Grand Sonata in Dueling Grounds Derby Shootout

Graded stakes winners Grand Sonata  and Ready to Purrform  head an overflow field for the $750,000 Big Ass Fans Dueling Grounds Derby (G3T) Sept. 4 on the third day of the FanDuel Meet at Kentucky Downs. The 1 5/16-mile turf race, number 10 on the card, will be run as a grade 3 stakes for the first time.

The day's program also has attracted Churchill Downs' Edgewood Stakes (G2T) winner New Year's Eve , hird in the Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes (G3T) in her last start, and Turnerloose , a stakes-winner on turf and dirt, who headline the co-featured $500,000 Exacta Systems Dueling Grounds Oaks, which is the ninth race on the 11-race card. In the Dueling Grounds Oaks, too, is comebacking California Angel , who won her debut at Kentucky Downs last year and went on to take Keeneland's JPMorgan Chase Jessamine Stakes (G2T).

Trainer Todd Pletcher will try to win the Dueling Grounds Derby for the third time with Whisper Hill Farm's homebred Grand Sonata, winner of the Kitten's Joy Stakes (G3T) and another turf stakes at Gulfstream Park over the winter. While he didn't fare well in his last start in the Caesars Saratoga Derby Invitational Stakes (G1T), finishing eighth, a start earlier he was fourth in the Caesars Belmont Derby Invitational Stakes (G1T).

Donegal Racing's Ready to Purrform, the 3-1 morning-line favorite trained by Brad Cox, comes into the Dueling Grounds Derby off a frontrunning victory in the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame Stakes (G2T) at Saratoga Race Course.

Others in the overflow field of 14 3-year-olds include Kitodan , Running Bee , Red Run , Dripping Gold, Speaking Scout , Russian Tank , Tallahatchiebridge , Always Above , and Mount Rundle .

Also-eligibles Western River  and Camp David  need defections to run.

The 1 5/16-mile Dueling Grounds Oaks attracted the capacity field of 12 in the body of the race plus four more horses on the also-eligible list.

The Cox-trained Turnerloose won last year's Aristocrat Juvenile Fillies stakes by five lengths, then finished third as the heavy favorite in Keeneland's Jessamine. She started her 3-year-old season on dirt in New Orleans' prep series for the Kentucky Oaks, winning the Rachel Alexandra Stakes presented by Fasig-Tipton (G2) and finishing fourth in the Twinspires.com Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) before taking seventh in the Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1). Back on turf after a freshener, Turnerloose was a close and fast-flying second in Ellis Park's Centennial Distaff Turf Mile Stakes Presented by Exacta Systems against older fillies and mares.

New Year's Eve, trained by Brendan Walsh, was beaten just two lengths in the Saratoga Oaks two races after taking the Edgewood. The 3-1 morning-line choice under Tyler Gaffalione, she races with blinkers off.

The George Leonard-trained California Angel competes for the first time since she was second in the March 12 Allen Black Cat LaCombe Memorial Stakes at the Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots.

Schlofmitz , Beechnut Trophy , Silverleaf , Vergara , Heavenly Hellos , Catiche , Sequist , Skims , and Gimme Mo Baby  are other threats.

Fancy Martini , Princess Pauline , Therearenorules , and She's Gone  are also-eligibles.

Entries: Big Ass Fans Dueling Grounds Derby (G3T)

Kentucky Downs, Sunday, September 04, 2022, Race 10

• Grade IIIT
• One And Five Sixteenthm
• Turf
• $750,000
• 3 yo
• 5:31 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Grand Sonata (KY)	Tyler Gaffalione	124	Todd A. Pletcher	5/1
2	2Tallahatchiebridge (KY)	Edgard J. Zayas	118	Saffie A. Joseph, Jr.	20/1
3	3Always Above (KY)	Joseph Talamo	118	Michelle Nihei	15/1
4	4Kitodan (KY)	Gerardo Corrales	124	Eric N. Foster	10/1
5	5Mount Rundle (KY)	Rafael Bejarano	118	Michelle Nihei	20/1
6	6Double Clutch (KY)	Florent Geroux	118	George R. Arnold, II	4/1
7	7Running Bee (KY)	Vincent Cheminaud	118	Chad C. Brown	6/1
8	8Red Run (KY)	Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr.	122	Steven M. Asmussen	12/1
9	9Dripping Gold (KY)	Julien R. Leparoux	118	Claude R. McGaughey III	8/1
10	10Speaking Scout (KY)	James Graham	118	H. Graham Motion	15/1
11	11Russian Tank (KY)	Jose L. Vega	118	Gennadi Dorochenko	30/1
12	12Ready to Purrform (KY)	Joel Rosario	124	Brad H. Cox	3/1
13	13Western River (KY)	Ricardo Santana, Jr.	118	Rodolphe Brisset	15/1
14	14Camp David (KY)	Reylu Gutierrez	118	Michael J. Maker	20/1

Entries: Exacta Systems Dueling Grounds Oaks

Kentucky Downs, Sunday, September 04, 2022, Race 9

• STK
• One And Five Sixteenthm
• Turf
• $500,000
• 3 yo Fillies
• 4:57 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Schlofmitz (KY)	Ricardo Santana, Jr.	122	Michael J. Maker	12/1
2	2Beechnut Trophy (KY)	Edgard J. Zayas	118	Saffie A. Joseph, Jr.	10/1
3	3Gimme Mo Baby (KY)	Geovanni Franco	118	George Papaprodromou	20/1
4	4Silverleaf (KY)	Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr.	118	Kenneth G. McPeek	20/1
5	5Vergara (KY)	Joel Rosario	124	H. Graham Motion	6/1
6	6Heavenly Hellos (KY)	Abel Lezcano	122	Rey Hernandez	20/1
7	7New Year's Eve (KY)	Tyler Gaffalione	124	Brendan P. Walsh	3/1
8	8Catiche (KY)	Vincent Cheminaud	118	Jonathan Thomas	10/1
9	9Sequist (KY)	James Graham	118	Dallas Stewart	20/1
10	10Turnerloose (KY)	Florent Geroux	122	Brad H. Cox	7/2
11	11California Angel (KY)	Deshawn L. Parker	124	George Leonard, III	12/1
12	12Skims (GB)	Julien R. Leparoux	118	Claude R. McGaughey III	5/1
13	13Fancy Martini (KY)	Adam Beschizza	118	Joe Sharp	20/1
14	14Princess Pauline (KY)	Vincent Cheminaud	118	Steven M. Asmussen	15/1
15	15She's Gone (KY)	Rafael Bejarano	118	Victoria H. Oliver	15/1
16	16Therearenorules (KY)	Mickaelle Michel	118	Thomas F. Proctor	20/1