Brightwork to Face Older Female Sprinters in TCA Stakes

WSS Racing's Brightwork  will see how she stacks up against the filly and mare sprint division as she makes her first start against older in the $350,000 Thoroughbred Club of America Stakes (G2) Oct. 5 at Keeneland.

The 6-furlong TCA is a Breeders' Cup Challenge Series event, granting the winner a fees-paid berth to the $1 million Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1) Nov. 2 at Del Mar.

Brightwork won the Prioress Stakes (G3) Aug. 31 at Saratoga Race Course in her first race as a 3-year-old. It was her first start in more than nine months.

The Outwork   filly trained by John A. Ortiz won her debut at Keeneland April 26, 2023, then reeled off three stakes wins in a row, culminating in Saratoga's Spinaway Stakes (G1). Stretched out to 1 1/16 miles last fall, Brightwork finished fifth in the Alcibiades Stakes (G1) and sixth in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1).

Brightwork has worked twice at Churchill Downs since winning the Prioress. She went a half-mile in :48 on Sept. 14, then five furlongs in 1:00.40 Sept. 21.

"She came back from Saratoga feeling different. She gained a lot from that first start as a 3-year-old," Ortiz told BloodHorse. "She's been working with an older filly and she's been impressive. The name of the game is to take shots and hope for big rewards, and she made me look at this race. She is training fantastic.

"She's the only 3-year-old filly in here, but I feel very confident in her. I think her numbers match up very well."

The TCA drew a field of seven, and the older entrants look fairly evenly matched. Trainer Steve Asmussen entered two, with Hill 'n' Dale Equine Holdings' and Jarret Prussin's Clearly Unhinged  drawing the rail. The tactical daughter of Into Mischief   won the Winning Colors Stakes (G3) May 27 at Churchill Downs. She then finished third in the Honorable Miss Handicap (G2) at Saratoga and second in the two-turn, 7-furlong Pink Ribbon Stakes at Charles Town.

Asmussen's other entrant is Peter Leidel and Stonestreet Stables' Zeitlos , who won the Open Mind Stakes Sept. 14 at Churchill with a last-to-first rally. A three-time stakes winner, the 4-year-old Curlin   filly is looking for her graded stakes breakthrough.

Miller Racing's Honorable Miss winner Spirit Wind  finished eighth in the Pink Ribbon and looks like she will benefit from the turnback to one turn for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. and rider Mike Smith.

Ashbrook Farm and Upland Flats Racing's Red Carpet Ready  appeared to be a major contender in this division when she won the Hurricane Bertie Stakes (G3) at Gulfstream Park in her 2024 debut. But following an eighth-place finish in the Derby City Distaff Stakes (G1) May 4 at Churchill, she ran on turf in her two most recent races. The 4-year-old filly by Oscar Performance   has won five of nine career starts on dirt and is a three-time graded winner on the main track.

Hronis Racing's Anywho  ships from Santa Anita for trainer John Sadler and could provide some cross form between East and West heading into the Breeders' Cup. The 4-year-old Bolt d'Oro   filly was well beaten by Southern California's top female sprinter, Sweet Azteca , in the Great Lady M Stakes (G2) and Rancho Bernardo Handicap (G3).