Lush Lips, who finished second behind 3-year-old turf filly division leader Nitrogen in her two most recent starts, will try to take advantage of that rival's absence when she starts as the likely favorite in the $275,000 Regret Stakes (G3T) May 31 at Churchill Downs.
The 1 1/8-mile turf race for 3-year-old fillies drew a field of 11. Bred in Great Britain, Lush Lips was a $103,340 purchase by Avenue Bloodstock, Medallion Racing, and Donnacha O'Brien at the 2023 Goffs UK Premier Yearling Sale.
She ran ninth and then second in her first two starts as a 2-year-old in Ireland for O'Brien, then ninth again in a September 2024 maiden race at Kentucky Downs. Transferred to trainer Brendan Walsh, she added blinkers and broke her maiden by seven lengths on the all-weather track at Gulfstream Park and then came right back to win a first-level allowance optional claiming race on the Gulfstream turf by two lengths.
In two tries in stakes company, she has finished second behind Nitrogen, a winner of four consecutive turf stakes. In the March 8 Florida Oaks (G3T) at Tampa Bay Downs, Lush Lips set all the fractions but was caught late by Nitrogen to lose by a half-length.
She faced that rival again in the May 2 Edgewood Stakes (G2T) at Churchill. In that race, Lush Lips encountered traffic at the start and was rank early as Flavien Prat rated her behind horses, changing up her running style. She rallied nicely in the lane to finish second, but was beaten 3 1/2 lengths. Prat has the return call from post 7.
Lush Lips races for the partnership of Medallion Racing, Steve Weston, Stewart Hoffman, Mrs. Paul Shanahan, and Mrs. M. V. Magnier. Her most recent two races were without blinkers.
"We put the blinkers on after we got here because she was half asleep, but she doesn't need them anymore," Walsh said. "We've worked her a bunch of times in behind horses and she relaxed really well. I was surprised it took her a minute to drop her head last time, but I'm glad we did it because at least we know she can do it, and she finished the race very well.
"I rate my filly very highly, and (Nitrogen) has beaten us both times now. We tried to beat her from the front, and we tried to beat her from behind, and I'd be surprised if there's anyone a whole lot better in the country than her."
Walsh also entered Flying Dutchmen's improving Justify filly Hereforagoodtime. The winner of two straight is stepping up to stakes company for the first time and has Irad Ortiz Jr. named to ride.
"She's a very progressive filly and we've always liked Hereforagoodtime," Walsh said. "She's a big girl physically and she was going to need all the time she's gotten. She's really come to hand her last two starts. I don't think we've seen the best of her yet by any means."
Another Justify filly in the field is Bregman Family Racing's Totally Justified. At age 2, she won the P. G. Johnson Stakes at Saratoga Race Course and was second by a nose in the Jessamine Stakes (G2T) at Keeneland. She chased the pace to finish fifth in the April 8 Appalachian Stakes (G2T) run over a soggy course rated "good" at Keeneland and appears poised to improve in her second start of the year for trainer Rusty Arnold while picking up the services of jockey Luis Saez.
George Messina and Michael Lee's Fionn, a Twirling Candy filly trained by Brad Cox, rallied late to finish third in the Appalachian. Before that, she won three in a row on the turf at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, capped by a win in the Allen "Black Cat" LaCombe Memorial Stakes.
Churchill Downs, Saturday, May 31, 2025, Race 11Entries: Regret S. (G3T)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Jalila (KY) Reylu Gutierrez 118 Gustavo Delgado 30/1 2 2Hereforagoodtime (KY) Irad Ortiz, Jr. 118 Brendan P. Walsh 6/1 3 3Aterradora (IRE) Ricardo Santana, Jr. 118 Michael J. Maker 20/1 4 4Fixin to Bee (KY) John R. Velazquez 118 George R. Arnold II 10/1 5 5Classic Q (KY) Jose L. Ortiz 118 Mark E. Casse 5/2 6 6Totally Justified (KY) Luis Saez 118 George R. Arnold II 10/1 7 7Lush Lips (GB) Flavien Prat 118 Brendan P. Walsh 3/1 8 8Fionn (KY) Florent Geroux 118 Brad H. Cox 4/1 9 9Mechaya (KY) Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr. 118 James P. DiVito 20/1 10 10Golden Sunshine (KY) Vincent Cheminaud 118 Eoin G. Harty 12/1 11 11Deloraine (KY) Jaime A. Torres 118 Eoin G. Harty 15/1
Scipio, Early Adopter Lead Audubon Stakes
Earlier on the card in race 7, the $275,000 Audubon Stakes for 3-year-olds drew a field of eight also set to go 1 1/8 miles on the turf.
The entrant with the strongest company lines is Scipio, most recently seventh in the American Turf Stakes (G1T) behind Zulu Kingdom. The Caravaggio ridgling trained by Richard Baltas previously won the Feb. 16 Baffle Stakes at Santa Anita Park and finished second in the April 7 Transylvania Stakes (G3T) at Keeneland.
Charlie's to Blame, winner of the Feb. 1 Kitten's Joy Stakes at Gulfstream, gets back on turf after trying synthetic at Turfway Park, where he led the Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) for six furlongs but faded to finish ninth behind subsequent Kentucky Derby (G1) fourth Final Gambit. The Blame colt to be ridden by Joel Rosario could be the controlling speed of the Audubon.
Recent allowance winners Tomasello, Mesero, and Early Adopter step up in class in search of their first stakes win. Early Adopter, a Lope de Vega colt trained by Chad Brown for Klaravich Stables, was grade 2-placed as a 2-year-old. He rallied stoutly from eighth place to win a first-level allowance race April 23 at Keeneland.
Churchill Downs, Saturday, May 31, 2025, Race 7Entries: Audubon S.
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Tomasello (KY) Jose L. Ortiz 118 Mark E. Casse 5/1 2 2Discreet Dancer (KY) Cristian A. Torres 118 Antonio Sano 10/1 3 3Scipio (KY) Luis Saez 118 Richard Baltas 7/2 4 4Mesero (KY) Corey J. Lanerie 118 Dale L. Romans 10/1 5 5Charlie's to Blame (KY) Joel Rosario 118 Peter Eurton 5/1 6 6World Beater (KY) Jaime A. Torres 118 Riley Mott 9/2 7 7King of Ashes (KY) Lanfranco Dettori 118 Brendan P. Walsh 8/1 8 8Early Adopter (GB) Flavien Prat 118 Chad C. Brown 3/1
