Counting Stars Seeks to Confirm Her Reign Among the Fillies in Saratoga's CCA Oaks

Following her victory in the Acorn Stakes, she renews rivalries with Always a Runner, the heroine of the Kentucky Oaks

SARATOGA SPRINGS, New York (Special for Turf Diario).- Having hit peak form in the Acorn Stakes (G1), Counting Stars will attempt to prove that she is in the finest form of her career when she steps out this Saturday in the Coaching Club American Oaks (G1), a storied 1800-meter dirt contest for 3-year-old fillies offering a $500,000 purse at Saratoga.

The West Point Thoroughbreds representative enters as the horse to beat following an authoritative victory in the Acorn, contested over the same track and distance on June 5, when she defeated Always a Runner (Gun Runner) by 3 3/4 lengths—decisively reversing the outcome of the Kentucky Oaks (G1), where she had finished third behind that same rival.

Trained by dual Hall of Famer Mark Casse, the daughter of Honor A. P. appears to have hit her peak: "She is at the absolute top of her game right now. She is as good as any 3-year-old filly in the country. It is a very important G1, and I think she will be very difficult to beat," stated the trainer.

In the Acorn, jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. bided his time patiently off the pace before launching a sweeping outside rally to settle the race with authority, a strategy Casse hopes to see repeated.

"She now knows how to relax and finish. Irad knows her inside out by now. He just needs to find the right moment to make his move. I think she is doing better than ever and I expect an even better performance," he added.

Also a winner of the Fantasy Stakes (G2) at Oaklawn, Counting Stars boasts 5 victories from 9 starts, with earnings topping $1.3 million, solidifying her position as a leader of her generation.

However, the task will not be easy. Always a Runner, conditioned by Chad Brown, will look to regain the spotlight after her spectacular late charge in the Kentucky Oaks. The daughter of Gun Runner suffered the first defeat of her career in the Acorn, though her trainer believes that performance was simply the toll taken by her effort at Churchill Downs.

"There were no excuses. The winner ran a great race. My filly perhaps felt the strain of the Oaks, but she is completely recovered now and arrives in great shape," Brown commented.

The powerhouse trainer will also send out Directive, another daughter of Gun Runner who comes off a victory over older horses in an allowance race over the same track and distance at Saratoga. Undefeated in two of her three starts, the Juddmonte homebred will attempt to make a successful step up to top-level company.

"She is training wonderfully. She has required a bit more time to mature mentally, but we believe she is ready for this challenge," Brown explained.

Mark Casse will also rely on a second entrant in Measure, a daughter of Essential Quality who was runner-up to Directive last time out, and who, according to her trainer, will relish the added distance.

Among the remaining contenders, Zany stands out for Repole Stable and trainer Todd Pletcher. Following a disappointing run in the Kentucky Oaks, the daughter of American Pharoah returns off a brief layoff with a key equipment adjustment: she will race with blinkers for the first time, seeking to regain the form that saw her kick off her career with three consecutive victories, including the Demoiselle Stakes (G2) and the Suncoast Stakes.

Rounding out the field are La Rascasse (Authentic), undefeated in two starts and recent winner of the Monomoy Girl Stakes (L); Dandona (Tiz the Law), winner of the Florida Oaks (G3) on the turf; Miss Fulton Gal (Rock Your World), a dual stakes winner; and Nycon (Nyquist), who is also cross-entered in an allowance race scheduled for Friday.

With a 3-year-old filly division that has seen frequent shifts in dominance throughout the season, the Coaching Club American Oaks offers another opportunity to settle the score. Counting Stars arrives with the favorite's status, but she faces a field stacked with high-caliber rivals determined to stop the Acorn heroine from cementing her crown as number one.