Dueling Grounds Derby. That resulted in a nose victory for Core Values, with Flippant winning the Preview Dueling Grounds Oaks two races later by a half-length. 

Asked about winning three races, Oliver said: "Oh, it's unbelievable. The last time I won three in a day was at The Meadowlands a long, long time ago (2006), when they had one of those all-day turf days."

She said winning two stakes in a day was a first. 

"Never done that, so that's exciting," she said. "But these two fillies are really, really nice fillies and so is the filly who won earlier, which I think is a stakes horse as well. So it's fun being loaded-up for Kentucky Downs."

BBN Racing's Core Values won her third straight race in the Preview Dueling Grounds Derby as she got up on the last stride over favored Royal Prince . It was another neck back to pacesetter Modern Science .

"She likes to make it close every time," said Oliver. "But she seems to get her head in front at the wire."

Oliver used the turf stakes as a stepping stone to the $500,000 Exacta Systems Dueling Grounds Oaks at 1 5/16 miles on Kentucky Downs' Sept. 5 opening card.

Bejarano had Core Values back in last in the field of seven 3-year-olds, flying through the stretch to get up by a nod at the finish while covering 1 1/8 miles in 1:46.94 over firm turf. The Honor Code   filly paid $24.40 as the longest shot on the board.

Saturday's win followed victories in the July 17 Hatoof Stakes at Arlington International Racecourse and a June 17 allowance optional claimer at Indiana Grand.

"Today, I just wanted to relax in the beginning and make my own ground," Bejarano said. "By the three-eighths pole, when I had my position, I started to ask her for more and she responded and gave me a good kick. I wanted to make sure we were clear in the stretch. When I came up to the favored horse, I knew we were going to beat him."

Core Values now is 4-0-0 in eight starts, earning $141,377.

Oliver said she was confident of a big performance.

"I liked that it was a small enough field, there was enough speed for her, and pace for her to close into," she said. "So I did like our chances. And we had five pounds on the boys. That's a big deal going a mile and an eighth."

Core Values was bred in Kentucky by John Bates, Ron Kirk, and Michael Riordan out of the Street Cry mare Sweet Awakening. She is a half sister to two-time Canadian champion Are You Kidding Me . BBN Racing purchased her for $230,000 from Denali Stud's consignment to the 2019 Keeneland September Yearling Sale.

It's Oliver Again With Flippant 

In the first running of the Preview Dueling Grounds Oaks, Flippant and Bejarano upset the field to give Oliver yet another win on the card.

"I know Flippant was taking a step up off a maiden race, but she was experienced enough to run against this kind of company," said Oliver, referring to the filly's five prior starts. "We trained the mare (Frivolous ), she was a really classy mare. (Flippant) deserved to be in stakes company, and she proved it."

After stumbling at the start, Flippant steadied and settled well off the pace, leaving Stillchargingmaria  to set a representative pace followed loosely by Takntothecleaners . By the top of the stretch, Caldee  and Flippant engaged each other with Flippant gaining the ultimate advantage by a half-length.

"This horse ran a tremendous race today," said Bejarano. "Today, there was a lot of speed. The track played really fair today for horses that came from behind. We had a beautiful trip after having a bad break from the gate. I just got her set and tried to get her relaxed. She did good and kept running in the end. Definitely, she was the best horse today."

Owned and bred in Kentucky by G. Watts Humphrey, the daughter of Tapit   improved her record to 2-2-0 in six lifetime starts and increased her earnings to $115,109. Flippant paid $8.20 to win, while covering the 1 1/16 miles in 1:39.56.

Frivolous (Empire Maker) was a multiple grade 2 winner for Humphrey and Oliver. She is also the dam of grade 2-placed Never Forget , who was ridden to victory by Bejarano for Humphrey and Oliver in Saturday's third race, a $52,000 turf sprint allowance.

Born Great Approaches Course Record

Born Great  probably needed to win the $98,650 Kentucky Downs TVG Preview Turf Sprint to get a shot at the big money offered at his favorite track, Kentucky Downs. The 5-year-old Scat Daddy gelding did his part, finishing fastest under Adam Beschizza to defeat Siem Riep  by 1 1/4 lengths while covering 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:00.48. That was just off Totally Boss ' 2019 track record of 1:00.26 in the same race.

Trained by Brendan Walsh, Born Great won a maiden and allowance race in a one-week span at Kentucky Downs last year. So obviously the plan was to win this race to get an automatic fees-paid spot in the $1 million FanDuel Turf Sprint (G3T) Sept. 11 at that track. The winner of the Turf Sprint in turn gets a fees-paid spot in the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1T) Nov. 6 at Del Mar.

Because graded stakes winners and then stakes winners are preferred if the Kentucky Downs stakes gets more than 12 entries, getting the automatic qualifier was critical.

"Obviously it's a big deal for him to win," said assistant trainer Paul Madden, who runs Walsh's Ellis Park division. "But most importantly for him to qualify for Kentucky Downs, which is huge, a place where he was 2-for-2 last year.

"But he's a really neat horse. He always gives 100%. He had a little time off after the Fair Grounds and was second at Churchill not that long ago, but just lacked a little sharpness. Brendan was here on Wednesday and was thrilled with him and knew he was sitting on a big race. So we weren't surprised how he ran to be honest."

Beschizza had Born Great settled into eighth in the field of 10 older sprinters as High Crime  set a torrid pace. Though in mid-stretch it looked like almost any horse could win, Born Great surged through the stretch, blowing to the lead in the final sixteenth-mile. He paid $7.20 as the favorite. Siem Riep rallied from last to be second 1 1/4 lengths ahead of Gray Attempt .

"Most of the horses I've been riding early on in the day have all been speed close to the lead types of horses," Beschizza said. "As fast as the turf is playing, it's not really paying off. Horses are coming from behind and reaping the reward from the fast pace up front. Kentucky Downs really suits him. Ideally, I think his best trip is probably three-quarters (of a mile). At 5 1/2, if he's got a decent pace in front of him, he usually can reel them back in within reason.

"He did it pretty comfortably in the end."

Born Great now is 4-2-1 in nine starts, earning $242,025 for owners Marc Detampel and Fergus Galvin. Hunter Valley Farm purchased him for $260,000 from Paramount Sales' consignment at the 2016 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale. He was a $275,000 RNA at next year's Keeneland September sale.

Bred in Kentucky by Glenvale Stud, Born Great is out of the stakes-winning More Than Ready   mare Funfair , making him a half brother to 2019 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G2T) winner Four Wheel Drive . 

Shared Sense Returns to Winning Ways

Shared Sense  captured the inaugural $59.800 Tri-State Overnight Stakes, besting Beau Luminarie  by three-quarters of a length. With Brian Hernandez up, the 4-year-old son of Street Sense   returned to the form that saw him win last year's Indiana Derby (G3) and Oklahoma Derby (G3).

"He looked like on paper he was the best horse in the race with a short field," Hernandez said following the race. "We were breaking from the outside, so I watched a couple of his replays, and he always leaves the gate sharply. I was just hoping that if he left the gate like he normally does that I'd be in a good position—and that's what happened."

Jorge Abrego, assistant trainer to winning trainer Brad Cox, wasn't surprised by the outcome.

"We were surprised last time that he didn't run good," he said of Shared Sense finishing fifth in Indiana Grand's Michael G. Schaefer Memorial. "We looked at this race, coming to Ellis Park. And he ran well. I was surprised last time, but this time he showed up and showed how good he is. He was training very well. Brad told me last week that he was training fantastic (at Indiana Grand)."

Despite stumbling at the start, Fact Finder set the pace followed closely by Royal Mesa  and Shared Sense. Shared sense gained the lead at the three-quarters pole and held sway through the final stages, covering the mile on a fast main track in 1:36.30.

Owned and bred in Kentucky by Godolphin, Shared Sense, out of the Bernardini mare Collective, improved his record to 5-2-1 in 13 lifetime starts with total earnings of $499,156. He paid $5 to win.