Lady Shipman Returns to U.S. In License Fee

Seven-time stakes winner Lady Shipman will look to build on her impressive resume when she headlines a field of seven in the $100,000 License Fee Stakes May 1 at Belmont Park.

The 4-year-old daughter of Midshipman   has posted nine wins in 14 starts and has finished in the money in all but one race, which came last time out with a seventh-place showing inthe $1 million Al Quoz Sprint (UAE-I) March 26 at Meydan.

The Kiaran McLaughlin-trained filly drew post 7 and is the 3-5 favorite in the six-furlong turf race. She has worked out twice at Belmont this month, including a four-furlong breeze on the training track in :49.11 April 24.

"She's done very well since she came back from Dubai, and has gotten better and better as far as conditioning and fitness since she's been here," said Joe Lee, assistant to McLaughlin. "She's experienced and now, having raced at a few different tracks, I don't think it matters too much to her (where she races). There's a big change fitness-wise from when she got here. She's blossomed from her first breeze here."

Shrinking Violet will be making her second start of the year after a second-place showing in the Monrovia Stakes (gr. IIT) at Santa Anita Park Jan. 3 for trainer Wesley Ward. Ward has prepared the 6-year-old mare with eight workouts since the start of March. Her last three workouts were on turf at Keeneland to help mount a strong challenge to Lady Shipman, who he called one of the best turf sprinters in the country.

Shrinking Violet, the 5-1 program choice, will depart from post 3 and will be ridden by Joel Rosario, who teamed up with her for a third-place showing in The Very One Stakes at Pimlico Race Course last May.

"She's been training super at Keeneland and looks ready for the race," Ward said. "She needed a little bit of a freshening up from her last summer of racing. She's coming off a good race at Santa Anita and we're taking on perhaps the best turf sprinter now in the country in this spot. If you do take her on, you'd probably want to do so at this time right now with her coming back from Dubai, so we'll see how it goes."

Zindaya, 4-1 on the morning line, will be making her 2016 debut at a venue that has been kind to her. Three of her four  victories have come at Belmont , including a win in the seven-furlong Intercontinental on the turf June 4. The dark bay filly will leave from the rail under jockey Javier Castellano.