The $500,000 Pegasus World Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G2) on Saturday will pit several known quantities against a seemingly equal number of upstarts whose stock remains on the rise.
The former group includes Queen Goddess, who seeks her first win since taking this race last year for trainer Michael McCarthy. Also in that group is Didia, one of the more consistent older turf mares in the U.S. last season when she captured the Rodeo Drive (G2) at Santa Anita after placing in Grade 1 company in New York. However, a slow start and world-class opposition in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G1) proved too much for the Argentinean mare last out.
Another vying in the 1 1/16-mile Gulfstream feature from that milieu is Fluffy Socks. Although a consistent check getter, the veteran has been more win shy than many of her Chad Brown-trained stablemates in this division. She peaked in her 2023 season debut capturing the Churchill Distaff Turf Mile (G2), but later lost a couple of close ones in the Ballston Spa (G2) and Matriarch (G1).
The relatively fresher faces include Star Fortress, who made quite the statement in her U.S. debut in the Nov. 23 Cardinal (G3) at Churchill Downs. Although meeting relatively modest company over a course that might not have been to everyone’s taste, Star Fortress bolted up to win by 10 lengths while earning a 101 Brisnet Speed rating.
“I wasn’t quite sure what to expect,” trainer Cherie DeVaux said of Star Fortress. “Her form was OK from Europe. We were cutting her back in distance. She had been training really well, but we only had the opportunity to train on dirt, and she had been training extremely well. I was expecting her to have a good showing of herself, but that performance definitely superseded anything you could have hoped for.”
Ruby Nell, a three-time stakes winner for Richard Mandella in Southern California, ships east and will be ridden by the charismatic Frankie Dettori. Dual Grade 3 winner Mission of Joy was a strong third behind Mawj in the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup (G1) when last seen in October, while Grade 2 scorer Accomplished Girl was recently second to Full Count Felicia in the Suwannee River (G3).
The main body of the field is rounded out by Surprisingly, Sister Lou Ann, Chili Flag, and Cairo Consort.
