Oak Leaf J

AMERICAN

GRADED STAKES PREVIEWS

Darley Debutante (G1) romper TELL A KELLY (Tapit) seems like a standout in

the $250,000 Oak Leaf S. (G1) at Hollywood Park on Sunday with anything

resembling her last showing, so we'll side with the likely heavy favorite. The

John Sadler pupil didn't show much at first asking but improved in a big way in

her next start, and the same can be said for her Debutante tally, when she

rolled home an emphatic winner beneath Sunday's rider, Alonso Quinonez. She looks

formidable in here.

Spinaway S. (G1) and Adirondack S. (G2) runner-up ALIENATION (Rock Hard Ten)

is fast and has faced the best horses of any in the field, so the Bob Baffert

pupil must be respected as a win candidate if the top one regresses. The dark

bay Kentucky-bred has put in a pair of very swift works over this main oval and

shouldn't have much competition on the front end, so they'll likely have to

catch her in order to win. Martin Garcia gets back aboard the filly.

We like INDIAN GRACEY (Indian Ocean) for a minor award in here. Second to a

pair of very nice fillies in her first two outings, the Florida-bred endured in

a maiden event at Del Mar when leading at every call. While her win wasn't most

impressive, we feel that the chestnut is better with a target to run at and she

should get one in here. Joe Talamo has the assignment.

TRUE WAY OF GRACE (Yes It's True) broke her maiden in the Barretts Debutante

on dirt most recently, but her prior synthetic form was not all that strong and

we're not convinced she's a win player in this affair. IZSHELEGAL (Maria's Mon)

is still a maiden following a trio of stakes tries and has picked a tough spot

to pick up her initial win. The Terry Knight trainee is bred to handle this trip

and drew well on the inside, but we can't select her for the win today.

PACIFIC PRIDE (Storm Cat) made good on her 3-5 odds last out against a maiden

field and could be any type for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer. We would prefer to

see how the bay performed against winners before siding with her from the

outside post. Rafael Bejarano has the call. Darley Debutante third RIGOLETTA

(Concerto) loses her rider and would be hard pressed to finish in a better slot

than she did last out for trainer Dan Hendricks.