Stakes Advance: Luv This Lifestyle Headlines Thurby's Kentucky Juvenile at Churchill Downs

Apr 29, 2018

Kevin Chessen’s Luv This Lifestyle, one of 10 2-year-old winners sent out by trainer Wesley Ward at the just concluded Keeneland meet, headlines a field of nine 2-year-olds entered Saturday for Thursday’s 25^th running of the $100,000 Kentucky Juvenile run at five furlongs on the main track.

         The Kentucky Juvenile will go as the 10^th race on Thursday’s 11-race program with a 5:45 p.m. (all times Eastern) post time. First post time Thursday is 12:45 p.m.

          Luv This Lifestyle drew off to a 5 ¼-length victory in her debut April 8 at Keeneland under Joel Rosario, who will ride back Thursday.

          She will be trying to give Ward a third victory in the race with his other victories coming in 2016 with Silvertoni and 2009 with Aegean, both fillies.

          A winner of one of the race’s Ward did not take at Keeneland is Tom Durant‘s homebred Shanghaied Roo. Trained by Bret Calhoun, Shanghaied Roo won his debut by 2 ¼ lengths under Gabriel Saez, who will be back aboard Thursday and break from post position three.

          The field for the Kentucky Juvenile, from the rail out with riders and weights, is: Best You Ever Seen (Florent Geroux, 118 pounds), Mr. Granite (Arienne Cox, 122), Shanghaied Roo (G. Saez, 120), Luv This Lifestyle (Rosario, 117), Myhotrodlincoln (Robby Albarado, 118), Weiland (Carlos Villasana, 118), Baytown Macca (James Graham, 118), Blazin Liaison (Calvin Borel, 122) and Derby City (Juan Rosa, 118).

          Also on the Thursday program is the 13^th running of the $70,000-added Opening Verse overnight stakes at a mile on the turf that goes as the afternoon’s eighth race with a 4:37 post time.

          Heading the field of 13 is Brian Hytrek, Rodney Paden and Ryan Kuhn‘s Flatlined.

A Grade II winner trained by Scooter Dickey, Flatlined will be making his 2018 debut in the Opening Verse. Corey Lanerie has the mount and will break from post position one.

The main threat to Flatlined may be Flurry Racing Stables’ Mr. Misunderstood.

Trained by Brad Cox, Mr. Misunderstood won the Commonwealth Turf (GIII) here last fall and exits the Maker’s 46 Mile (GI) at Keeneland two weeks ago in which he was sixth but beaten only 2 ½ lengths. Shaun Bridgmohan has the mount and will break from post position four.

          The field for the Opening Verse, from the rail out with riders and weights, is: Flatlined (Lanerie, 122 pounds), Colonelsdarktemper (Jon Court, 122), Mr Cub (Chris Landeros, 122), Mr. Misunderstood (Bridgmohan, 122), First Premio (Florent Geroux, 122), Pont Du Gard (Ricardo Santana Jr., 115), Royal Squeeze (Julien Leparoux, 122), Closing Bell (Joel Rosario, 122), Royal Son (Joe Rocco Jr., 122), Dimension (GB) (James Graham, 122), Trust Factor (Robby Albarado, 122), Shakhimat (Adam Beschizza, 122) and Foxtrot Charlie (Brian Hernandez Jr., 122).