Key of Life wins Beaumont Stakes at Keeneland in final Kentucky Oaks qualifying race
After Saturday marked the end of the Road to the Kentucky Derby, Sunday signified the same for the Road to the Kentucky Oaks.
The final qualifying points race toward the Oaks took place late Sunday afternoon at Keeneland with the 38th running of the Grade 2, $400,000 Beaumont Stakes presented by Keeneland Select.
The Beaumont was the last of 32 qualifying points races toward the Oaks, and offered points on a 10-4-3-2-1 scale for the top-five finishers in the race.
Unlike in past editions though, the Beaumont made no material difference in the Kentucky Oaks qualification standings: The Oaks is limited to the top 14 points earners that pass the entry box.
None of the seven horses that ran in Sunday’s Beaumont could have moved closer than 30th in the qualification standings with a win.
Key of Life, trained by Brad Cox and ridden by Flavien Prat, won the Beaumont, which was run on the Beard Course of 7 furlongs, 184 feet on Keeneland’s dirt track.
Key of Life was a massive 2-5 favorite in the race, which she won in wire-to-wire fashion by a neck over Chad Brown-trained Interpolate in second.
“She’s very fast away from (the gate) and she’s obviously got a lot of speed,” Cox said. “She likes Keeneland a lot. I like Keeneland and she likes Keeneland; she’s three-for-three here.”
It’s the second consecutive victory in the Beaumont for Cox and Prat, who combined to win the 2022 edition of the race with Matareya.
Kentucky Oaks field now set
While the Beaumont ultimately didn’t factor into the equation, the Kentucky Oaks qualifying leaderboard is now set in stone.
The top 14 points earners that pass the entry box will race on Friday, May 5, at Churchill Downs in Louisville in what is considered this country’s most lucrative race for 3-year old fillies.
Held the day before the Kentucky Derby, the Kentucky Oaks is a Grade 1 stakes race worth $1.25 million.
Here’s a quick look at the horses that currently find themselves inside the cutoff for the Oaks field, and the fillies who will need a bit of help to make the starting gate.
▪ Wet Paint, first with 170 qualifying points.
Trainer: Brad Cox.
Jockey: Flavien Prat.
Notes: Wet Paint is a perfect 3-for-3 so far in 2023, with the victories all coming at Oaklawn Park in Arkansas. All three wins came in stakes races, with two of them classified as Grade 3 contests.
▪ Affirmative Lady, second with 110 qualifying points.
Trainer: Graham Motion.
Jockey: Luis Saez.
Notes: Both of her career victories came earlier this year, with the most impressive result being a triumph in the Grade 2 Gulfstream Park Oaks in Florida.
▪ Defining Purpose, third with 107 qualifying points.
Trainer: Kenny McPeek.
Jockey: Brian Hernandez Jr.
Notes: Defining Purpose was one of the big winners from the opening weekend of the Spring Meet at Keeneland, as she won the Grade 1 Central Bank Ashland Stakes.
▪ Pretty Mischievous, fourth with 103 qualifying points.
Trainer: Brendan Walsh.
Jockey: Brian Hernandez Jr.
Notes: After her first three races all came at Churchill Downs (with two wins followed by a third-place trip), Pretty Mischievous moved to Fair Grounds in Louisiana for her last three races, which produced two wins and a second-place finish.
▪ Southlawn, fifth with 100 qualifying points.
Trainer: Norm Casse.
Jockey: Reylu Gutierrez.
Notes: Southlawn won the Grade 2 Fair Grounds Oaks in Louisiana in March but has disappointed in her career when racing at Churchill Downs: Three starts at the Louisville track have yielded a best finish of fifth.
▪ Promiseher America, sixth with 100 qualifying points.
Trainer: Raymond Handal.
Jockey: Jorge A. Vargas Jr.
Notes: All four career starts have come at Aqueduct in New York, including her most recent win in the Grade 3 Gazelle Stakes last week.
▪ Shidabhuti, seventh with 80 qualifying points.
Trainer: Chad Brown.
Jockey: Manuel Franco.
Notes: Was 3-for-3 in her racing career before coming in third in the Grade 3 Gazelle Stakes last week at Aqueduct in New York.
▪ And Tell Me Nolies, eighth with 70 qualifying points.
Trainer: Peter Miller.
Jockey: Ramon A. Vazquez.
Notes: Hasn’t won in her last three starts, but that stretch has included two straight runner-up finishes in graded stakes races at Santa Anita in California. She finished eighth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies at Keeneland last fall.
▪ Botanical, ninth with 70 qualifying points.
Trainer: Brad Cox.
Jockey: Chris Landeros.
Notes: All six of her career starts have come in the commonwealth, and Botanical has won four in a row dating back to last November. All of these wins have come at Turfway Park in Florence.
▪ Dorth Vader, 10th with 70 qualifying points.
Trainer: Michael Yates.
Jockey: Miguel Angel Vasquez.
Notes: All eight past starts have come in Florida, where Dorth Vader won a Grade 2 stakes in March and came in fourth in the Grade 2 Gulfstream Park Oaks earlier this month.
▪ Gambling Girl, 11th with 61 qualifying points.
Trainer: Todd Pletcher.
Jockey: Jose Ortiz.
Notes: Hasn’t won in her last five starts, but she finished second in the Grade 3 Gazelle Stakes last week in New York.
▪ The Alys Look, 12th with 54 qualifying points.
Trainer: Brad Cox.
Jockey: Luis Saez.
Notes: After initial maiden special weight races at Keeneland and Churchill Downs, The Alys Look rounded into form at Fair Grounds in Louisiana: This included a third-place finish in the Grade 2 Fair Grounds Oaks last month.
▪ Flying Connection, 13th with 50 qualifying points.
Trainer: Todd Fincher.
Jockey: Alfredo J. Juarez Jr.
Notes: Has won four of seven career starts but has never raced in a graded stakes before.
▪ Mimi Kakushi, 14th with 50 qualifying points.
Trainer: Salem Bin Ghadayer.
Jockey: Mickaël Barzalona.
Notes: Winner of the Grade 3 UAE Oaks at Meydan Racecourse.
The horses ranked 15th and below on the Kentucky Oaks qualifying points leaderboard would need horses above them in the standings to opt out of the race in order to make the starting gate.
▪ Wonder Wheel, 15th with 48 qualifying points.
Trainer: Mark Casse.
Jockey: Tyler Gaffalione.
Notes: Finished a disappointing sixth in the Grade 1 Central Bank Ashland Stakes on the opening weekend of the Spring Meet at Keeneland. Previously won both the Grade 1 Darley Alcibiades Stakes and the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies at Keeneland last fall.
▪ Taxed, 16th with 48 qualifying points.
Trainer: Randy Morse.
Jockey: Rafael Bejarano.
Notes: Only career win in seven starts came in a maiden claiming race last November at Churchill Downs.
▪ Julia Shining, 17th with 46 qualifying points.
Trainer: Todd Pletcher.
Jockey: Luis Saez.
Notes: Finished in third place in the Grade 1 Central Bank Ashland Stakes on the opening weekend of the Spring Meet at Keeneland.
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