Churchill Downs Preview | Rags To Riches Stakes 2023: V V’s Dream Leads Early Oaks Prep

MJM Racing and Magdalena Racing’s Grade III-winning V V’s Dream headlines a field of seven 2-year-old fillies that entered Sunday’s 11th running of the $200,000 Rags to Riches Stakes (Listed) at Churchill Downs.

Run at 1 1/16 miles, the Rags to Riches will award the top five finishers points on a 10-5-3-2-1 scale for the Road to the Kentucky Oaks.

Sunday’s spectacular 11-race program will get underway at 1 p.m. (all times Eastern) and feature all 2-year-old races. Dubbed as “Stars of Tomorrow I,” the Rags to Riches field will go to post at 4:33 p.m. in Race 8. Two races later is the $200,000 Street Sense (GIII), the open-company counterpart, to the Rags to Riches.

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V V’s Dream was possible to contest the Nov. 3 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (Grade I) but trainer Kenny McPeek opted to keep the daughter of Mitole at her Churchill Downs base for the Rags to Riches.

V V’s Dream has yet to finish worse than second in her young career. Three weeks ago, the gray filly finished second to Candied in the Alcibiades Stakes (GI) at Keeneland. Prior to the Alcibiades, V V’s Dream dominated the Pocahontas (GIII) at Churchill Downs by 8 ¾ lengths. Jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. will once again pilot V V’s Dream and the duo will break from post No. 3.

The Rags to Riches field also includes two fillies trained by multiple Longines Kentucky Oaks (GI) winner Brad Cox: Calumet Farm’s Gin Gin and Gary and Mary West’s West Sunset. Cox used the Rags to Riches in 2017 as a prep for Monomoy Girl who went on to win the 2018 Longines Kentucky Oaks.

Here is the complete Rags to the Riches field in order of post position (with jockey and trainer):

1. Candy Landy (Tyler Gaffalione, Rusty Arnold II)
2. Floored (Luis Saez, Vicki Oliver)
3. V V’s Dream (Hernandez, McPeek)
4. West Sunset (Flavien Prat, Cox)
5. Shimmering Allure (Julien Leparoux, McPeek)
6. Twirling Good Time (Rafael Bejarano, Phil Bauer)
7. Gin Gin (Florent Geroux, Cox)