War Like Goddess Faces Rebel’s Romance in Joe Hirsch

Encores will be foremost on the menu Sept. 30 in the $500,000 Joe Hirsch Turf Classic (G1T) at Aqueduct Racetrack.

New York’s 1 1/2-mile top-level prep for the Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1T) features two starters among a field of nine with thoughts of back-to-back wins rolling in the minds of their connections.

One is George Krikorian’s War Like Goddess , a 6-year-old mare seeking consecutive Joe Hirsch victories after beating males in last year’s edition for trainer Bill Mott.

Then there’s Godolphin’s homebred Rebel’s Romance , who is using Saturday’s race as a means to an end of duplicating his victory in the 2022 Turf.

Mix in Stone Age , who was second in last year’s Turf, and you have a highly competitive and entertaining grade 1 affair that brings together the top three finishers from the 2022 Turf at Keeneland.

War Like Goddess, who was third in the Turf, is coming off a neck loss in the Glens Falls Stakes (G2T) against fillies and mares. She was scheduled to run in the Flower Bowl Stakes (G2T) at Saratoga Race Course but was scratched due to a fever, causing a shift to the Joe Hirsch at a favored approximate distance where she owns six wins, a second, a third in eight tries.

“She seems good,” Mott said about the English Channel mare out of the North Light (IRE) mare Misty North.

Rebel’s Romance is coming off a nearly disastrous trip in the July 30 Bowling Green Stakes (G2T) at the Spa when he clipped heels and lost his rider as a 1-2 favorite.

In the Dubawi gelding’s only other start since his 2 1/4-length win in the Turf, he was seventh in the Dubai Sheema Classic (G1).

“I think without the incident (in the Bowling Green), he was going so well and to me, he would have won easily,” said Sophie Chretien, an assistant to head trainer Charlie Appleby. “It’s something we weren’t expecting. But in the mornings, he doesn’t show anything is wrong. He’s been racing a long time and he looks so happy, hopefully he goes over like that.”

Stone Age, the 2022 Turf runner-up, made his debut for trainer Chad Brown in the Aug.26 Sword Dancer Stakes (G1T) at Saratoga, but tired to finish fifth after contesting the early pace. Considering it was his first start in more than six months, the 4-year-old son of Galileo figures to be more formidable in Saturday’s stakes for owners Peter Brant, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, and Westerberg.

Brown will also send out grade 1 winner Adhamo , who is seeking his first win since taking last year’s United Nations Stakes (G1T). Owned by Madaket Stables, Michael Dubb, Louis Lazzinnaro, and Michael Caruso, the 5-year-old son of Intello was third last time out in the Arlington Million Stakes (G1T).

Soldier Rising is searching for his first graded stakes win in his 20th career start, but the Frankel gelding has been a highly consistent factor in top turf stakes. Trained by Christophe Clement, he was second in his last three tries at the grade 1 level, including a second in the Sword Dancer in his most recent start for ownership group of Dubb, Morris Bailey, Madaket Stables, Wonder Stables, and Caruso.

Saturday’s card will start at 12:05 p.m. ET with television coverage on FS2 through America’s Day at the Races from 12-3:30 p.m.