Dancing Rags, Sweet Loretta square off in Beaumont

Apr 07, 2017 Jennifer Caldwell/Brisnet.com

The $150,000 Beaumont Stakes (G3) at Keeneland on Sunday is the penultimate race in the Road to the Kentucky Oaks series of points races, and features a pair of Grade 1-winning fillies making their three-year-old bows.

Though it’s taking place in the latter portion of the Road to the Kentucky Oaks series, the seven-furlong Beaumont is only worth 10-4-2-1 points to the respective top four runners.

Looking for the winner’s circle in the contest on Sunday will be Dancing Rags and Sweet Loretta, who are both exiting unplaced efforts in last November’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) at Santa Anita Park.

Dancing Rags did the better of the pair, finishing eighth, and entered that event off a one-length victory in the Alcibiades Stakes (G1) going 1 1/16 miles at Keeneland last October. Angel Cruz has been aboard the Graham Motion trainee for all four of her career starts and retains the mount Sunday.

Sweet Loretta did not have a good time in the Breeders’ Cup, bumping and stumbling at the start before eventually winding up next-to-last in 11th for trainer Todd Pletcher. The Tapit filly was unbeaten before that, including a 5 3/4-length dead-heat win in the Spinaway Stakes (G1) going seven furlongs at Saratoga in early September. Javier Castellano has the return call here.

My Miss Chiff and Sine Wave each bring undefeated two-for-two marks into the Beaumont. The former scored in her pair by a combined 13 3/4 lengths at Fair Grounds for trainer Al Stall Jr. while Ben Perkins Jr. sent out the latter to post a head win at Laurel Park and a 7 3/4-length triumph at Parx Racing. Regular rider Mitchell Murrill will be aboard My Miss Chiff while Florent Geroux will be holding Sine Wave’s reins.

Rounding out the Beaumont field are Promises Broken, sixth in the Cincinnati Trophy Stakes last out; Treble, a neck second against Oaklawn allowance rivals on March 24; and Laney, who is riding a two-for-two win streak into her stakes bow.