Fulleffort wins Jeff Ruby, Lorelei Lee nabs Bourbonette Oaks

The first 2026 Kentucky Derby (G1) qualifier worth 100-50-25-15-10 points to the top five finishers took place on Saturday over the Tapeta track at Turfway Park.

The 1 1/8-mile Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) saw a dozen horses battle for entry into the Kentucky Derby, while nine potential Kentucky Oaks (G1) contenders vied for supremacy in the 1 1/16-mile Bourbonette Oaks.

Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3)

Fulleffort, runner-up in Turfway’s John Battaglia Memorial S. on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, reiterated his affinity for Tapeta when storming from off the pace to dominate the Jeff Ruby Steaks by 2 1/2 lengths.

With Irad Ortiz Jr. in the saddle for trainer Brad Cox, Fulleffort rated in ninth place behind splits of :23.18 and :47.16 set by Medici. He made progress around the far turn and outkicked Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (G1) runner-up Stark Contrast down the lane to triumph in 1:49.94.

“He has a strong closing kick,” Ortiz said. “I knew he’d come with his best run and he handled stretching out in distance really well. I think he’s continuing to improve.”

Stark Contrast pulled 3 1/2 lengths clear of third-place finisher Medici, while Stop the Car and Argos completed the top five. Brave Force, Two Out Hero, Black Hornet, Turf Star, Maximus Prime, Baytown Dreamer trailed the field. Chaos Agent pulled up in the homestretch.

The Jeff Ruby Steaks awarded Kentucky Derby qualifying points on a 100-50-25-15-10 basis to the top five finishers. Having previously earned 10 points in the John Battaglia Memorial, Fulleffort has accumulated 110 points in total, ranking the son of Liam’s Map atop the latest qualification leaderboard.

However, next-race plans for Fulleffort are still to be determined.

“He’s a hard-knocking horse that continues to improve,” said assistant trainer Trace Messina. “He does everything we ask of him and trained really well into this race. We’ll talk it over with Brad and the team to decide next steps, but we’re very happy for everyone involved to get the job done today.”

Fulleffort is owned by the partnership of St. Elias Stable and Starlight Racing.

Bourbonette Oaks

The Bourbonette Oaks produced a much closer finish than the Jeff Ruby. After setting slow fractions of :24.07, :49.77, and 1:13.89 on the front end, Lorelei Lee held off a late rally from Lovely Grey to prevail by three-quarters of a length.

The daughter of Nyquist started as a 10-1 longshot off a third-place finish in a $62,500 allowance optional claimer sprinting six furlongs at Turfway. Stretching out around two turns triggered significant improvement from Lorelei Lee, as the Mike Maker trainee handled the class jump with aplomb and hit the wire in 1:44.81.

Resist, La Ville Lumiere, and Bless Here rounded out the top five, followed by Resplendence, Scratch It, Beara Peninsula, and Wonzee Weather. Blazing Brat, Callmeyourmajesty, and Maximum Offer scratched.

The top five finishers earned Kentucky Oaks qualifying points on a 50-25-15-10-5 scale. Lorelei Lee isn’t currently nominated to the Kentucky Oaks, but that will soon change for the Skychai Racing color-bearer. 

“Ownership has already made a management decision, she’ll be nominated to the Kentucky Oaks,” Maker said. “I thought stretching out she’d show some natural speed. We lost some training this winter because of the weather. We ran her short and she was able to handle that and win. We knew she’d get better going long.”