Equine star power will be on display June 28 at Churchill Downs, and not just in the $1 million Stephen Foster Stakes (G1), where Mystik Dan and Sierra Leone meet beneath the twin spires for the first time since they were noses apart when 1-2 in the 2024 Kentucky Derby (G1).
While the Stephen Foster is certainly the afternoon's highlight—six of the seven entries are millionaires—five other stakes on the program also lured numerous graded stakes winners. Reigning Horse of the Year Thorpedo Anna will be heavily favored over four rivals in the $500,000 Fleur de Lis Stakes (G2); Vixen leads the $250,000 Tepin Stakes for 3-year-old grass fillies; Booth battles Southern California invader Dr. Venkman in the Kelly's Landing Stakes (G3); West Coast shipper Mi Hermano Ramon is part of a contentious field in the $500,000 Wise Dan Stakes (G2T); and 2025 Kentucky Derby 10th-place finisher Tiztastic will look to rebound against lesser opposition on turf in the $250,000 American Derby.
The fields for the stacked June 28 card were drawn June 21.
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Churchill Downs has added a $3 all-stakes turf Pick 3 to its June 28 wagering menu, encompassing the Tepin, Wise Dan, and American Derby. The Louisville, Ky., track will also have another all-turf Pick 3 June 29, closing day of its spring meet. The takeout for those bets is 15%.
Field size is limited in some of the day's dirt events. The Fleur de Lis, for example, drew just five, even though Thorpedo Anna is coming off a seventh-place finish in the May 2 La Troienne Stakes (G1). That race followed earlier victories this year from Thorpedo Anna in the April 12 Apple Blossom Handicap (G1) and March 8 Azeri Stakes (G2) at Oaklawn Park.
Limited rest after the Apple Blossom and jostling into the first turn may have contributed to an uncharacteristically dull performance in the La Troienne. It marked the first time in 13 starts that the Kenny McPeek trainee had not finished either first or second.
Her chief opponents are Royal Spa and Gin Gin—respectively first and second in the May 31 Shawnee Stakes (G3) at Churchill—and Taxed, runner-up in the La Troienne.
The Fleur de Lis and Stephen Foster, both 1 1/8-mile dirt races, are part of the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Win and You're In. The Fleur de Lis winner will earn a paid, automatic berth into the Nov. 1 Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1), and the Stephen Foster victor will gain paid, automatic entrance into the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) that same afternoon at Del Mar.
Thorpedo Anna and Sierra Leone captured those respective Breeders' Cup races last fall at Del Mar.
In addition to Mystik Dan, also trained by McPeek, and the Chad Brown-trained Sierra Leone in the Stephen Foster, other notable entries in the race include First Mission, Mindframe, Skippylongstocking, and Hit Show. The Stephen Foster competitors have collectively earned more than $26 million.
Sierra Leone starts from post 4 in the Stephen Foster under Flavien Prat, and Mystik Dan breaks just to his outside under Brian Hernandez Jr. Limited pace in the race could potentially compromise Sierra Leone's late-running efforts.
Churchill Downs, Saturday, June 28, 2025, Race 11Entries: Stephen Foster S. (G1)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 First Mission (KY) Luis Saez 124 Brad H. Cox - 2 Mindframe (MD) Irad Ortiz, Jr. 124 Todd A. Pletcher - 3 Skippylongstocking (KY) Jose L. Ortiz 124 Saffie A. Joseph, Jr. - 4 Sierra Leone (KY) Flavien Prat 124 Chad C. Brown - 5 Mystik Dan (KY) Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr. 124 Kenneth G. McPeek - 6 Hit Show (KY) Florent Geroux 124 Brad H. Cox - 7 Ashcroft (KY) Julien R. Leparoux 124 D. Wayne Lukas -
