Duvet Day Receives Class Test in 1 3/16-Mile Beverly D.

For much of her career, Duvet Day  seemed a filly that was best suited to a three-turn route on turf from 1 3/8 miles to 1 1/2 miles. Her first two victories came at the former distance and the third one over the latter.

But from late in her 5-year-old season into this year at age 6, she has been firing over a two-turn, shorter 1 1/8-mile distance, a trip over which she captured the Cardinal Stakes (G3T) last fall at Churchill Downs. Most recently, she was a hard-charging second in the June 29 Anchorage Overnight Stakes at Churchill, also at 1 1/8 miles.

On Aug. 9 at Colonial Downs, she'll go a little further—but not quite as far as she did during her younger days—when she steps up in class in the $500,000 Beverly D. Stakes (G2T) over 1 3/16 miles.

Among five female turf horses entered to face her are Gamely Stakes (G1T) winner Be Your Best , American grade 3 winners Beach Bomb  and Charlene's Dream , plus Spanish Eyes , who comes off a runner-up finish in the Robert G. Dick Memorial Stakes (G3T) and who was group 1-placed in her native Germany in 2024.

A late-running daughter of Starspangledbanner , Duvet Day would appear likely to benefit from three of her principal competitors—Be Your Best, Beach Bomb, and Charlene's Dream—being speed horses who are typically first or second early in their races. Lively fractions would aid her closing punch.

"She seems to be in the best form of her career, numbers-wise," trainer Michael McCarthy said. "It's a big ask to run in a prestigious race like (the Beverly D.), but it's always nice to be able to participate in those kinds of races."

Hall of Famer John Velazquez rides.

The pace complexion would have been impacted had trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. elected to run Mike Ryan's Be Your Best in the $300,000 Ballston Spa Stakes (G2T) Aug. 8 at Saratoga Race Course, where she was also entered but scratched Friday. Joseph said she prefers firm ground. Pleasant, dry conditions are forecast for Colonial Saturday.

Since joining Joseph's barn, Be Your Best has won four of her six starts, all graded stakes. Besides the Gamely, she took the Pegasus World Cup Filly and Mare Turf Invitational Stakes (G2T) earlier this year at Gulfstream Park.

The 9-5 morning-line favorite under Tyler Gaffalione, she spots her five rivals 4 pounds apiece. She carries 126 pounds.

Also with recent grade 1 form is Cayton Park Stud's Beach Bomb, a close runner-up to She Feels Pretty  in the June 6 New York Stakes (G1T) at Saratoga Race Course over Saturday's 1 3/16-mile distance. She won two group 1s in her native South Africa before coming to the United States in 2024.

Carded as race 10, between the one-mile Secretariat Stakes (G2T) for sophomores and the 1 1/4-mile Arlington Million Stakes (G1T), the Beverly D. is one of seven stakes on the Saturday program at Colonial.

Insights from Thoro-Graph

• Be Your Best is very solid and has been managed very well. But she spots weight worth almost a full Thoro-Graph point here, or a length and a half at this distance.
• Beach Bomb has steadily gotten better with age, and her last was the best effort of her life. Grass horses in general bounce less than dirt horses, and Motion has given this one plenty of time to recover. If Beach Bomb runs back to her last, she will be very hard to beat.
• Charlene's Dream has run the same solid figure in all three starts this year, which, after adjusting for weight, puts her at about the same level as Be Your Best.
• The rest would all have to improve to have a shot here.

Thoro-Graph performance figures are calculated based on a race’s time with adjustments for beaten lengths, track speed, ground loss, weight carried, and, when necessary, wind. The lower the number, the better the race. Complimentary sheets for this week’s race can be found online at Thoro-Graph. Learn more about how to analyze Thoro-Graph data at www.thorograph.com/basics.