Annapolis Set for 2023 Opening Verse at Churchill

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Annapolis Set for 2023 Opening Verse at Churchill
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Photo: Skip Dickstein
Annapolis gallops at Keeneland

Bass Racing's Annapolis , who emerged as one of the top 3-year-old turf runners in the nation last year, will make his 2023 debut May 4 when he headlines a field of 12 in the 18th running of the Opening Verse Stakes going a mile over the Matt Winn Turf Course at Churchill Downs.

Trained by Todd Pletcher, Annapolis was a three-time stakes winner in 2022 that included a victory in the Turf Mile Stakes (G1T) at Keeneland. Annapolis finished the year beaten only 5 1/4 lengths in the Breeders' Cup Mile (G1T).

"He got a little freshening and is doing well. This looks like a good spot to get his season started," Pletcher said.

Also making his 2023 debut is Juddmonte's Set Piece .

Trained by Brad Cox, Set Piece won two graded stakes last year and has won four of six starts at Churchill Downs including the Wise Dan (G2T) in 2021.  

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The field for the from the rail out is: Native Thunder , Kentucky Ghost , Annapolis, Stitched , Set Piece (GB), Gray's Fable , Churchtown , Camp Hope , Sky and Sand , English Bee , Time to Party , and Get Smokin .



Kentucky Juvenile 

Two dazzling debut winners this month at Keeneland, Hibernacle  and Youalmosthadme , headline a field of six for the 29th running of the $200,000 Kentucky Juvenile for 2-year-olds going five furlongs on the main track Thursday.

Wesley Ward, a two-time winner of the race with fillies, owns and bred Hibernacle, a 7 1/2-length winner in her first outing April 12 under Joel Rosario, who retains the mount in the Kentucky Juvenile. 

Donna Hancock, Richard Royer, and Shaun Stone's Youalmosthadme debuted a week later April 19 and won by 8 1/2 lengths. Trained by John Hancock, Youalmosthadme will be ridden by Tyler Gaffalione.

The field for the Kentucky Juvenile from the rail out, is: Hibernacle, Youalmosthadme, Lil Anthony , Lou's Legacy , Tranche , and Who's Snow Trouble .

St. Matthews Overnight Stakes

Tamaroak Partners' Bango , one of the winningest horses in the history of Churchill Downs with nine victories beneath the historic Twin Spires, will go for No. 10 Thursday when he headlines a field of eight 4-year-olds and up in the second running of the $175,000 St. Matthews Overnight Stakes.

The St. Matthews will be run over the main track at six furlongs.

Trained by Greg Foley, Bango has won four stakes at Churchill Downs and comes into Thursday's race off a three-month layoff following a runner-up finish in the Duncan Kenner Stakes at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots.

Another entrant with an affinity for Churchill Downs is Maribeth Sandford's Bagboss .

Trained by Brendan Walsh, Bagboss has won three of four starts under the Twin Spires and will make his 2023 debut in the St. Matthews. 

The field for the St. Matthews from the rail out is: Bagboss, Miles Ahead , Pirate Rick , Heart Rhythm , Willtorun , Surveillance , Bango, and Collaborate .


Entries: Opening Verse S.

Churchill Downs, Thursday, May 04, 2023, Race 10

  • STK
  • 1m
  • Turf
  • $300,000
  • 4 yo's & up
  • 5:45 PM (local)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L
1 1Native Thunder (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Flavien Prat 120 Dallas Stewart 30/1
2 2Kentucky Ghost (KY) Rafael Bejarano 120 Victoria H. Oliver 20/1
3 3Annapolis (KY) Irad Ortiz, Jr. 124 Todd A. Pletcher 7/5
4 4Stitched (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Joel Rosario 120 Gregory D. Foley 15/1
5 5Set Piece (GB) Florent Geroux 120 Brad H. Cox 5/2
6 6Gray's Fable (KY) Javier Castellano 120 Brian A. Lynch 10/1
7 7Churchtown (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Luis Saez 120 Roger L. Attfield 8/1
8 8Camp Hope (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr. 120 Kenneth G. McPeek 12/1
9 9Sky and Sand (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Tyler Gaffalione 120 Jack Sisterson 30/1
10 10English Bee (KY) John R. Velazquez 120 H. Graham Motion 12/1
11 11Time to Party (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Joe Bravo 120 George Papaprodromou 20/1
12 12Get Smokin (KY) Ricardo Santana, Jr. 120 Mark E. Casse 15/1




Entries: Kentucky Juvenile S.

Churchill Downs, Thursday, May 04, 2023, Race 4

  • STK
  • 5f
  • Dirt
  • $200,000
  • 2 yo
  • 2:17 PM (local)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L
1 1Hibernacle (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Joel Rosario 117 Wesley A. Ward 1/1
2 2Youalmosthadme (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Tyler Gaffalione 117 Brad H. Cox 6/5
3 3Lil Anthony (CA) Rafael Bejarano 118 Luis Mendez 15/1
4 4Lou's Legacy (KY) Yarmarie L. Correa 118 Hugo Andrade 10/1
5 5Tranche (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Edwin A. Maldonado 118 Luis Mendez 12/1
6 6Who's Snow Trouble (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Luis Saez 118 John Ennis 15/1




Entries: St. Matthews Overnight S.

Churchill Downs, Thursday, May 04, 2023, Race 9

  • STK
  • 6f
  • Dirt
  • $175,000
  • 4 yo's & up
  • 5:11 PM (local)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L
1 1Bagboss (KY) Irad Ortiz, Jr. 118 Brendan P. Walsh 6/1
2 2Miles Ahead (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Joseph Talamo 120 Paul J. McGee 5/2
3 3Pirate Rick (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate Rafael Bejarano 118 Norman L. Cash 6/1
4 4Heart Rhythm (KY) Reylu Gutierrez 118 John Alexander Ortiz 12/1
5 5Willtorun (KY) Luan Machado 118 Ben Colebrook 20/1
6 6Surveillance (KY)Keeneland Sales Graduate James Graham 123 J. Keith Desormeaux 4/1
7 7Bango (KY) Tyler Gaffalione 120 Gregory D. Foley 2/1
8 8Collaborate (KY) Luis Saez 118 Jose Francisco D'Angelo 12/1