Undefeated Intrepids Fantasy takes on G1-winner Bodacious Bay in G2 Mother Goose

Intrepids Fantasy, a perfect 3-for-3 to start her career, steps into stakes company for the first time as she meets Grade 1-winner Bodacious Bay in Saturday’s Grade 2, $300,000 Mother Goose, a 1 1/16-mile test for sophomore fillies, at Belmont Park. 

 

The Mother Goose is slated as Race 9 on Saturday’s 10-race card, which co-features the Listed $200,000 Dwyer in Race 8. The stakes-laden program also offers the Listed $175,000 Pumpkin Pie in Race 6 and the $175,000 Carle Place in Race 7. First post is 11:40 a.m. Eastern.

 

Intrepids Fantasy [post 10, Jorge Ruiz] is undefeated in three starts and will race outside of Delaware Park for the first time after being purchased privately by Agave Racing Stable, Medallion Racing and Evan Trommer.

 

Trainer Gary Capuano noted the up-and-coming filly has a few questions to answer.

 

“It's a one-turn race, and she's always been two turns; it's first time in a stakes, so she has no Lasix for the first time; and she’s jumping up into graded company. You have three unknowns there. I think she's up to the task but until they run it's hard to say. We'll see how it plays out,” Capuano said.

 

The Jess’s Dream dark bay drew in as a main-track only entrant for her first two outings, debuting in May in a one-mile and 70 yard route, scoring by 2 1/2-lengths over next-out winner Ms. Sophistication, who was subsequently second in the Cathryn Sophia and fifth in the Grade 1 Cotillion at Parx.

 

Intrepids Fantasy returned to action on July 30 and romped by 12 3/4-lengths in a one-mile optional-claimer that earned an 83 Beyer – a 23-point improvement on her debut figure.

 

"She was main-track only in both. We were trying to go two turns and it's hard to find those races, so that was our best option,” Capuano explained. “First-time out, she beat a pretty decent horse, who came back and ran second in a stakes. She was perfect. She ran just liked she trained up to that race and it all worked out nice.

 

“We couldn't find any races that were filling for her, so we just took our time and got her in the right spot again for the second one,” Capuano continued. “It worked out, got her confidence up nice and she ran a great race.”

 

Last out, Intrepids Fantasy took on elders in a one-mile optional-claimer on September 3 over muddy and sealed footing and drew off to an 8 1/4-length score in a final time of 1:37.57 to earn an 87 Beyer. 

 

“She was running against the clock that day and ran a good time, finished up well. It's time to see what she's made of,” Capuano said.

 

The Maryland-bred was purchased privately following that event from owner-breeder Paul L. Fowler, Jr. She has worked back six times over the Delaware dirt, including a pair of breezes at one-mile and most recently a five-eighths effort in 1:02.60 October 31.

 

“I’ll breeze horses a mile quite a bit to get them in a cruising speed and see how they go. I just try to keep them from going too fast,” Capuano said.

 

Intrepids Fantasy, out of the Jump Start mare Intrepid Tour, is a full-sister to Grade 3-placed multiple stakes-winner Intrepid Daydream and stakes-winner Intrepid Dream. Both siblings were initially trained by Capuano.

 

“That family has been phenomenal, and the mare has thrown nothing but nice horses,” Capuano said.

 

Bodacious Bay [post 7, Micah Husbands] is campaigned by C2 Racing Stable, Miller Racing, St. Elias Stable, Mathis Stable, BAG Racing Stables, Carr Legacy Racing and Steve Taub. 

 

The Not This Time bay made her first four starts for trainer Rodolphe Brisset culminating in a maiden win in June at Churchill Downs ahead of a pressing second to the Joseph, Jr.-trained My Miss Mo in the Grade 3 Monmouth Oaks on July 25 at Monmouth Park.

 

Bodacious Bay was purchased privately out of that performance and paid immediate dividends with a prominent score in the 1 1/16-mile Grade 1 Cotillion on September 19 at Parx where she bested Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks-winner Always a Runner by 3 1/4-lengths with My Miss Mo a distant sixth.

 

Bodacious Bay has trained into this event on the Oklahoma dirt training track at Saratoga Race Course, including a bullet half-mile work in 47.05 October 25.

 

Bodacious Bay, a half-sister to dual graded stakes-winner Royal Spa, is out of the Grade 3-placed Mineshaft mare Bodacious Babe – a half-sister to Grade 1-winner Sippican Harbor, Japan-based millionaire Awesome Result and stakes-winner Crudo.

 

Joseph, Jr. also entered Jackpot Farm’s Kentucky homebred Laken [post 4, Vincent Cheminaud] and Tahlequah [post 9, Paco Lopez] for Mathis Stable, Paul Braverman, Timothy Pinch, Shining Stables, Turf Express Racing and BAG Racing Stables.

 

Laken, a Good Magic dark bay, made five prior outings for trainer Victoria Oliver and will now make her first start for Joseph, Jr.. She tried sprinting on dirt and synthetic as well as turf routing before graduating at fourth asking when stretched out to 1 1/16-miles on dirt on June 9 at Horseshoe Indianapolis. There, she pressed a moderate pace before taking over through three-quarters in 1:12.03 and drew off to score by seven lengths in a final time of 1:43.32. The winning effort returned a career-high 80 Beyer.

 

Laken followed last out with a 1 1/2-length third in a 1 1/16-mile optional-claimer over sloppy and sealed footing on June 26 at Churchill Downs – a race that runner-up and returning rival Answered Prayers exited to win an optional-claimer en route to a second in the Listed Seneca Overnight.

 

Laken is out of the Honor Code mare Pure Poison, a half-sister to dual graded stakes-winner Florida Won. Her third dam is reine-de-course mare Oatsee, who produced multiple Grade 1-winner and 2011 Preakness hero Shackleford and Grade 1-winner Lady Joanne.

 

Tahlequah, by Authentic, graduated at fourth asking traveling 1 1/16-miles in April at Oaklawn Park when one length better than returning rival Tap to Open. She has made her last two outings in graded company, including an eased sixth in June at Delaware Park ahead of a two-length third in the Grade 2 Charles Town Oaks on August 28. The Charles Town Oaks runner-up, At a Premium, returned to win the Breeders’ Classic there.

 

Tahlequah, out of the Candy Ride mare Bonnie Flag, was bred in Kentucky by St. Elias Stables. Her second dam is the dual Grade 1-placed Bonnie Blue Flag. 

 

Klaravich Stables’ Cognition [post 1, Flavien Prat] returned from a more than one-year layoff to graduate at second asking last out versus elders on October 2 at Keeneland. 

 

There, the Practical Joke dark bay made every pole a winning one in the seven-furlong maiden sprint, zipping through splits of 22.45 seconds, 45.40 and 1:10.25 en route to a four-length score in a final time of 1:27.08 over next-out winner Rules and Regs.

 

She is trained by five-time Eclipse Award-winner Chad Brown, who won this event last year with Fully Subscribed, the runner-up in Saturday’s Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Distaff.

 

Cognition has worked back three times over the Belmont dirt training track, including a half-mile in 49.30 October 31.

 

"She's in the same great form as she was prior to her win at Keeneland. We are excited to see her run back,” said Lee Vickers, Brown’s New York-based assistant. “This is one turn. Let's see if she can kind of dictate things again and just hold on a little bit. She's got plenty of natural speed, so let's see how she can hold on." 

 

Cognition broke awkwardly in her August 2025 debut at Saratoga en route to a distant third-place finish. The $170,000 Keeneland September Yearling Sale purchase is out of the winning Super Saver mare Syllable – a half-sister to Grade 3-placed stakes-winner Telekinesis.



A talented group includes Grade 1-winning New York-bred Iron Orchard [post 5, Dylan Davis], who was off-the-board last out in the Cotillion for Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen; a talented pair for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott in stakes-placed Answered Prayers [post 2, Junior Alvarado] and maiden winner Ati Girl [post 6, John Velazquez], who was fifth last out in the Grade 1 Alabama; Listed stakes-winner Tap to Open [post 3, Manny Franco], who exits a fourth in the Cotillion for dual Eclipse Award-winning trainer Brad Cox; stakes-winner Ivy Girl [post 8, Antonio Fresu] for trainer Amelia Green; and Run Wild [post 11, Samuel Marin], who recently defeated older allowance company for trainer Miguel Clement.

 

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