03-08-2025
Millionaire Be Your Best Headlines Beverly D.
Millionaire Be Your Best Headlines Beverly D. originally appeared on Paulick Report.
With more than $1 million in lifetime earnings, Michael J. Ryan's Irish-bred Be Your Best headlines the $500,000 Beverly D. (G2), one of three graded turf stakes slated for Colonial Downs' Festival of Racing Day on Saturday.
Since joining the barn of Saffie Joseph Jr., Be Your Best has won four of her six starts, all graded stakes, the Gamely (G1) gate-to-wire May 25 at Santa Anita Park in her most recent start. She kicked off her 5-year-old campaign with an impressive stalk-and-pounce score in the Pegasus World Cup Filly and Mare Turf Invitational (G2) at Gulfstream Park. Tabbed as the 9-5 morning line favorite in a field of six, Be Your Best will be guided from post 2 by Tyler Gaffalione.
Chief among her competition for the 1 3/16-mile test is Jane Bacharach, William De Burgh, and Richard Schatz's Duvet Day. The Irish-bred trained by Mike McCarthy concluded her 5-year-old campaign with a win in the Cardinal (G3) at Churchill Downs last November. After getting her 6-year-old campaign going in the Mint Julep (G3), Duvet Day ran a strong second to Pin Up Betty going nine furlongs in the Anchorage at Churchill Downs.
'She seems to be in the best form of her career, numbers-wise,' McCarthy said. 'It's a big ask to run in a prestigious race like (the Beverly D.), but it's always nice to be able to participate in those kinds of races.'
Drawing post 6, Duvet Day will have Hall of Fame jockey john Velazquez in the irons.
Also exiting the Mint Julep and Anchorage, Domeyko Taylor's Charlene's Dream looms as a serious threat to win the Beverly D. Trained by Ed Moger Jr., Charlene's Dream earned her fourth added-money score this spring at Pimlico in the Gallorette (G3) on the Preakness undercard. Javier Castellano takes the call aboard the 4-year-old who drew post 4.
Another logical contender is Cayton Park Stud's South Africa-bred Beach Bomb, who ran second to She Feels Pretty last out in the New York Stakes (G1) at Saratoga for trainer Graham Motion.
Here is the complete field for the $500,000 Beverly D. (G2) from the rail out with jockey, trainer and morning line odds: Chick's Shadow (Jose E. Lopez, Angel Rodriguez, 15-1); Be Your Best (Gaffalione, Joseph Jr., 9-5); Beach Bomb (Luis Saez, Motion, 4-1); Charlene's Dream (Castellano, Moger Jr., 7-2); Spanish Eyes (Ben Curtis, Brendan Walsh, 9-2); and Duvet Day (Velazquez, McCarthy, 3-1).
This story was originally reported by Paulick Report on Aug 3, 2025, where it first appeared.
