Handicapping: Empress Josephine an 'A' Play in QEII

The last two Breeders' Cup Challenge races take place at Ascot Oct. 16 when five group stakes are contested on QIPCO British Champions Day, the richest day of racing in Great Britain.

The headliners are the QIPCO Champion Stakes (G1), a "Win and You're In" for the Longines Breeders' Cup Turf (G1T) with a compelling rematch between Mishriff (IRE) and Adayar ; and the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes Sponsored By QIPCO (G1), which offers a fees-paid path to the FanDuel Mile (G1T) and features a clash between Palace Pier (GB) (4-for-4 this year) and the unbeaten Baaeed .

Also on the program are the British Champions Fillies & Mares (G1T) headed by Snowfall ; a competitive renewal of the British Champions Sprint (G1); and the two-mile Champions Long Distance Cup (G2), where last year's winner Trueshan  takes on legendary marathoner Stradivarius .

FOX Sports will provide coverage of all the action on FS2 from 8-11:30 a.m. ET

Back on this side of the pond, and a bit later in the day, 3-year-old turf fillies are spotlighted in the U.S. version of the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Presented By Dixiana (G1T) at Keeneland, and also the Sands Point Stakes (G2T) at Belmont Park.

The only other graded event in North America this Saturday is the Grand National Hurdle (NSA-G1), one of six stakes to be run in Far Hills, N.J., at the centennial Far Hills Race Meeting.

The Eclipse Award for champion steeplechaser will likely be decided by The Mean Queen  and Snap Decision , who meet again in the Grand National after finishing one-two in the Sept. 16 Lonesome Glory Handicap (NSA-G1).

The Grand National is the first leg of a 50-cent Cross Country Pick Five that then goes to Belmont for two races, including the Sands Point, and concludes with the Appleton Stakes and Gladstone Stakes from Far Hills.

Chad Brown has been on a major roll of late, sending out seven winners and nine second-place finishers in graded stakes the past three weekends. The four-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer has two solid contenders in the Sands Point—morning-line favorite Higher Truth  and third choice Fluffy Socks . 

Brown has two more big threats in the QE II Cup, Shantisara  and Technical Analysis , who are the second and third choices on the line. Brown has won two of the last three runnings and three overall. The QE II is the middle leg of Keeneland's new Turf Pick 3, flanked by race 6, a 2-year-old maiden special-weight route with an oversubscribed field, and race 10, a 5 1/2-furlong allowance dash also with an overflow cast.

Sands Point (Bel, race 6, 3:15 ET): Seven of the eight entrants last raced the weekend of Sept. 18-19 at Belmont in either the one-mile Pebbles Stakes or the 1 3/8-mile Jockey Club Oaks Invitational Stakes, and they all meet up here at the "in-between" distance of 1 1/8 miles. 

The only filly not coming out of those races is Fluffy Socks (7), who comes off improved speed figures running second in the Lake George (G3T) at Saratoga Race Course and third in the Del Mar Oaks (G1T). Those efforts coincided with a switch to Joel Rosario, who is back aboard the daughter of Slumber  , a late bloomer for Brown who won the 2015 Knob Creek Manhattan Stakes (G1T).

Higher Truth (5) also displays a good pattern of development, and although she has yet to win a stakes she was beaten less than a length for all the money in all three legs of NYRA's Triple Tiara for grass fillies, the Belmont Oaks Invitational Stakes (G1T), Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes (G3T), and Jockey Club Oaks Invitational Stakes. Higher Truth hasn't been this short since her career debut back in March but is an even-paced type who figures to be part of the early pace along with Jordan's Leo  (2), a Todd Pletcher-trained filly who ran on with good courage for second in the Pebbles.

The Irish-bred import Harajuku  (3) got off to a bad start and recovered to finish third behind Higher Truth in the Jockey Club Oaks. The homebred daughter of Deep Impact  has since been transferred from trainer Andre Fabre to Graham Motion for her second start on these shores. It's not unreasonable to expect improvement with a cleaner getaway.

A - 5, 7

B - 2, 3

QE II Challenge Cup (Kee, race 8, 4:44 ET): Five of the 10 entrants in this fall fixture are Irish-breds including the three who will vie for favoritism, Technical Analysis (2), Shantisara (3), and Empress Josephine  (4).

Technical Analysis comes off a front-running score in the Lake Placid Stakes (G2T), but three prior victories came without the early lead including the Lake George Stakes (G3T) four weeks earlier. All four wins by this Kingman  filly, however, came at 1 1/16 miles, and she was off the board in the Wonder Again Stakes (G3T) at this 1 1/8-mile trip in early summer.

Shanistara won twice on all-weather tracks in France to start off and has adapted swimmingly to grass racing in the U.S. with a second in the Boiling Springs Stakes at Monmouth Park, followed by triumphs in the Pucker Up Stakes (G3T) at Arlington International Racecourse and the Jockey Club Oaks. 

Importantly, Shanistara has shown great versatility, taking the Pucker Up from well off the pace and vying up front in the JC Oaks to edge stablemate Higher Truth by a half-length.

Empress Josephine, a Coolmore homebred, wheels right back after finishing a solid third in the First Lady Stakes Presented by UK Healthcare (G1T) behind Brown's duo of Blowout  and Regal Glory , a couple of very classy 5-year-old mares campaigned by Peter M. Brant.

The others are running for second money if the Aidan O'Brien-trained Empress Josephine can replicate that performance a week later. In that regard, it's well worth mentioning the same connections accomplished exactly that in 2011 when Together —like Empress Josephine a daughter of the late Galileo —ran second in the First Lady and then won the QE II at odds of 9-2.

Empress Josephine, a full sister to multiple group 1 winner Minding , will run with blinkers on, which should serve to get her a little more forwardly placed early.

California Cup Oaks Stakes winner Closing Remarks  (10) drew tough on the far outside, but the likable daughter of Vronsky  is a consistent sort with in-the-money finishes in all six outings this year. Two of those were second-place finishes at Saturday's distance in the Providencia Stakes (G3T) and Del Mar Oaks against the streaking Going Global , who has won six of her last seven.

A - 4

B - 2, 3, 10