Bewitch

Wednesday’s $100,000 Bewitch S. (G3) has lured a small field of six fillies
and mares to do battle over 1 1/2 miles on the Keeneland turf. With rain
forecast in the Lexington, Kentucky, area on the eve of the Bewitch, the course
will likely be no better than good and could be yielding. The contest lost a bit
of its luster when Grade 1 winner Honey Ryder (Lasting Approval) didn’t enter,
but she may still help us to find the winner.

The Graham Motion-trained SWEET SCIENCE (Diesis [GB]) couldn’t hold a candle
to Honey Ryder when they met in the Robert G. Dick Memorial Breeders’ Cup H. at
Delaware Park last July, but she made a big move from near the rear of the
field on the far turn, had to wait for room in upper stretch, and finished
strongly to get up for a clear second. Her effort was all the more commendable
considering that she was making her stakes debut in that 1 3/8-mile event. Also
notable is the fact that the Delaware turf course was labeled yielding. We’ll
ignore her two starts after that, both at 1 1/16 miles, and focus on her most
recent outing at Keeneland over the Bewitch trip of 12 furlongs. Lying a close
second early in a race with a farcical pace (1:19 4/5 for six furlongs), Sweet
Science took command and asserted her superiority by 3 3/4 lengths, looking
stronger the farther she went and earning a 107 BRIS Late Pace rating. Rafael
Bejarano, who partnered her in the Dick Memorial, will reunite with the
five-year-old bay.

We’re intrigued by the royally bred SHARED DREAMS (GB) (Seeking the Gold),
who’s coming off a victory in her American debut in a 12-furlong Gulfstream Park
allowance. Now conditioned by Christophe Clement, the four-year-old broke
tardily but moved up to midpack and was traveling beautifully throughout,
angling to the outside for the stretch drive and simply mowing down the leader
in the shadow of the wire. The form of that race isn’t really great, but the way
she won marked her as a potentially good sort. Last year in England, her most
significant result was a valiant third in the 1 1/4-mile John Musker Fillies’
S., a listed event, in which she struck the front and was just caught on the
line by a decent filly in Asawer (Darshaan). We suspect that we haven’t seen the
best of her yet, especially since her profile is eerily similar to that of her
dam, Coretta (Ire) (Caerleon), another Clement pupil who was far better at four
and five after coming to the United States, ending her career as a multiple Grade 2
winner and a gallant runner-up in the 1999 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf (G1).
Javier Castellano picks up the mount as Edgar Prado has opted to ride NOBLE
STELLA (Ger) (Monsun) for the first time. At 5-1 on the morning line, Shared
Dreams offers good value.

LOUVE ROYALE (Ire) (Peintre Celebre) is exiting a narrow victory in a 1
1/16-mile allowance at Keeneland over a solid rival in Sky High Flyer (GB) (Anabaa),
posting career-best Speed (95) and Late Pace (109) figures for horseman Patrick
Biancone, who’s had a Midas touch with his turf distaffers recently. In
two attempts at 1 1/2 miles, her best finish was a non-threatening third in the
Dowager S. over this course, but she’s likely improved, judging by her last
outing, and she’s eligible to show more this time around. Julien Leparoux will
once again be in the saddle.

Canadian Grade 3 winner Noble Stella is listed as the 7-5 favorite on the
morning line, but that’s a skimpy price for a mare who has yet to win a stakes
race in the United States. In fairness, she does have a sterling record at the
trip (6-2-1-2), and she racked up an outstanding 105 Speed figure for her recent
third in the Orchid H. (G3) at Gulfstream. While the Roger Attfield mare is well
qualified to break through here, we’re a little disconcerted that she tends to
find a few too good for her more often than not.

BEA PLUS (Honor Grades) just broke her maiden two starts back and is still
eligible for her first allowance condition. She figures to be on or very near
the early lead, but we’d be surprised if she sticks around for the finish. MAMA
I’M HOME (Wheaton) was 10th and last, beaten 22 lengths, in The Very One H. (G3)
in her lone stakes attempt.