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Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint winner Groupie Doll breezed a half-mile in :48 1/5 over Churchill Downs' fast dirt on Saturday morning in preparation for a possible start against the boys in the Grade 1, $350,000 Cigar Mile at Aqueduct on November 24. Working on her own following the track's renovation break, Groupie Doll, who races for Buff Bradley, Fred Bradley, Carl Hurst and Brent Burns, went the first quarter-mile in :24 3/5, finished in :23 3/5 and galloped out five furlongs in 1:01 2/5 under jockey John McKee. "We'll see how she comes back and then probably make a decision tomorrow (Sunday)," trainer Buff Bradley said. "I'm sure the weights will be fair, so I'm thinking that mostly we got this work into her to see that she still wants to do it. I want to wait and see what tomorrow brings. I want to see her tomorrow and see how she comes back." About an hour after her workout, Bradley was happy with the way his three-time Grade 1-winning daughter of Bowman's Band was cooling out. |
"She's doing great. She's not even blowing," Bradley said. "She's retained her fitness level and she's happy."
Groupie Doll is currently riding a five-race win streak that began with victories in the Madison Stakes and Humana Distaff, both Grade 1s, during the spring. Her 4 1/2-length triumph in the Filly & Mare Sprint made her the probable champion female sprinter when the Eclipse Awards are handed out in January.
Weights for the Cigar Mile will be announced Sunday with entries taken Wednesday.