{"id":103895,"date":"2019-04-29T20:34:36","date_gmt":"2019-04-30T03:34:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=103895"},"modified":"2019-04-29T20:34:36","modified_gmt":"2019-04-30T03:34:36","slug":"favorite-bellafina-lands-ideal-starting-gate-in-fridays-kentucky-oaks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/favorite-bellafina-lands-ideal-starting-gate-in-fridays-kentucky-oaks\/","title":{"rendered":"Favorite Bellafina Lands Ideal Starting Gate in Friday’s Kentucky Oaks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bellafina drew the fourth position for Friday\u2019s Kentucky Oaks and handicappers at Churchill Downs installed her at 2-1 odds for the Grade I stakes for 3-year-old fillies.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Bellafina, shown here winning the Las Virgenes Stakes at Santa Anita in February, is the 2-1 morning line favorite for Friday’s Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs. The filly has won six of her last seven races. (Image: Santa Anita Park)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Even before landing such a prime starting spot, the Simon Callaghan-trained horse was likely to be the big favorite anyway coming out of Monday\u2019s pill pull to determine how the 14 starters for the Oaks would line up. She\u2019s won six of her last seven races, including the April 6 Santa Anita Oaks by 5-1\/4 lengths on April 6.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a good post for her. I\u2019m fine with it,\u201d Callaghan told reporters after the draw. \u201cI see there\u2019s a fair amount of speed outside us and I\u2019m thinking the race should set up nicely. She\u2019s very versatile and doesn\u2019t need the lead in order to win. I think she\u2019ll find a place where she\u2019s comfortable.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The filly\u2019s only blemish during her recent streak incidentally came at Churchill Downs<\/a> in the Breeders\u2019 Cup Juvenile Fillies, where she finished fourth after a less than perfect start.<\/p>\n

Bellafina\u2019s Competition<\/h2>\n

Whereas the favorite landed an inside position, her main competition will need to come from the outside gates to win.<\/p>\n

Champagne Anyone got the 10th gate. Trained by Ian Wilkes, the filly comes off a half-length win in the Gulfstream Park Oaks on March 30. Ridden by Chris Landeros, her morning line odds were set at 6-1.<\/p>\n

Also at 6-1 is Restless Rider, who will start from the far outside in the No. 14 gate. The Kenny McPeek-trained filly has finished first or second in all seven starts. While she has not won since last October, she has raced four times at Churchill Downs, finishing second in both the Breeders\u2019 Cup Juvenile Fillies and the Golden Rod Stakes. Her last race came at Keeneland on April 6 in the Ashland Stakes<\/p>\n

At 8-1 are a pair of hit-or-miss horses.<\/p>\n

Jaywalk won the Breeders\u2019 Cup Juvenile Fillies, part of a four-race win streak for the John Servis-trained horse. However, she\u2019s raced twice in 2019 and finished no better than third, which she did in the Ashland. Jaywalk will race from the No. 7 gate.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cShe won from that post here in November (in the Breeders’ Cup), so I\u2019m fine with it,\u201d Servis said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Meanwhile, Serengeti Express has won three of her past five races, including two Grade 2 stakes wins, but the Tom Amoss-trained filly has finished seventh in the other two. She’ll race from the No. 13 gate.<\/p>\n

Among the long shots in the field include Flor de La Mar at 20-1. Trained by Bob Baffert, the filly is owned by Godolphin Stables. Earlier this month, human rights activists sought to keep the filly from racing in the Oaks<\/a> and ban Sheikh Muhammad, Godolphin\u2019s owner, from attending. Activists allege the Dubai ruler kidnapped his adult daughter, preventing her from immigrating to the United States.<\/p>\n

The Field<\/h2>\n

After the post positions were finalized, Churchill Downs handicapper Mike Battaglia set morning line odds for each horse, including two also-eligibles, who may end up running if one of the 14 original entries withdraw.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how they will lineup. Post time is scheduled for 6:12 pm ET Friday.<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Out for a Spin (Jockey: Irad Ortiz Jr.) Morning line odds: 15-1<\/li>\n
  2. Chocolate Kisses (Julien Leparoux) 20-1<\/li>\n
  3. Lady Apple (Ricardo Santana Jr.) 20-1<\/li>\n
  4. Bellafina (Flavien Prat) 2-1<\/li>\n
  5. Flor de La Mar (Joel Rosario) 20-1<\/li>\n
  6. Positive Spirit (Manny Franco) 30-1<\/li>\n
  7. Jaywalk (Javier Castellano) 8-1<\/li>\n
  8. Motion Emotion (Mike Smith) 15-1<\/li>\n
  9. Liora (Channing Hill) 20-1<\/li>\n
  10. Champagne Anyone (Chris Landeros) 6-1<\/li>\n
  11. Jeltrin (Luis Saez) 15-1<\/li>\n
  12. Street Band (Sophie Doyle) 15-1<\/li>\n
  13. Serengeti Express (Jose Ortiz) 8-1<\/li>\n
  14. Restless Rider (Brian Hernandez Jr.) 6-1<\/li>\n
  15. *Dunbar Road (Jose Ortiz) 5-1<\/li>\n
  16. *Point of Honor (John Velazquez) 30-1
    \n*=Also Eligible<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The race will be broadcast on NBC Sports Network.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Bellafina drew the fourth position for Friday\u2019s Kentucky Oaks and handicappers at Churchill Downs installed her at 2-1 odds for the Grade I stakes for 3-year-old fillies. Even before landing such a prime starting spot, the Simon Callaghan-trained horse was likely to be the big favorite anyway coming out of Monday\u2019s pill pull to determine […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":45,"featured_media":103893,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14577,1074],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nFavorite Bellafina Lands Ideal Starting Gate in Friday's Kentucky Oaks<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Bellafina drew the No. 4 gate in Friday's Kentucky Oaks, one of the top races for fillies. 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Having won six of her last seven races, she received odds of 2-1.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/favorite-bellafina-lands-ideal-starting-gate-in-fridays-kentucky-oaks\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Casino.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Casino.OrgNews\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-04-30T03:34:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Bellafina.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"731\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Steve Bittenbender\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Casino_Org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Casino_Org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Steve Bittenbender\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/favorite-bellafina-lands-ideal-starting-gate-in-fridays-kentucky-oaks\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/favorite-bellafina-lands-ideal-starting-gate-in-fridays-kentucky-oaks\/\",\"name\":\"Favorite Bellafina Lands Ideal Starting Gate in Friday's Kentucky Oaks\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/favorite-bellafina-lands-ideal-starting-gate-in-fridays-kentucky-oaks\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/favorite-bellafina-lands-ideal-starting-gate-in-fridays-kentucky-oaks\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Bellafina.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-04-30T03:34:36+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-04-30T03:34:36+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/eb30e765d812fc9b38b333f8d13068b2\"},\"description\":\"Bellafina drew the No. 4 gate in Friday's Kentucky Oaks, one of the top races for fillies. 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