Darling Among Oaks Entries

Daddys Lil Darling | Coady

American filly Daddys Lil Darling (Scat Daddy) was among the 23 entries for the June 2 G1 Investec Oaks at the latest confirmation stage on Friday. A Grade II winner at two, the Normandy Farm homebred ships to England off runner-up efforts in the GI Ashland S. and GI Kentucky Oaks. Trained by Kenny McPeek, she becomes the first American-trained filly to contest the Oaks.

“It is absolutely the plan to come over for the Investec Oaks with Daddys Lil Darling,” said McPeek. “She is good right now. We have some logistical details to finalise, but the plan is to fly out on Monday. We will be boarding in Epsom with Jim Boyle.”

McPeek is familiar with preparing horses to run in England, having made numerous trips to Ascot and having finished second in the 2004 G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S. with Hard Buck, and he added, “She gets to canter every day on our turf course at the farm. She will have a scheduled work today and then will go light training before she travels.”

“I don't think the mile-and-a-half at Epsom Downs is going to be a problem–I think it is more a question of whether she is going to be competitive against some of the European runners, particularly Aidan O'Brien's Galileo fillies,” McPeek said. “We will have to see how she fits. She has obviously shown she is Grade I calibre in the U.S., both as a 2-year-old and a 3-year-old. We will be stepping into a different territory and are excited to find out how she handles it.”

Daddys Lil Darling will be ridden at Epsom by Olivier Peslier.

“The plan is for him to come and do some track work on Daddys Lil Darling on May 26,” McPeek explained. “I am extremely excited by the challenge, I don't think any American trainer has ever attempted this challenge. Hopefully we can start a trend.”

Also among the Oaks confirmations are G1 Qipco 1000 Guineas one-two Winter (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Rhododendron (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), as well as their Aidan O'Brien stablemates Hydrangea (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), Alluringly (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) and Rain Goddess (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). O'Brien's son Joseph could saddle last year's G1 Moyglare Stud S. winner Intricately (Ire) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}).

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