Smile Happy, Rattle N Roll Face Proxy in Stephen Foster

A year and a half ago, Smile Happy  was the favorite for a time among individual betting interests in the Kentucky Derby Future Wager, with horseplayers anticipating big things in the 2022 Kentucky Derby (G1) after the Runhappy   colt stylishly won both starts at age 2 in 2021.

Though he ran respectably last year when second in the Risen Star Stakes (G2) and Blue Grass Stakes (G1), his 3-year-old form was somewhat off the mark, and he ran eighth in the Kentucky Derby before going to the sidelines.

A new year has brought renewed hopes for Smile Happy, who is 2-for-3 as a 4-year-old and heads a field of eight in the $1 million Stephen Foster Stakes (G1) July 1 at Ellis Park.

Saturday's Stephen Foster, a 1 1/8-mile dirt race upgraded from a grade 2 this year, will be the first grade 1 race staged at Ellis Park in Henderson, Ky. The race has been a fixture at Churchill Downs in Louisville but takes place at Ellis Park this year after the Churchill Downs spring meet was transferred there due to a spate of equine fatalities at Churchill Downs. Churchill Downs Inc. owns both tracks.

A grade 1 win is one of the few accomplishments missing from Smile Happy's resume, though he beat a grade 1-caliber field last out in the Alysheba Stakes (G2) on Kentucky Oaks Day, May 5, at Churchill Downs. Immediately behind him in that race was Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1) winner Art Collector and two other graded stakes winners from 2023, West Will Power  and Last Samurai , who were third and fourth, respectively.

Though Art Collector does not return in the Stephen Foster, West Will Power and Last Samurai do, joining a field that also includes grade 1 winners Proxy  and Smille Happy's stablemate Rattle N Roll .

Rattle N Roll and Smile Happy are both owned by Lucky Seven Stable and trained by Kenny McPeek, who after saying in early June he would likely run only one of the two, indicated June 24 he planned to run both of his horses. 

"With a clear mind, it's really the best race for both horses," McPeek said. "Their paths just happened to converge here. ... It really makes sense that they both deserve a shot in this grade 1."

Jockey Corey Lanerie, aboard Rattle N Roll for four starts as a late fall 2-year-old and spring 3-year-old, is reunited with Smile Happy, while Brian Hernandez, McPeek's customary rider in Kentucky, stays aboard Rattle N Roll after having ridden both McPeek horses recently.

McPeek said the choice of riding assignments was his, noting, "Corey knows Smile Happy and Brian knows Rattle N Roll. ... It would not have made any sense to put Corey on Rattle N Roll because he's never ridden him."

Both 4-year-olds are top contenders in the Stephen Foster, with Smile Happy having earned a lofty 117 Equibase Speed Figure in the Alysheba, and Rattle N Roll riding a three-race win streak, topped by a troubled-trip score in the June 3 Blame Stakes (G3) at Churchill Downs.

Prior to his 1 1/4-length score in the Blame, Rattle N Roll was victorious in the Pimlico Special Stakes (G3) and Ben Ali Stakes (G3).

Also exiting a last-out victory is Godolphin's Proxy, who ran down Last Samurai and Stilleto Boy  to win the Oaklawn Handicap (G2) at Oaklawn Park last out on April 22. A start earlier, he had finished a neck behind Stilleto Boy when a fast-closing second to him in the March 4 Santa Anita Handicap (G1).

Proxy also scored a noteworthy victory last fall in the Clark Stakes (G1) at Churchill Downs. The well-traveled runner has five wins from 16 starts with earnings of $1,775,970. 

Joel Rosario returns in the saddle for trainer Mike Stidham on Proxy, who breaks from the rail.

Speed Bias , second to Rattle N Roll in the Pimlico Special earlier this spring, and Happy American , third in the Blame, complete the field.

A 1 1/8-mile dirt race at Ellis Park comprises one lap around the main track.

The Stephen Foster is the 10th race of 11 at 4:26 p.m. CT. The card has five other stakes races, including the $400,000 Fleur de Lis Stakes (G2) and $400,000 Wise Dan Stakes (G2T).

Stephen Foster Day will be televised on FanDuel TV, which will have a number of its broadcasters on-site. One hour of television coverage that had been scheduled for NBC was pulled due to "logistical concerns" created by the relocation of the race from Churchill Downs to Ellis Park, Breeders' Cup said in a release June 21.