Quietside rounding back into form for $135K Ladies

Shortleaf Stable’s dual Grade 1-placed Kentucky homebred Quietside will look to make a winning 4-year-old debut in Saturday’s $135,000 Ladies, a nine-furlong test for older fillies and mares, at Aqueduct Racetrack. 

Trainer John Ortiz posted an 8-for-16 record at the Aqueduct fall meet including a trio of stakes victories, scoring with New York-bred Doc Sullivan in the state-bred Alex M. Robb and NYSSS Thunder Rumble, as well as with Braverthanubelieve in the NYSSS Fifth Avenue. 

Quietside enters from a four-length second to Fully Subscribed in the nine-furlong Grade 3 Comely on December 7 here. The Malibu Moon dark bay stalked from fourth position early and ran on to edge returning rival Ourdaydreaminggirl out of place-honors by a nose. 

Quietside [post 7, Jose Lezcano, 123 pounds] bounced back from an eighth in the seven-furlong Grade 2 Raven Run in October at Keeneland when making her first start since a sixth in the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks in May at Churchill Downs. Prior to the Oaks, she had hit the board in all seven starts. 

“She got back on track last out,” said Ortiz. “We gave her a nice break after the Oaks. We prepared her for the Raven Run, which I guess was a little too ambitious on my part to go in a Grade 2 at Keeneland sprinting her. That was a tough race, but it got her fitter, and she’s trained phenomenally ever since.” 

Quietside breezed a bullet half-mile in 47 seconds flat on Saturday over the Belmont Park dirt training track, fastest-of-98 workers at the distance. 

“She worked solo because if not, she’d go faster than that,” Ortiz said. “She looked fabulous, did it with ease. Her heart rate came back and it was less than 96 beats per minute. A very effortless workout, considering a dry, winter track, that was impressive. We are looking forward to her start.”  

Quietside’s on-the-board streak included wins in the Grade 3 Honeybee and Grade 2 Fantasy, in February and March respectively, going 1 1/16 miles at Oaklawn Park. She graduated on debut in August 2024 at Saratoga Race Course ahead of placings behind subsequent Champion 2-Year-Old Filly Immersive in the Grade 1 Spinaway there and the Grade 1 Alcibiades at Keeneland. 

Klaravich Stables’ Weigh the Risks [post 1, Manny Franco, 123 pounds] will be the one to beat entering with three straight victories, including two local stakes. Trained by five-time Eclipse Award-winner Chad Brown, the 5-year-old Mendelssohn chestnut wired the one-turn mile Listed Go for Wand last out by 9 3/4 lengths over returning rival Scalable on December 13 here. 

Weigh the Risks made six of her first seven outings on the turf, but has won 5-of-6 starts since making the switch back to dirt in November 2024 here, all around one turn. 

“She took a while to come around. I started her on turf being by Mendelssohn, but she's really found her way now on the dirt,” Brown said. “As she's matured, she's overcome some of her physical issues that she's had so we're really seeing the best of her now.”

Weigh the Risk’s last-out final time of 1:37.64 over the fast dirt earned a career and field-best 103 Beyer Speed Figure. She doubled up on stakes scores after capturing the seven-furlong Listed Pumpkin Pie in November here. 

Bran Jam Stable and David Clark’s Grade 1-placed Ourdaydreaminggirl [post 3, Angel Rodriguez, 119 pounds] enters from her aforementioned third in the Comely where she closed from 5th-of-7 after being bumped at the start. Trained by Louis Linder, Jr., the 4-year-old Instagrand chestnut earned her fourth career stakes placing and seeks the breakthrough victory. 

“She just seems to be getting better. She's really matured and filled out body wise. Her head's really in the game right now and we think she has more in the tank,” Linder, Jr. said. “She's always been a well-built horse, but when we finally got her clipped - she had her winter coat on - you can really see the muscle she's put on."

Ourdaydreaminggirl was a rallying neck third to Clicquot in the nine-furlong Grade 1 Cotillion in September at Parx Racing, following a second there to Dry Powder in the Listed Cathryn Sophia in August, both with Eliseo Ruiz aboard. 

“A tough beat in a Grade 1 - she just got a little too far out of it and had to come wide, but she made a huge run,” Linder, Jr. said. “Three more jumps and we win it, so that was thrilling. She bounced in her next start, but since then she's really picked up the bit and moved forward."

Returning rider Angel Rodriguez was aboard for the first time in the afternoon in the Comely and kept Ourdaydreaminggirl within three lengths of the pace through the opening quarter-mile. She sat closer through the half-mile than when fifth in the local Grade 2 Mother Goose in November and second in the seven-furlong Ruthless to stablemate Volleyballprincess last February here. 

“Angel is a more aggressive rider, and he'll try to keep her in the hunt,” said Linder, Jr. “I think she responded real well. She always tries. When you have a closer, you want to see some quick fractions up front."
  
R.T Racing Stable’s Just Katherine [post 6, Sahin Civaci, 121 pounds] returned from an over one-year layoff when third to Weigh the Risks in the Go for Wand. Trained by Jose Jimenez, the 5-year-old Justify bay’s respite dated to a half-length optional claiming score sprinting seven furlongs in September 2024 here.

Just Katherine has hit the board in 11-of-16 career starts while posting a 4-3-4 record. Her top Beyer is a 94 for a 1 1/2-length second to subsequent dual Grade 1-winning Brown-trained millionaire Randomized in the one-mile restricted Wilton in 2023 at the Spa. 

Repole Stable’s Scalable [post 4, Kendrick Carmouche, 123 pounds] has hit the board behind Weigh the Risks in her two prior starts in the Listed Pumpkin Pie and the Listed Go for Wand here, and does have stakes-winning back class here. Trained by Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher, the 5-year-old Speightstown gray captured the local seven-furlong Interborough last January and earned a career-best 93 Beyer. 

Rounding out the field is turf stakes-placed Curlin’s Girl [post 8, Ruben Silvera, 121 pounds] for trainer Linda Rice; as well as four-time winner Sultry Lass [post 5, Julio Hernandez, 121 pounds], who debuts for trainer Brittany Russell from the barn of Tom Amoss; and three-time winner Low Country Magic [post 2, Jaime Rodriguez, 119 pounds], who makes her first start for conditioner Horacio De Paz from previous trainer Ignacio Correas, IV.

The Ladies is slated as Race 8 on Saturday’s nine-race card. First post is 12:10 p.m. Eastern.

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