Asmussen Has Solid Pair in Rachel Alexandra

Mike Rutherford's homebred Stageplay, who will be seeking her second consecutive stakes, has been installed the 7-5 morning-line favorite for the $200,000 Twinspires.com Rachel Alexandra Stakes (gr. II) Feb. 20  at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots.

Named for the brilliant 2009 Horse of the Year and champion 3-year-old filly, the 1 1/16-mile Rachel Alexandra is the ninth race on a Fair Grounds card that includes the Veterans Ford Risen Star Stakes (gr. II), and Mineshaft and Fair Grounds handicaps, both grade III. Included in the nine-horse field is West Coast invader and grade II winner Forever Darling.

Stageplay, like Rachel Alexandra, is trained by Steve Asmussen, whose solid two-ply entry in Saturday's race also includes Royal Obsession, an undefeated daughter of Tapit  .

A 3-year-old daughter of Curlin  , Stageplay has won three of four starts, including a victory over Midnight On Oconee in the $150,000 Silverbulletday Stakes at Fair Grounds Jan. 16. The filly won the Rags to Riches Stakes at Churchill Downs last fall before finishing second in that track's Golden Rod Stakes (gr. II) to conclude her juvenile campaign.

Stonestreet Stables' Royal Obsession, a $1.15 million purchase at last fall's Keeneland November breeding stock sale who often works with Stageplay in the mornings, has won both of her career attempts, including a one-mile allowance last out over the Fair Grounds surface.

Katsumi Yoshida's Forever Darling stalked the pace of two-time grade II winner Pretty N Cool before passing the favorite late in the stretch to win the Santa Ynez Stakes (gr. II) at Santa Anita Park in her 2016 debut. The 3-year-old Congrats   filly held off Code Warrior for a game half-length victory that was a stark turnaround from a disappointing eighth in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (gr. I).

"We thought she displaced in the Breeders' Cup and we found she had an ulcer on her soft palate when we did surgery on her," trainer Richard Baltas said of the filly who was a 55-1 longshot in the Juvenile Fillies coming off her maiden score.

The 122-pound highweight, Forever Darling drew post 4 and will be ridden by Eclipse Award-winning jockey Javier Castellano.

Cottonwood Stables' Midnight On Oconee, Hugh Robertson's Lovable Lyss and Mark Stansell's Shaken will try to earn their first stakes victories in the Rachel Alexandra. Larry Jones-trained Midnight On Oconee fought gamely before finishing second Stageplay in the Silverbulletday. Lovable Lyss was impressive in two consecutive Fair Grounds wins in which jockey Francisco Torres eased up on her late before faltering to fourth in the Silverbulletday in her stakes debut for her owner-trainer.

Shaken was a strong winner of her debut going six furlongs on Jan. 30 for leading conditioner Mike Stidham.