The Road to the Kentucky Oaks will go through New York when Diamond Ore takes on four other sophomore fillies in the Jan. 24 running of the $100,000 Busanda Stakes going nine furlongs over the main track at Aqueduct Racetrack.
The Busanda is a local qualifier for the Longines Kentucky Oaks (G1), scheduled to be run April 30 at Churchill Downs, awarding the top-four finishers points on a 10-4-2-1 scale.
Clearview Stable's Diamond Ore, a $750,000 purchase at the 2018 Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale, makes her stakes debut for trainer Barbara Minshall following a maiden-breaking effort routing on the Tampa Bay Downs dirt Dec. 24.
The Tapit bay, out of the multiple stakes-winning Distorted Humor mare Bubbler, is a half sister to champion Arrogate.
Diamond Ore made her first three starts on Tapeta for the Woodbine-based Minshall, who will send out her first representative at the Big A since Hollywood Hideaway ran third in the 2017 Artie Schiller Stakes.
Following a pair of sprint efforts at Woodbine, Diamond Ore rallied to be second when stretched out to two turns for the first time Nov. 14 at the Rexdale, Ontario oval, garnering a career-best 70 Beyer Speed Figure.
Minshall said the well-bred Diamond Ore is ready for her stakes debut.
"With her pedigree any black type is important," said Minshall. "Hopefully, we can do that for the owners, and she could move forward from this. The horses will tell you where you can go. They sort themselves out. It's early in the 3-year-old year, and this is a good chance to see what she's got and see how she handles the dirt in more difficult company."
Minshall said Diamond Ore will appreciate the added distance Sunday and enters with the benefit of additional training at her Ocala, Fla., base on the Winding Oaks Farm dirt, including a five-eighths breeze Jan. 15 in 1:02 flat.
"The farther she goes the better. She's very game," said Minshall. "She's trained very well on the dirt here at Winding Oaks. I find she's moved forward with her training. She's done everything right and deserves a chance to move on."
Minshall said outside of the addition of jockey Eric Cancel, there will be no changes for Diamond Ore who will emerge from post 1.
Trainer Todd Pletcher, who won the 2013 Busanda with subsequent Kentucky Oaks winner Princess of Sylmar, will attempt a sixth triumph in the Busanda with Repole Stable's Traffic Lane.
The daughter of second crop sire Outwork set the pace in the Dec. 5 Demoiselle Stakes (G2) over a sloppy and sealed Big A main track last out but faded to a distant fifth, finishing 18 1/4 lengths to stablemate Malathaat.
Pletcher's Belmont Park-based assistant Byron Hughes noted that neither the Demoiselle winner nor Traffic Lane liked the off-going but is optimistic for a better effort on Sunday.
Prior to her stakes debut, third time was the charm for Traffic Lane, who graduated Nov. 15 over a good outer turf course at Aqueduct after two efforts in off-the-turf maiden events.
"It was all just experience, that was the main thing," Hughes said. "She hasn't been the most precocious filly, but I think the experience helped her, and the races under her belt helped her. When she did break her maiden, she did it as we expected her to."
With Jose Lezcano aboard, Traffic Lane will emerge from post 4.
The Pletcher-Repole combo will also be represented by New York homebred Coffee Bar, who is entered off two weeks' rest from an 8 1/4-length maiden win Jan. 10 going a one-turn mile at Aqueduct.
Coffee Bar will receive the riding services of the Big A's current leading rider Kendrick Carmouche from post 2.
The Chad Brown trained The Grass Is Blue, most recently third in the Dec. 26 Anne Arundel Stakes at Laurel Park, and impressive Jan. 8 Laurel allowance optional claiming winner Wonderwall, complete the field.
Aqueduct Racetrack, Sunday, January 24, 2021, Race 8Entries: Busanda S.
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Diamond Ore (KY) Eric Cancel 118 Barbara J. Minshall 8/1 2 2Coffee Bar (NY) Kendrick Carmouche 118 Todd A. Pletcher 8/5 3 3Wonderwall (MD) Trevor McCarthy 120 Claudio A. Gonzalez 5/1 4 4Traffic Lane (KY) Jose Lezcano 118 Todd A. Pletcher 4/1 5 5The Grass Is Blue (KY) Manuel Franco 118 Chad C. Brown 7/5
