Look to Plum Pretty's Female Family for Clues to her Kentucky Oaks Win

Plum Pretty holds off St. John's River to win the Kentucky Oaks
Photo: Reed Palmer Photography/Churchill Downs

A daughter of Medaglia D'Oro captured the Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs for the second time in three years earlier today, as Peachtree Stable's Plum Pretty eked out a front-running victory in the prestigious mile and an eighth filly classic, which is often a stepping stone to divisional honors.

In 2009, Medaglia D'Oro's eventual Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra had announced herself as something truly special when she trounced the Oaks field by more than 20 lengths, without ever being asked to really run.

It's too soon to tell whether Plum Pretty will follow in Rachel Alexandra's footsteps, but the Bob Baffert trainee has accomplished enough during the last two months to write her own name in the history books.  She came to the Oaks off a freakish 25-length tour-de-force performance in the mile and a sixteenth Sunland Park Oaks in late March, one which the betting public at Churchill mostly dismissed because Sunland Park isn't considered to be quite in the same league as the historic Louisville track.

Until today, the bay filly's bona fides weren't taken very seriously, in spite of her respectable third-place finishes in two graded stakes at Santa Anita:  the Grade II Santa Ynez, and the Grade I Las Virgenes, in which she lost to top three-year-old females Zazu and Turbulent Descent.  Zazu could do no better than third today, behind a furiously closing St. John's River, who, though still eligible for a "non-winners of two" condition race, almost caught Plum Pretty at the wire.

Plum Pretty has never been out of the money in her five career starts, and with her win in the Oaks, her earnings have soared to $761,200.  And her pedigree supplies ample evidence that she's no fluke.  Plum Pretty is just the latest in a string of top-notch fillies sired by El Prado (Ire)'s son, Medaglia D'Oro, whose daughters include Acorn-G1 winners Champagne D'Oro and Gabby's Golden Gal.  She is bred along the same cross (Medaglia D'Oro-Seattle Slew) as Al Khali (Capote), a multiple graded stakes-winning turf specialist who has earned over $500,000.

Plum Pretty is the fifth foal out of the unplaced A. P. Indy mare, Liszy, who was sold for $170,000 at the 2008 Keeneland January sale, carrying the future Oaks winner.  Liszy had previously produced fillies by More Than Ready in 2006 and 2007.

Initially offered at the 2009 Saratoga Select Yearling Sale, Plum Pretty attracted a bid of $100,000, but failed to meet her reserve.  She was eventually purchased for $130,000 by her current owner, John Fort, at last year's OBS March Two-Year-Olds-in-Training sale, and when she arrived at Bob Baffert's barn, the Hall of Fame trainer confessed that his first impulse was to nickname her, "Plum Ugly."  But no more.

Plum Pretty's second dam is the stakes-winning Private Account mare, Silent Account, who won the Alcibiades-G2 at Keeneland and produced the stakes winner and sire Gold Case.  She descends from the two-time Champion Filly, Alcibiades, who captured the Kentucky Oaks in 1930, and went on to exert her considerable influence in the breeding shed, too, producing Champion Two-Year-Old Menow (sire of Tom Fool).  This is also the family of Horse of the Year and Chef-de-Race Sir Ivor.

Interestingly, Plum Pretty was produced by what is often called the "Rasmussen Factor," a pattern of inbreeding to superior female families through different individuals.  Her distant crosses of Alcibiades come not only through her own female lineage, but through her grandsire, El Prado (Ire), who is out of Lady Capulet, by Sir Ivor, and whose second dam, Cap and Bells, is by Tom Fool.

May Day Rose becomes Rockport Harbor's first graded stakes winner

May Day Rose wins the Santa Ysabel Stakes-G3
Photo: Benoit Photos/Santa Anita

May Day Rose may have beaten only two rivals in Sunday's Santa Ysabel Stakes-G3, but her winning effort elevated the stock of her young sire, Rockport Harbor, when she was crowned as his first graded stakes winner.

The three-year-old bay filly never looked threatened at any point in the mile and a sixteenth contest over Santa Anita's new dirt surface, as she easily put away Bluegrass Cat's daughter, Bluegrass Chatter, and Scarlet Starlet, by up-and-coming A. P. Indy sire, Congrats.  May Day Rose has now won three of her five career starts and earned $184,555.  Even to a casual observer, she just exudes quality.

A registered Florida-bred born on Valentine's Day, May Day Rose was plucked from the OBS June Sale for $220,000 by trainer Bob Baffert, who now conditions her for Kaleem Shah.  She broke her maiden in a five-and-a-half-furlong maiden special weight test at Del Mar in her second start, over Labor Day weekend, and went on to capture the mile and a sixteenth Sharp Cat Stakes at Hollywood in early November.  Baffert stepped her right up into Grade I company in the Hollywood Starlet a month later, where she finished a respectable fourth to Turbulent Descent.

May Day Rose is the third winner from the unraced May Day Bluff (by Danzig's son, Pine Bluff), who previously produced May Day Vow (by Broken Vow), a stakes winner of $166,285 on the New York circuit.  Her third dam is the high-class Hoist the Flag mare, May Day Eighty, who won the Grade I Delaware Handicap.

A good-looking grey son of Unbridled's Song, Rockport Harbor raced with distinction in the colors of Rick Porter's Fox Hill Farm, and was considered to be an exciting Derby hopeful until his foot right hind foot was badly injured during the running of the nine-furlong Remsen-G2, which capped off his undefeated four-for-four two-year-old season.  As reported on the Farm's website, "Rocky won in a fantastic time (1:48.88) for the prestigious stakes and made his way to the winner's circle.  It was at this time that it was noticed that Rocky had been stepped on, as his right hind foot gushed blood."

Rockport Harbor was put away to allow his foot to heal, and didn't win again until he captured the Essex Handicap-G3 as a four-year-old.  He seemed on the way back to his old form, but subsequently re-injured the same foot in the Razorback Handicap-G3 a month later.  He was retired to Darley Stud, where he stood for $20,000 in 2007, the year May Day Rose was conceived.  Rockport Harbor's fee for 2011 is $12,500, which looks like a bargain now.

Interestingly, both of Rockport Harbor's first two stakes winners are out of mares by sons of Danzig.  His colt, Bear's Future, who won the seven-furlong Swynford Stakes at Woodbine, is a maternal grandson of Belong to Me.  Like May Day Rose, he is a complete outcross in his first five generations.