Kentucky Oaks third Lady Apple could be Breeders’ Cup bound as owners Phoenix Thoroughbreds plan the next steps in her career.
After taking three attempts to break her maiden as a juvenile the daughter of Curlin won three on the bounce to kick off her three-year-old campaign including the Grade Three Fantasy Stakes to book her place in the Churchill Downs showpiece. Speaking to the Website, Horseracingnation.com Vice President of the innovative investment fund, Tom Ludt said:
“She’s done so well for us. We want to protect her because we plan on racing her as a 4-year-old. But we’d love to see her run some good races here in the fall and think about the Breeders’ Cup.”
The Steve Asmussen-trained runner could return to the track later this month with Belmont Park’s Grade Two Mother Goose Stakes on June 29 and the Iowa Oaks, a week later, both under consideration. Coincidently both races were won by the Asmussen barn in 2018
“Steve has backed off her a little bit just because she’s done a lot,” Ludt continued. “She’s done very well, had a long campaign, and she’s done great. We didn’t want to push her into the Acorn” (the one-mile Grade 1 race run on the Belmont Stakes undercard.)
To read the full story on Horseracingnation.com, including updates on Magnificent McCool and Dream Tree go to: https://www.horseracingnation.com/news/Phoenix_Thoroughbreds_looks_forward_with_Lady_Apple_Dream_Tree_123#