She Feels Pretty captures the Modesty (G3) May 3 at Churchill Downs (Courtney Snow/Past The Wire)
Christian Abdo/NYRA Press Office
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Lael Stables’ She Feels Pretty brings a four-race win streak including three of her four top-level scores into Saturday’s Grade 1, $500,000 Dunkin’ Diana, a nine-furlong inner turf test for older fillies and mares, at Saratoga Race Course.
Trained by Cherie DeVaux, the 4-year-old Karakontie chestnut won the 1 3/16-mile Grade 1, $750,000 New York presented by Rivers Casino last out on June 6 here. Under returning Hall of Fame rider John Velazquez, She Feels Pretty stalked over the yielding Mellon turf, edging Beach Bomb nearing the three-sixteenths en route to a half-length victory in a final time of 2:00.76.
“She’s doing well,” said DeVaux. “She’s trained well here since the New York, and she’s on track for this. She’s been very impressive this year.”
Impressive might be an understatement, seeing that She Feels Pretty annexed her seasonal debut by 2 1/4 lengths in a Churchill Downs nine-furlong turf record 1:45.51 in the Grade 3 Modesty in May. That triumph followed a pair of top-level scores to cap her sophomore campaign when adding blinkers in the Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup in October at Keeneland ahead of the Grade 1 American Oaks in December at Santa Anita Park.
“She has definitely been impressive,” DeVaux said. “She is proven at this distance. So, hopefully we keep on going with her winning streak.”
She Feels Pretty [post 1, John Velazquez] is 2-for-2 at nine furlongs, winning the aforementioned Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup and the Modesty. Her six-length romp in the former earned a career-best 100 Beyer Speed Figure, which she matched in the New York.
The $240,000 purchase from the 2022 Keeneland September Yearling Sale is out of the winning New York-bred More Than Ready mare Summer Sweet – a half-sister to graded stakes-placed Adirondack Summer and stakes-winner Summer Breezing. She has banked in excess of $1.7 million via a perfect on-the-board 10-7-1-2 record with wins ranging from 5 1/2 furlongs to 1 1/4 miles.
The five-time Eclipse Award and record nine-time Diana-winning trainer Chad Brown will provide strong opposition as he sends out Grade 1-winner Dynamic Pricing [post 5, Dylan Davis] and multiple Grade/Group 1-placed Excellent Truth [post 4, Flavien Prat].
The Mechanicville, N.Y. native’s past scores include Zagora [2011], Dacita [2016], Lady Eli [2017], Sistercharlie [2018-19], Rushing Fall [2020], In Italian [2022] and Whitebeam [2023-24].
Klaravich Stables’ Irish-bred Dynamic Pricing stretches out in distance from a closing three-quarter-length victory in the one-mile Grade 1 Just a Game presented by Resolute Racing on June 6 here. The 4-year-old Night of Thunder bay traveled in 8th-of-9 early under Dylan Davis and showed a tremendous kick to top Excellent Truth in a final time of 1:38.77.
The performance over the yielding turf earned a career-best 100 Beyer, improving from a 93 in her previous late-footed win in the 1 1/16-mile Grade 3 Beaugay in May at Belmont at the Big A.
Brown agreed Dynamic Pricing appreciated the cut in the ground.
“I’d say that is very accurate,” said Brown. “Let’s see how the turf is. She’s really improved this year. She got a nice break after last year. She really grew up and she’s come back a much more focused horse.”
Dynamic Pricing is 2-for-2 this year with an overall 9-4-0-3 record with $772,125 in earnings, including a closing score in last May’s 1 1/16-mile Grade 2 Edgewood on yielding green at Churchill.
Resolute Racing’s Irish-bred Excellent Truth has been second in her pair of efforts for current connections, including the Just a Game after a half-length defeat to returning rival Choisya in the Grade 1 Jenny Wiley going 1 1/16 miles in April at Keeneland.
Piloted by Flavien Prat in both efforts, the 5-year-old Cotai Glory dark bay traveled in sixth position early and rallied to miss narrowly. In the Jenny Wiley, Excellent Truth was forced to steady late during a fierce stretch duel with her victorious returning foe, but still earned a career-best 100 Beyer in defeat.
“In both of her starts for me, she has been unlucky,” Brown said. “At Keeneland, she had a rough trip in the stretch and I’d say she is due for a cleaner trip this time around. At least, I hope so. Both Excellent Truth and Dynamic Pricing are on target for this, they’ve come out of their works well.”
Excellent Truth flexed her class with a good second in last July’s Group 1 Prix Rothschild and a win in the Listed Prix Goldikova – both over Deauville’s straight mile for previous conditioner Mauricio Delcher-Sanchez. A Group 3 winner at three, she boasts a 13-4-5-1 career ledger with $402,898 in earnings.
Trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. sends out Michael Ryan’s Irish-bred Be Your Best [post 6, Irad Ortiz, Jr.], a last-out 2 3/4-length gate-to-wire winner of the nine-furlong Grade 1 Gamely in May at Santa Anita.
The millionaire 5-year-old Muhaarar bay has won 4-of-6 efforts for Joseph, Jr. since transferring from trainer Horacio De Paz in October 2024, taking the 11-furlong Grade 3 Long Island at Aqueduct Racetrack, and Gulfstream Park’s one-mile Grade 3 Suwannee River and 1 1/16-mile Grade 2 Pegasus World Cup Filly and Mare Turf Invitational.
“She is a good workhorse, loves her job, and getting that Grade 1 win on her resume was huge,” said Joseph, Jr. “The nine furlongs is good. She is unique in the sense that she has enough speed to go a mile, and enough stamina to go longer. Her ability to have that variation of distance is unique, but I feel that nine furlongs is perfect for her. It tests both speed and stamina.”
With a prominent eighth versus returning foes in the Jenny Wiley before the Gamely, Be Your Best may be colder on the board than her returning rivals. Joseph, Jr. launched some memorable upsets last year, including with 44-1 The Queens M G in the Listed Schuylerville here and 19-1 Soul of an Angel in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint at Del Mar.
“The Diana is a step up in class again,” said Joseph, Jr. “We feel that if she gets firm turf, it is within her reach. The feeling is that she needs fast, firm ground.”
Rabbah Bloodstock’s British-bred Choisya [post 2, Luis Saez] did not run back to her 101 Beyer from the Wiley when finishing seventh in the Just a Game. Trained by Simon Crisford, the 5-year-old Night of Thunder chestnut captured the Group 2 Cape Verdi in January and Group 2 Balanchine in February in Dubai before heading across the pond.
In the Just a Game, Choisya stalked three-wide, making her move in the turn and drawing close to the pacesetting Kehoe Beach at the top of the lane before tiring. She has remained at the Spa since, posting a sharp 46.60-second half-mile breeze over the Oklahoma training turf on Independence Day.
Rounding out the field is the Richard Baltas-trained Grade 1-placed Lady Claypoole [post 3, Joel Rosario], the closing runner-up to Be Your Best in the Gamely last out.
The Dunkin’ Diana is slated as Race 11 on Saturday’s 12-race card which also features the Grade 2, $200,000 Bowling Green in Race 8. First post is 12:35 p.m. Eastern.
