TDN Kentucky Oaks Top 10 for March 6: Good Cheer Gets the Nod in East-West Battle

[Wandering Eyes]

It was a busy weekend with GI Kentucky Oaks preps being run at Santa Anita, Aqueduct and Gulfstream. None of the winners did enough to crack the top four, but they all have a license to improve. We've dropped the bottom three from last week's list–Running Away (Gun Runner), Runnin N Gunnin (Gun Runner) and White Rocks (Frosted)–and replaced them with horses who appear to have more potential.

It will be a quiet week as there is not a single stakes race for 3-year-old fillies that will be run this week.

Here's a look at the fifth installment of our Kentucky Oaks Top 10 for 2025:

1) GOOD CHEER (Medaglia d'Oro–Wedding Toast, by Street Sense) O/B-Godolphin (Ky); T-Brad Cox. Lifetime Record: MGSW, 5-5-0-0, $637,630. Last Start: Won Feb. 15 GII Fasig-Tipton Rachel Alexandra S. Kentucky Oaks Points 45. Next Start: GII Fair Grounds Oaks., FG, Mar. 15.

Might this year's Kentucky Oaks turn into a two-horse race, East vs. West? Good Cheer began her 3-year-old season training in Florida at Payson Park, but has since moved to Brad Cox's division at the Fair Grounds. She's had five career starts and has looked nothing less than invincible in each. She made a successful 2025 debut when winning GII Fasig-Tipton Rachel Alexandra despite having to overcome traffic problems. This is a very good filly. Can anybody beat her? It would seem like the most likely candidate to do so would be the Bob Baffert-trained

2) TENMA (Nyquist–Amagansett, by Tapit) O-Baoma Corp.; B-B Flay Thoroughbreds (Ky); T-Bob Baffert. Sales history: $200,000 yrl '23 KEESEP; $850,000 2yo '24 OBSAPR. Lifetime Record: GISW, 5-4-0-1, $429,000. Last Start: Won Feb. 2 GIII Fasig-Tipton Las Virgenes Stakes. Kentucky Oaks Points: 33. Next Start: GII Santa Anita Oaks, SA, Apr. 5.

Simply put, another very good filly and the best in the West. She has been beaten once, in the GII Oak Leaf S., but has put together two very strong efforts since then. Her wins in the GII Starlet S. and the GIII Fasig-Tipton Las Virgenes S. were both very impressive. She is owned by the Baoma Corp. and was bred by Bobby Flay. She sold for $850,000 at last year's OBS April sale, which is starting to look like a bargain. She returned to the work tab Sunday, breezing five furlongs in 1:02.60. Baffert hasn't won the Oaks since 2017 with Abel Tasman (Quality Road), so you can make the case that he's overdue for another winner.

Quietside | Renee Torbit/Coady Media

3) QUIETSIDE (Malibu Moon–Benner Island, by Speightstown) 'TDN Rising Star' O/B-Shortleaf Stable (Ky); T-John Ortiz. Lifetime Record: GSW & MGISP, 6-2-3-1, $552,200. Last Start: Won Feb. 23 GIII Honeybee S. Kentucky Oaks Points: 68. Next Start: GII Fantasy S., OP, Mar. 29.

A consistent filly who never runs a bad race, her win in the GIII Honeybee S. at Oaklawn proved that she's in the upper tier of 3-year-old fillies. The Honeybee had, arguably, the deepest cast of 3-year-old fillies of any race run so far this year. She is a homebred from John Ed Anthony's Shortleaf Stable, which is making a comeback after being a powerhouse in years past, and was overlooked at 10-1 in the Honeybee. That won't happen again.

4) MUHIMMA (Munnings–Princesa Carolina, by Tapit) 'TDN Rising Star' O-Shadwell Stable; B-Three Chimneys Farm, LLC (Ky); T-Brad Cox. Sales history: $700,000 yrl '23 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSW, 4-3-0-1, $319,460. Last Start: Third Feb. 23 GIII Honeybee S. Kentucky Oaks Points: 25. Next Start: GI Ashland S., Kee, Apr. 4.

Hard to know what to make of her. She was our No. 1 until running third in the Honeybee. What was particularly worrisome was that she was right there with the leaders at the top of stretch, but tired in the final furlong to be a well beaten third. The distance shouldn't have been a problem since she won the mile-and-an-eighth GII Demoiselle at Aqueduct. Did she need the race? Has she not made that all important transition from two to three? We'll find out more in the GI Ashland. But as good as Cox is with 3-year-old fillies, don't be the least bit surprised if she bounces back with a huge race.

5) MAYSAM (Game Winner–Sefani, by American Pharoah) 'TDN Rising Star' O-Michael L Petersen; B-Seclusive Farm, Chester & Anne Prince (Ky); T-Bob Baffert. Sales history: $140,000 yrl '23 FTKJUL; $500,000 2yo '24 OBSMAR. Lifetime Record: GSW, 3-2-0-0, $98,500. Last Start: WON Mar. 2 GIII Fasig-Tipton Santa Ysabel Stakes. Kentucky Oaks Points: 25. Next Start: TBD.

What a strange year she's had so far. She looked terrific breaking her maiden, winning by six lengths on Jan. 24 at Santa Anita Trainer. Bob Baffert wasted little time getting her back on track and sent her to Sunland Park for the Sunland Park Oaks. At odds of 1-10, she was sixth, beaten 18 1/4 lengths. “She got very fractious in the gate before the start,” Baffert said. “That upset her and she missed the break. She lost interest after that.”

But Baffert didn't give up on her. Coming back on two week's rest, she rebounded in a huge way to win Sunday's GIII Fasig-Tipton Santa Ysabel S. by a nose over Supa Speed (Justify). It was, however, a four-horse race.

 6) FIVE G (Vekoma–Triumphant, by Quality Road) O/B-Gatsas Stables (NY); T-George Weaver. Lifetime Record: SW & GSP, 5-2-2-0, $240,290. Last Start: Second Feb. 23 GIII Honeybee S. Kentucky Oaks Points: 25. Next Start: TBD.

This one is sneaky good. By the outstanding sire Vekoma, she looked like a grass horse after winning the Tepin Stakes at Aqueduct. But trainer George Weaver wanted to give her another try on the dirt and she responded with a nine-length win in the Cash Run Stakes at Gulfstream. Next up she ran second in the Honeybee, overcoming the 13 post. She fought hard in the stretch, but couldn't hold off Quietside. Weaver has yet to pick out her next start.

Five G | Lauren King

 

7) BALLERINA D'ORO (Medaglia d'Oro–In the Moonlight, by Tapit) O-Rodeo Creek Racing, LLC; B-Rock Ridge Thoroughbreds, LLC  (KY); T-Chad Brown. Sales history: $320,000 yrl '23 FTSAUG. Lifetime Record: MGSP, 5-1-1-1, $176,975. Last Start: Third Mar. 1 GII Davona Dale Stakes. Kentucky Oaks Points: 16.25. Next Start: TBD.

The one-mile Fasig-Tipton Davona Dale S. was not a strong prep. The winner, The Queen's M G (Thousand Words), looks like a one-turn horse and the Beyer figure for the race was just an 80. But if there is a horse that can emerge from this race and make headway down the road it is the Chad Brown-trained Ballerina d'Oro. A horse with no early speed whose best race was a second-place finish in the GII Demoiselle at a mile-and-an-eighth, the one-turn, one-mile Davona Dale was not a good fit for her. She'll try two turns and nine furlongs in her next race and improvement can be expected.

8) LA CARA (Street Sense–Cara Caterina, by Bernardini) O/B-Tracy Farmer (Ky); T-Mark Casse. Lifetime Record: GSW, 8-3-2-0, $418,520. Last Start: Second Mar. 1 GII Davona Dale Stakes. Kentucky Oaks Points: 51. Next Start: GI Ashland S., Kee, April 4.

She was second, beaten 2 3/4 lengths, in the Davona Dale, so she certainly didn't move forward. And it was no contest as the Queen's M G beat her handily. But I'm not ready to give up on this one just yet. She's had some very good races and some not so very good races and now it's trainer Mark Casse's job to get her back on track. Though she may not have beaten much, her race in the Suncoast S. was outstanding, as was her win last year in the GIII Pocahontas S. Tough horse to figure out but could be a live longshot in the Oaks.

9) SUPA SPEED (Justify–Elfin Queen, by American Pharoah) O-Flying Dutchmen Breeding and Racing LLC. B-Coteau Grove (La). T-John Sadler. Sales history: $460,000 yrl '23 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSP, 6-2-2-1, $134,100. Last Start: Second Mar. 2 GIII Santa Ysabel Stakes. Kentucky Oaks Points: 12.5. Next Start: GII Santa Anita Oaks, SA, April 5

This daughter of Justify joins the Top 10 off a strong second-place finish behind Maysam in the Santa Ysabel S. She lost by just a nose, battling Maysam every step of the way in the stretch and just couldn't get by her. She started off her career with five turf starts, but has obviously now found a home on the dirt. She's trained by John Sadler, who's never in a hurry with his young horses, so improvement can be expected.

Drexel Hill | Sarah Andrew

10) DREXEL HILL (Bolt d'Oro–Ascot Walk, by Daaher) O-Legion Racing. B-Tuscany Bloodstock. T-D Whitworth Beckman. Sales history: $20,000 wnlg '22 KEENOV; $50,000 yrl '23 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: SW, 7-2-2-1, $180,250. Last Start: WON Mar. 1 Busher Stakes. Kentucky Oaks Points: 57. Next Start: TBD.

Up-and-coming trainer Whit Beckman has three Oaks candidates in Simply Joking (Practical Joke), Her Laugh (Practical Joke) and Drexel Hill (Bolt d'Oro), but of the three, Drexel Hill looks like the “now horse.” She picked up her first stakes win when capturing the one-mile Busher Invitational last Saturday at Aqueduct despite stumbling at the start. In third at the top of the stretch, she appeared to have no chance, but a strong stretch run got her to the wire first.

“I was very pleased with her performance in the Busher,” Beckman said. “Although she was a bit flat out of the gate, she did enough in the last stages to get the win. I feel a return to two turns will benefit her greatly.”

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