Scratch It, La Ville Lumiere Clash in Bourbonette Oaks

The Bourbonette Oaks and Kentucky Cup Classic Stakes (G3) March 21 at Turfway Park both bring wide-open, competitive fields.

The morning-line favorite of the $300,000 Bourbonette Oaks is the Brad Cox trainee Scratch It , who is making the first start of her 3-year-old season and her first start off turf. Last time out, she was second to Brave Deb  in the Surfer Girl Stakes (G3T) at Santa Anita Park. She broke her maiden in the first try by 1 1/4 lengths Aug. 1 at Saratoga Race Course. Owned by Fergus Galvin, Mrs. M.V. Magnier, and Mrs. Paul Shanahan, she entered the P. G. Johnson Stakes off that win, and finished second behind Time to Dream . 

A tough filly she will face in the full field of 12 is California shipper La Ville Lumiere . Trained by Michael McCarthy, the daughter of City of Light   is a dual-surface filly. As a 2-year-old, she broke her maiden going 5 furlongs on the turf, and was third in the Oak Leaf Stakes (G2) going 1 1/16 miles on the dirt before a seventh-place finish in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1). She completed her 2-year-old season with a third in the 1-mile Jimmy Durante Stakes (G3T) and won the Blue Norther Stakes, which is also run at a mile on the turf. Her lone start this year was a 10th-place finish in the Sweet Life Stakes. 

The Bourbonette Oaks is run at 1 1/16 miles on Turfway's all-weather surface, and carries Kentucky Oaks (G1) points on a 50-25-15-10-5 scale to the top five finishers. 

See the full Kentucky Oaks points standings

Mercante leads strong Kentucky Cup Classic

The Kentucky Cup Classic Stakes (G3), run at 1 1/8 miles, is led by Mercante . Trained by Brian Knippenberg and owned/bred by Carl Pollard, the 6-year-old Gun Runner   gelding is making his first start of the year. He is looking to go back to back in this race, having won the 2025 edition by a length. He went on to run second in the Turf Classic Stakes (G1T) to Spirit of St Louis  at Churchill Downs and won the May 31 Arlington Stakes (G3T). Mercante has won five races in his 17 career starts.

A major threat looms in the Whit Beckman trainee Honor Marie . The 5-year-old Honor Code  gelding won his most recent start at Turfway Park, taking the Feb. 14 Dust Commander Stakes by 4 1/2 lengths. Last year, the Kentucky Derby (G1) participant won the Isaac Murphy Marathon Stakes at Churchill Downs.