The Five Fastest Maidens, Feb. 2- Feb. 8

Wandering Eyes · 2026-02-09T21:00:09Z

5 — HIGH CAMP, GP, 2/7-6th, 7 furlongs (VIDEO)
Beyer Speed Figure-85
(c, 3, by Instagrand-Summer Silk, by Uncle Mo)
O/B-OXO Equine (Ky). T-Will Walden. J-John Velazquez.
Owner-breeder Larry Best continues to get mileage out of his former stakes star Instagrand, but you wouldn't have bet a dollar on High Camp at the quarter-pole. He was 2nd under a ride when two rivals blew past him–prematurely, as it turned out – and he dropped to 4th then swung wide and came back again to win. He's the first foal from Summer Silk, an unraced daughter of three-time GSW Summer Applause, whose foals were disappointing on the track but perhaps might still prove worthy in the breeding shed.

4 — ABSOLUTE HONOR, GP, 2/5-6th, 1 mile (VIDEO)
Beyer Speed Figure-86
(f, 4, by Nyquist-Elusive Checkers, by Quality Road)
O-Michael Ryan. B-Baldwin Bloodstock (Ky). T-Saffie Joseph Jr. J-Micah Husbands.
A one-turn mile might be her thing. After two 9-furlong races at Saratoga and an uncharacteristically poor outing at 1 1-16 miles at Keeneland, she was cut back here and ran away from 3/5 favorite Whitethorn. Ryan owns GI winning turf mare Be Your Best and has had a couple more GI winners in partnerships.

3 — TOP LEVEL, OP, 2/6-5th, 6 furlongs (VIDEO)
Beyer Speed Figure-88
(c, 3, by Upstart-Upsetter, by Strong Hope)
O-BG Stables. B-Paul Tackett Revocable Trust (Ky). T-Mark Casse. J-Javier Castellano.
There isn't much turf in his pedigree, so after solid breezes but a dull debut on grass the possibility existed of a step forward on dirt–and he took a big one, rallying with a final quarter in :24.73 to win going away. Of course, anything Casse saddles in Hot Springs deserves special consideration: he's batting 45% on 17-of-38 with a meet-high $1.87 million in earnings.

2 — POWERSHIFT, TAM, 2/7-6th, 1 mile 40 yards (VIDEO)
Beyer Speed Figure-95 (2nd)
(c, 3, by Constitution-Free Flying Soul, by Quiet American)
O-Repole Stable. B-Liberty Road Stables (Ky). T-Todd Pletcher. J-Irad Ortiz Jr.
It'll be interesting to see the path Repole and Pletcher choose for this colt, who couldn't have run better in his debut. Thirty years ago, the Kentucky Derby trail wouldn't even be a consideration, but times have changed. His two-turn 95 Beyer screams talent, plus he has pedigree and showed gameness and professionalism in a narrow defeat.

1 — EMERGING MARKET, TAM, 2/7-6th, 1 mile 40 yards (VIDEO)
Beyer Speed Figure-96
(c, 3, by Candy Ride (Arg)-Wild Empress, by Empire Maker)
O-Klaravich Stable. B-Stoneriggs Farm (Ky). T-Chad Brown. J-Flavien Prat.
The electric move he made at the quarter-pole to rush alongside Powershift was just as eye-catching visually as his 96 Beyer looks on the paper. Now the same questions apply as with the colt he outdueled. A good “comp” could be Cloud Computing–also owned by Seth Klarman–who won his debut February 11, then was 2nd in the Gotham and 3rd in the Wood before winning the Preakness. But Cloud Computing's debut Beyer was an 82 at 6 furlongs–could this colt have more raw talent?