Lady Aurelia Spoiling Ward With Her Consistency

Wesley Ward is counting down the days. 

On Oct. 22, his multiple group 1-winning filly Lady Aurelia will board a flight bound for Del Mar, and Nov. 4 the daughter of Scat Daddy will attempt to add a Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1) triumph to a resume that already boasts a Cartier Award and a couple Royal Ascot successes. As Ward watches his charge go about her morning outings without a visible dip in her form, he just wants the moment to hurry up and arrive already, because he about has the 3-year-old spitfire as good as he could ask.

"If we can keep her as sound as she is now, it will take a heck of a horse to beat her," Ward said.

Ward checked another preparatory move off the list the morning of Oct. 3 as Lady Aurelia put in a solid five-furlong work in company with Childhood over the Keeneland turf. With Ward watching from the stands, Lady Aurelia worked inside Childhood with regular exercise rider Julio Garcia up, finishing on even terms as the duo were each officially clocked in 1:02 over the firm going.

"The instructions were the other filly was going to be in front, and (Lady Aurelia) was going to come from behind and pull (Garcia) right down to the wire," Ward said. "It was a really good work, just as last week's was. We've got a couple more of these. We don't need to go any faster, (or) any slower. It was just perfect."

Lady Aurelia's brilliance has been on point throughout her seven-race career, earning her a victory over males in the Darley Prix Morny (G1) in August 2016 and again this June with a sublime win in the King's Stand Stakes (G1) at Royal Ascot. Her second-place finish in the Aug. 25 Coolmore Nunthorpe Stakes (G1) was such a narrow defeat that jockey Frankie Dettori actually celebrated at the finish, thinking he earned the headbob.

As long as the bay filly keeps her speed harnessed and her mind right, Ward figures to saddle one of the biggest favorites on the two-day Breeders' Cup card.

"She had a really good rest last winter and ... I think that's the key to everything, is she a fresh horse coming into the year and a fresh horse coming into Ascot," Ward said. "She's had ample time to recover from her unfortunate loss at York. 

"In the coming works, Julio will get her right back to where she settles right into his pinkies. That's kind of what we want. It will make (jockey) Johnny (Velazquez's) job a lot easier in the Breeders' Cup. Fitness shouldn't be an issue. If we can keep her as sound as she is today, that's my main goal, is to keep her just clicking."

Owned by Stonestreet Stables and Peter Leidel, Lady Aurelia has won five of seven starts with earnings of $814,945. She became the first American-trained horse to win a Cartier Award when she was named the European champion 2-year-old filly last season.