Handicapper's Corner: 2023 Beverly D. Stakes (G1)

 Seven vie in Beverly D. Stakes

By: Rowan Ward, Blinkers-Off

Older turf routers take the spotlight Saturday afternoon at Colonial Downs for the Beverly D. Stakes (G1).

Traditionally a part of the Arlington Million day card at Arlington Park, the race is named after Beverly Duchossois, the late wife of Richard Duchossois, the late chairman of Arlington Park. 

The race was shortened to 1 1/8 miles and run at Churchill Downs last year after its original home closed. Now, it is back to its traditional 1 3/16-mile distance and run along with the Arlington Million and the Secretariat Stakes at Colonial.

The race drew seven horses to compete for a $500,000 purse, as well as a berth to the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf. Two Beverly D. winners have gone on to win that Breeders’ Cup race: Dank (2013) and Sistercharlie (2018). Sistercharlie also has the distinction of being the only horse to win this race twice, as she won the Beverly D. in 2019 as well for trainer Chad Brown, who runs a pair in 2023.

Let’s review the field:

Didia snapped a seven-win streak in the New York (G1) on June 9, but still came out of the race looking good. Despite being roiled up before the race she finished third beaten only ¾ length by Marketsegmentation: and ahead of McKulick, who came back to upset War Like Goddess in the Glens Falls (G2) in her next start. The slight cutback in distance for the Beverly D. should help her case, as should her affinity for the Colonial course and her ability to run winning races from almost anywhere in the pack, with any kind of pace scenario ahead of her, even a slow one.  That helps, since the pace won’t be fast in the Beverly D.

The only horse in the field who sometimes shows a propensity to go for the lead is Fev Rover. Mired on the rail, she may even be forced to go...but she is the best of the front-end brigade, especially after Gina Romantica prompted a slow pace and then folded in the Eatontown (G3) last out. Fev Rover comes out of a close third behind Whitebeam and In Italian, made all the more impressive by the fact that she attended a sharp pace and stayed on so well against company of that class. The big question for her is distance, since she has yet to flash her best past nine furlongs, but this is the perfect scenario for Fev Rover to find a good race at this kind of trip.

Trainer Chad Brown always comes to spots like this ready. He sends out both Gina Romantica and longer-priced Rocky Sky this year, and it’s the “B” entry who appeals more. Rocky Sky has not raced since last November, but she ran one of her better races ever last March in the Hillsborough, when she came back from a seven-month spell. She can run a good race from close to the pace, and even ran a good second last out in the Long Island when she had to make up some ground early into a slow pace after a less-than-perfect start. All this adds up to a horse who has a shot...at a surprisingly good price, given her trainer’s dominance not only in this race but also this division.

Selections:

#5 Didia (3/1)

#1 Fev Rover (2/1)

#7 Rocky Sky (6/1)

Longshot: #2 Jan’s Girl (12/1) has to take a serious step forward, since she has yet to face stakes company tougher than a minor midsummer turf stakes at Gulfstream last year, where she finished third while still a maiden. 

But this four-year-old has blossomed in her last three starts. She broke her maiden three pack, then clicked off her N1X, both on the Tapeta at Gulfstream, before stepping up to clear her N2X over the Colonial Downs lawn on July 15. 

She needs to run even better against these Grade 1 foes, of course, but there are a few signals that she can. In terms of pace, she is tractable enough to set up close enough to the early running not to be outpaced. 

And trainer Laura Cazares is both under-the-radar and choosy where she runs her horses in graded races. This suggests good reasoning behind Jan’s Girl taking a shot here, and a chance she can run better than your average longest shot on the board.