Head to Head: See opposing outlooks on the Delaware Oaks

Laurie

Ashley

1. Regaled (15-1)

After four starts in quick succession, Regaled ran out of
oats in her last start against optional claimers. The one run closer was 16
lengths out of it at the start and closed late to finish fourth, beating two
rivals. Conditioned by Sam Davis, Regaled’s Brisnet speed ratings hover in
the mid-80s. The one-paced closer does her best work skimming the rail, and
her late-pace figures are some of the best in the Delaware Oaks. However, the
flaw is that Forest Boyce rides Regaled like she’s Zenyatta, taking her from
12 to 16 lengths off the pace. This tactic didn’t work in the last start when
the pace was faster than her three previous outings, and she was left with
too much to do. Pass.

Trained by Samuel Davis, Regaled ships in from Maryland,
where she’s put together a 5: 2-0-0 record. She enters off a fourth-place effort
in a lower-level optional claimer. The upside to this filly is that her
Equibase speed figures have improved with each start, and she’s 3: 2-0-0 at
the 1 1/16-mile distance. On the other hand, Davis and jockey Forest Boyce
have been on a colt streak over the last month. Davis has no graded stakes
wins to his name and hasn’t even had a graded stakes starter in the last five
years, per Race Lens. Pass.

2. Call Another
Play (8-1)

Call Another Play drafted behind the speed in the 1 1/8
mile Black Eyed Susan (G3), faced a wall of horses at the top of the stretch,
and ran evenly to the finish line while between horses, missing the photo for
second by a neck. The Michael Trombetta trainee earned a career-best 90 Equibase speed
rating, and her late-pace figure is second highest in the field at 91. Contender.

Trained by Michael Trombetta, Call Another Play enters
off a third place finish in the Black-Eyed Susan (G2). Prior to that, she was
on a 3-race winning streak, advancing from a claiming race to an optional
claimer to the $125,000 Weber City Miss Stakes, which she won by 3 1/2 lengths.
This is a filly that appears to be improving after getting off to a slow
start career-wise. Trombetta is 21 percent with a 44 percent in the money rate in graded
stakes over the last five years, per Race Lens. Exotics.

3. Power Squeeze
(3-2)

The Gulfstream Oaks (G2) heroine Power Squeeze faced Thorpedo
Anna, the best 3-year-old in the country, in the Kentucky Oaks and Acorn
Stakes. The Jorge Delgado trainee was
taken out of her usual pace-pressing running style, but she gained ground to
earn third place in the Acorn, bested 1 1/2 lengths by the runner-up, Leslie’s
Rose. Now she cuts back in distance and faces a softer group. Contender. 

Trained by Jorge Delgado, Power Squeeze won two preps on
the Road to the Kentucky Oaks: the $150,000 Suncoast Stakes and the
Gulfstream Park Oaks (G2). She was then sixth in the Kentucky Oaks (G1), beaten
by 16 1/2 lengths, and third in the Acorn (G1), beaten by 6 3/4 lengths; both races
were won by Thorpedo Anna. Javier Castellano has the call for Delgado. Off
the drop in class, Power Squeeze looks really good. Contender.

4. Ringy Dingy
(8-1)

Ringy Dingy phoned in two disappointing efforts against
Grade 2 company at 1 1/8 miles, although she had excuses in the Demoiselle (G2) and Black-Eyed Susan
(G3). She was a handful throughout the running of the Black-Eyed Susan in her
3-year-old debut. Rank early, this daughter of Dialed In dropped back to last, then
surged along the rail only to be blocked by a wall of horses. Ringy Dingy decided
to hang it up at that point and faded to sixth, 8 1/2 lengths behind the
winner. Now, she shortens up and drops in class. Her best performance was a 6 1/4-length victory in the White Clay Creek Stakes here last year, so we know
she likes the track. The Danny Gargan trainee drilled 4 furlongs in 47.94 in
her second-to-last breeze at Saratoga and takes the blinkers off to help her
relax. She has shown tactical speed in previous starts. Live long shot.

Trained by Danny
Gargan, Ringy Dingy enters off two straight disappointing runs in graded
company. The filly was 5th on debut in a race won by Alys Beach. She then won
two straight, including the $100,000 White Clay Creek Stakes over this track.
Ringy Dingy was 7th in the Demoiselle (G2) to close out her juvenile season.
Gargan sent Ringy Dingy out in the Black-Eyed Susan (G2) off a 5 1/2-month
layoff; she finished 6th, beaten by 8 1/2 lengths. Gargan is 21 percent with a 57 percent in-the-money clip with runners second off the layoff over the last five years.
He is also 16 percent with a 34 percent in-the-money clip in graded stakes over that same
time period, per Race Lens. I’ve always been a fan of this filly, and I’m
stubbornly sticking with her to get a piece of the pie. Exotics.

5. Princess Indy
(15-1)

In her seasonal debut, Princess Indy nagged the
pacesetter the entire way in an allowance contest at Laurel but had to settle for second best, beaten 3 1/2 length. Lord
Nelson’s daughter earned a career-best 90-speed rating, and the race should
set the Somraj Singh trainee up for a stronger effort. As an interesting note
for pedigree geeks, Lord Nelson’s second dam, Miss Linda, is a full sister to
Princess Indy’s second dam, Miss Simpatia. In human
terms, it would be the product of two first cousins. The pairing previously
produced Princess Indy‘s full brother, multiple Grade 3-winning sprinter
Super Chow. Princess Indy is most successful as a pacesetter or presser
and could ruin someone’s superfecta. Exotics.

Trained by Somraj Singh, Princess Indy exits the same
race as Regaled, where she was 2nd to that rival’s fourth place finish. The
filly is 4: 1-0-0 in stakes company, and she’ll be Singh’s first-ever graded
stakes starter. J. G. Torrealba has the call. Pass.

6. Mystic Lake
(3-1)

Mystic Lake, the 4 1/2-length heroine of the Miss Preakness
(G3), has a chance to string together back-to-back victories in the Delaware
Oaks. However, the Saffie Joseph, Jr. trainee hasn’t accomplished this feat in
9 career starts and backs down if she has to fight. Exotics.

Trained by Saffie Joseph, Jr., Mystic Lake enters off a
front-running, 4 1/2-length victory in the Miss Preakness Stakes (G3). The
filly has wins on dirt and Tapeta but has never won a route race. She’s
likely better suited to sprinting, but she did manage a third-place finish, beaten by 4 1/2 lengths, in the Mazarine (G3) at Woodbine at the 1 1/16-mile distance.
Fernando Jara has the call. Exotics.

7. Sidamara (7-2)

Sidamara ships in for the hot Bill Mott barn and has all
the earmarks of a winner. She could become the third royally bred Juddmonte
Farms homebred to win for Mott in as many weeks. Arrogate’s daughter is out
of Canada champion 2-year-old filly Spring in the Air and a half to the
Group 3 winning turf sprinter Find. Sidamara won
or placed in her trio of career starts at three different tracks, so she’s
already an established road warrior. Contender.

Trained by Bill Mott, Sidamara is 3: 2-1-0 lifetime. She
was second on debut at Gulfstream Park, beaten by 1 1/4 lengths in the mile-long
affair. She bounced back smartly to win two 1 1/16-mile races. Jose Ortiz has
been aboard for all of Sidamara’s races and retains the mount here. Mott is
typically a conservative type, so he must feel that this filly belongs in
this spot. Contender.