2023 Ladies Turf Stakes Preview | New Year’s Eve Returns To Kentucky Downs Following Prep Win

Grade 2 winner New Year’s Eve dropped from a good fourth place in Belmont’s Grade 1 Just A Game to take the Kentucky Downs Preview Ladies Turf, earning a fees-paid spot in the mile, $1 million Castle Hill Gaming Ladies Turf.

New Year’s Eve was fourth in last year’s Dueling Grounds Oaks at 1 5/16 miles.

Chad Brown sends out Haughty, winner of last year’s Grade 2 Lake Placid at Saratoga as she seeks her first victory in four starts this year.

Hall of Famer Bill Mott is hoping that White Frost can turn one of her six career seconds (out of 11 starts) in a victory in this mile stakes for fillies and mares. 

Henrietta Topham, winner of Churchill Downs’ Grade 3 Mint Julep in June, was a very good fourth in this stakes last year.

Other contenders include Keeneland’s Grade 3 Valley View winner Sparkle Blue (who narrowly lost last year’s Grade 1 American Oaks at Santa Anita), stakes-winner Regal Realm and 2022 Kentucky Downs allowance winner Querobin Dourada.

Here’s the full field:

1 Regal Realm (124) Jonathan Thomas/Florent Geroux

2 Haughty (122) Chad Brown/Irad Ortiz

3 White Frost (122) Bill Mott/Joel Rosario

4 Querobin Dourada (122) Paulo Lobo/Joe Talamo

5 Henrietta Topham (126) Geoff Mulcahy/James Graham

6 Sparkle Blue (124) Graham Motion/Vincent Cheminaud

7 New Year’s Eve (124) Brendan Walsh/Tyler Gaffalione