Breeders’ Cup Distaff Cheat Sheet

Wedding Toast will be one of the favorites for the Breeders' Cup Distaff. (Photos by Eclipse Sportswire, unless otherwise noted)
The headline of the Breeders’ Cup Friday card, the Longines Breeders’ Cup Distaff, appears very likely to draw a full field looking to take home the winner’s share of the $2-million purse. Last year’s winner, Untapable, hopes to become the third filly to win the Distaff more than once, a task made easier by 2013 Distaff winner Beholder targeting this year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic. But with horses like 3-year-old sensations I’m a Chatterbox and Curalina leading the charge against her, it will be a tough task.   
Read below to learn more about all the contenders in the 31st running of the Breeders’ Cup Distaff.
Calamity Kate

Age: 3
Jockey: Edgar Prado
Trainer: Kelly Breen
Owner: George and Lori Hall
Career Record: 9 starts - 3 wins, 2 seconds, 0 thirds
Career Earnings: $533,868
Earnings Per Start: $59,319
Pedigree: Yes It's True - Justmeandmyshadow, by Tiznow
Color: Bay
Running Style: Pacesetter/Stalker
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: Calamity Kate won the Delaware Oaks in July and finished second to I’m a Chatterbox in the Cotillion Stakes in her next start. She also was second to Condo Commando in the Demoiselle Stakes in 2014. Her dam (mother) is a half-sister to Grade 1 winner Officer.
Curalina

Age: 3
Jockey: TBD
Trainer: Todd Pletcher
Owner: Eclipse Thoroughbreds Partners
Career Record: 7 starts - 4 wins, 2 seconds, 1 third
Career Earnings: $806,800
Earnings Per Start: $115,257
Pedigree: Curlin - Whatdreamsrmadeof, by Graeme Hall
Color: Chestnut
Running Style: Front-Runner/Stalker
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: Curlina is one of the top fillies in her division with two Grade 1 wins and two on-the-board finishes in Grade 1 races, including a second in the Beldame Stakes behind older female Wedding Toast.
Frivolous

Age: 5
Jockey: Jon Court
Trainer: Victoria Oliver
Owner: G. Watts Humphrey Jr.
Career Record: 23 starts - 5 wins, 4 seconds, 3 thirds
Career Earnings: $680,718
Earnings Per Start: $30,031
Pedigree: Empire Maker - Sixty Rocketts, by Belong to Me
Color: Dark Bay or Brown
Running Style: Front-Runner/Stalker
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: Frivolous has stepped up to a new level in racing this year by winning the Grade 2 Fleur de Lis Handicap and finishing second in the Delaware Handicap with her first graded stakes victory coming late last year. By 2003 Belmont Stakes winner Empire Maker, she is a half-sister to graded stakes-placed Drama Drama.
Got Lucky

Age: 4
Jockey: Irad Ortiz Jr.
Trainer: Todd Pletcher
Owner: Hill ‘n’ Dale Equine Holdings and Philip Steinberg
Career Record: 16 starts - 6 wins, 6 seconds, 0 thirds
Career Earnings: $951,340
Earnings Per Start: $59,459
Pedigree: A.P. Indy - Malka, by Deputy Minister
Color: Dark Bay or Brown
Running Style: Stalker/Closer
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: Got Lucky earned multiple graded stakes placings as a 2- and 3-year-old, but it wasn’t until the 2015 season that she broke through, first in the Grade 3 Molly Pitcher Stakes and then in the Grade 1 Juddmonte Spinster Stakes to earn a spot in the Longines Breeders’ Cup Distaff. The filly was named because her dam (mother) had to visit A.P. Indy six times in his final season at stud to get in foal with Got Lucky. Got Lucky is the granddaughter of Get Lucky, who also is the grandam of 2010 Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver and 2006 Haskell Invitational Stakes winner Bluegrass Cat.
I’m a Chatterbox

Age: 3
Jockey: Florent Geroux
Trainer: Larry Jones
Owner: Fletcher and Carolyn Gray
Career Record: 10 starts - 5 wins, 2 seconds, 2 thirds
Career Earnings: $1,304,614
Earnings Per Start: $130,461
Pedigree: Munnings - Chit Chatter, by Lost Soldier
Color: Chestnut
Running Style: Front-Runner
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: I’m a Chatterbox has been dominant in her division this year with four stakes victories and another in which she crossed the finish line first but subsequently was disqualified. The filly hasn’t finished worse than third this year, with that third-place finish coming behind fellow Larry Jones-trainee Lovely Maria in the Longines Kentucky Oaks.
My Sweet Addiction

Age: 5
Jockey: Mike Smith
Trainer: Martin Jones
Owner: Pamela Ziebarth
Career Record: 13 starts - 4 wins, 3 seconds, 3 thirds
Career Earnings: $408,106
Earnings Per Start: $31,393
Pedigree: Tiznow - Healthy Addiction, by Boston Harbor
Color: Bay
Running Style: Front-Runner/Stalker
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: My Sweet Addiction has consistently hit the board in her 13 races, only finishing worse than third three times. The mare is a Grade 1 winner who finished second to Beholder in the Zenyatta Stakes in her final prep for the Distaff. A homebred for her owner, My Sweet Addiction is out of Grade 1 winner Healthy Addiction.
 
Peace and War

Age: 3
Jockey: Joel Rosario
Trainer: Graham Motion
Owner: Qatar Racing
Career Record: 9 starts - 2 wins, 3 seconds, 1 third
Career Earnings: $430,417
Earnings Per Start: $47,824
Pedigree: War Front - More Oats Please, by Smart Strike
Color: Bay
Running Style: Closer
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: Coming across the Atlantic Ocean for her first start in the United States, Peace and War shocked the crowd at Keeneland in the Grade 1 Darley Alcibiades Stakes in 2014 when she won by half-length at odds of 23.10-to-1. The filly subsequently was injured and missed last year’s Breeders’ Cup, but after a few bumps in the road early this year, she has two seconds and a third for new trainer Graham Motion. Her most recent start was a third behind I’m a Chatterbox in the Grade 1 Cotillion Stakes.
Salama

Photo by Melissa Bauer-Herzog
Age: 3
Jockey: Julien Leparoux
Trainer: Charlie LoPresti
Owner: Maria Santa Stable
Career Record: 9 starts - 5 wins, 2 seconds, 2 thirds
Career Earnings: $49,893
Earnings Per Start: $5,544
Pedigree: Desert Party - Duchess Maggie, by Royal Academy
Color: Bay
Running Style: Closer
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: A group stakes winner in South America, Salama earned a spot into the Breeders’ Cup Distaff through the “Win and You’re In” Challenge Series. She was transferred to Charlie LoPresti’s care to prepare for the race and made her first start since June in a Keeneland allowance on Oct. 10 and finished a fast-closing second.
Sheer Drama

Age: 5
Jockey: Joe Bravo
Trainer: David Fawkes
Owner: Harold L. Queen
Career Record: 19 starts - 6 wins, 8 seconds, 1 third
Career Earnings: $1,318,840
Earnings Per Start: $69,413
Pedigree: Burning Roma - Riveting Drama, by Notebook
Color: Chestnut
Running Style: Front-Runner
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: A half-sister to 2010 Breeders’ Cup Sprint winner Big Drama, Sheer Drama has won two consecutive Grade 1 races on her way to the Breeders’ Cup Distaff. The mare has successfully competed at the top level of the sport in 2015, also winning a Grade 2 race and finishing second in three other graded stakes.
Stellar Wind

Age: 3
Jockey: Victor Espinoza
Trainer: John Sadler
Owner: Hronis Racing
Career Record: 7 starts - 5 wins, 0 seconds, 1 third
Career Earnings: $553,200
Earnings Per Start: $79,029
Pedigree: Curlin - Evening Star, by Malibu Moon
Color: Chestnut
Running Style: Stalker
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: Stellar Wind has won 4 of 5 races in 2015 with all of those starts coming in graded stakes company. Her only bump in the road was a fourth-place finish in the Longines Kentucky Oaks, in which she finished 4 ¾ lengths behind Lovely Maria.
Stopchargingmaria

Age: 4
Jockey: Javier Castellano
Trainer: Todd Pletcher
Owner: Town and Country Farms
Career Record: 15 starts - 8 wins, 3 seconds, 1 third
Career Earnings: $1,824,000
Earnings Per Start: $121,600
Pedigree: Tale of the Cat - Exotic Bloom, by Montbrook
Color: Dark Bay or Brown
Running Style: Front-Runner/Stalker
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: The second best 3-year-old filly of 2014, Stopchargingmaria was a two-time Grade 1 winner coming into 2015. This year, while she hasn’t been able to win a Grade 1, she has won two Grade 3s and finished second in the Grade 1 Madison Stakes at Keeneland by half-length to Princess Violet.
Untapable

Age: 4
Jockey: John Velazquez
Trainer: Steve Asmussen
Owner: Winchell Thoroughbreds
Career Record: 17 starts - 9 wins, 4 seconds, 2 thirds
Career Earnings: $3,816,725
Earnings Per Start: $224,513
Pedigree: Tapit - Fun House, by Prized
Color: Bay
Running Style: Front-Runner/Stalker
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: Last year’s Breeders’ Cup Distaff winner and champion 3-year-old filly, Untapable has had some hard luck this year. The filly won the Grade 1 Apple Blossom Handicap in April and hasn’t been off the board in six starts this year but has finished second four times, most recently in the Juddmonte Spinster Stakes against Got Lucky. Untapable is a half-sister to 2010 Kentucky Derby third-place finisher Paddy O’Prado.
Warren’s Veneda

Age: 5
Jockey: Tyler Baze
Trainer: Craig Anthony Lewis
Owner: Benjamin Warren
Career Record: 27 starts - 8 wins, 4 seconds, 7 thirds
Career Earnings: $931,862
Earnings Per Start: $34,513
Pedigree: Affirmative - More Cal Bread, by Flying Continental
Color: Chestnut
Running Style: Stalker/Closer
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: Flying under the radar in her first two seasons on the track, Warren’s Veneda made a splash when winning the Santa Maria Stakes early in 2015. The mare clinched her status as the best mare in training in California at that time a month later when winning the Grade 1 Santa Margarita Stakes by 7 ¼ lengths. Warren’s Veneda hasn’t returned to the winner’s circle since but has placed second once and third two times since that victory.
Wedding Toast

Age: 5
Jockey: Jose Lezcano
Trainer: Kiaran McLaughlin
Owner: Godolphin Racing
Career Record: 12 starts - 8 wins, 2 seconds, 1 third
Career Earnings: $1,419,956
Earnings Per Start: $118,330
Pedigree: Street Sense - Golden Sheba, by Coronado's Quest
Color: Dark Bay or Brown
Running Style: Front-Runner
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: Winning the Belle Cherie Stakes in one of her four victories as a 3-year-old, Wedding Toast made only one start in 2014 before being forced to take the rest of the year off. This year, her connections’ patience has paid off with Wedding Toast winning four races, including three straight graded stakes, the last two of which came in Grade 1 company. Mostly racing in New York, Wedding Toast is out of a half-sister to multiple Grade 1 winner Congaree and stakes winner Sangaree.
Yahilwa

Photo by Melissa Bauer-Herzog
Age: 5
Jockey: James Graham
Trainer: James Cassidy
Owner: D. P. Racing
Career Record: 30 starts - 6 wins, 5 seconds, 5 thirds
Career Earnings: $519,495
Earnings Per Start: $17,317
Pedigree: Medaglia d'Oro - Verbanella, by Smart Strike
Color: Bay
Running Style: Front-Runner/Stalker
Notable Achievements and Interesting Facts: The winner of the Grade 3 Sixty Sails Handicap in April, Yahilwa was second to both Beholder and Stopchargingmaria in races after that win. But the closest she has been to being back in the winner’s circle came in her final start before the Breeders’ Cup in which she finished third by a neck in the Juddmonte Spinster Stakes to run a career-best 115 Equibase Speed Figure, her best figure ever by nine points.