​2022 Alcibiades Stakes Betting Odds and Contenders Preview

The Alcibiades Stakes (G1), a 1 1/16-mile race for juvenile fillies, is the traditional opening-day feature of the Keeneland fall meet. The spoils of the race on Friday, October 7 are rich: a $500,000 purse, as well as an expenses-paid bid to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies. Since Keeneland hosts the Breeders’ Cup this year, the field was well subscribed: in fact, it filled to its capacity of 14.

Keep on reading to learn more about the race, meet the field, find out the recent trends, and know how to watch and wager on the race online!

Alcibiades Stakes 2022 Information

Race: Friday, October 7, 2022
Track: Keeneland
Post Time: 5:16 p.m. Eastern time
Distance: one and one-sixteenth miles on the dirt
Age/Sex: two-year-old fillies
Where to Watch: FanDuel TV
Where to Bet: TVG.com and FanDuel Racing

Alcibiades Stakes Odds

This is the 14-horse field for the 2022 Alcibiades Stakes. Keep in mind that the morning lines are the track handicapper’s best estimate of what the tote board will look like come post time. Especially with lightly-raced young horses like these, the betting board can be surprising or volatile at times. Make sure to stay tuned to FanDuel TV all day long for odds updates and on-site news, so you can stay informed and make the smartest possible betting decisions!

This is the field for the 2022 Alcibiades Stakes including post positions, trainers, jockeys, and morning-line odds.

Alcibiades Stakes Prep Results

Four of the runners in the Alcibiades come from the Spinaway (G1) at Saratoga. Though winner Leave No Trace does not join the fray, second-place Wonder Wheel, third-place Kaling, fifth-place Sabra Tuff, and sixth-place Just Cindy do. The only last-out graded winner in the field is Fun and Feisty, last seen winning the Pocahontas (G3) at Churchill Downs; fourth-place Boss Lady Bailey attempts the Alcibiades as well.

The other last-out stakes winner in the field is Chop Chop, who won the Kentucky Downs Juvenile Fillies on grass. Mustang Lady, fifth in that race, also attempts the Alcibiades. The other six runners all come into the race from maiden special weight victories; though no horse in this race has won more than twice, none of the entrants are still maidens.

Alcibiades Stakes Contenders

Wonder Wheel: She impressed in her first two starts and went off the favorite in the Spinaway. However, she chased on but could not reel in Leave No Trace, who she will not have to face again in this. She has tactical versatility on her side and should be able to handle a middle distance, though the rail post in this 14-horse field is a drawback.

Chop Chop: She has done well on the grass, graduating on debut in a mile at Ellis and winning a stakes at Kentucky Downs. Both times, she tracked in range and got up in the lane. That tactical speed and two-turn ability help her, though she will have to prove that she can handle dirt. Her pedigree suggests that is not out of the question, though, and trainer Brad Cox shines turf-to-dirt.

Stellar Lady: It took her three starts to break her maiden, and she finally did it last out at Kentucky Downs. It is a good sign that she graduated when stretching out to a route, and her debut was a credible second on dirt behind Leave No Trace, who went on to win the Spinaway. The big question is that her races have not come back nearly as fast as the major contenders in this race.

Raging Sea: She has raced just once, but that victory was a stalk-and-pounce score in a seven-furlong maiden special at Saratoga. She is bred top and bottom for more ground underneath her, and her trainer Chad Brown often succeeds when stretching his runners out. She stands to be heavily bet because Brown always is, but the upside is there.

Xigera: Distance has been the name of the game for this daughter of Nyquist: she ran second on debut going 1 1/16 miles, and then graduated at the same distance next out, both times at Saratoga. However, both of those starts have been on the grass, meaning she still needs to prove herself on this footing. That said, being by Nyquist out of a stakes winner on dirt, she may take to this nicely.

Mustang Lady: She won by a neck in an off-turf maiden sprint at Ellis Park, punching her ticket for an attempt in a stakes at Kentucky Downs. She was a well-beaten fifth behind Chop Chop that day, however. Perhaps she did not like Kentucky Downs, but this deep closer is going to need to take a serious step up in order to beat dirt-intended foes in this Grade 1.

Essaouira: She ran a credible second in a turf sprint on debut, then woke up second-out when sent two turns on the dirt. Though this Grade 1 at Keeneland is a serious step up from a five-horse maiden race at Delaware, there are plenty of good signs: Graham Motion has a good feel for those moves, she gets the riding services of Irad Ortiz, and it is always nice to see a horse wake up routing. However, it would have been nice to see a work after that September 14 effort.

Infinite Diamond: She cashed some minor checks in sprint races in her first two outings, but woke up when she got blinkers and stretched out to a mile on September 16, winning a maiden special weight at Gulfstream by 14 ½ lengths. However, the Gulfstream summer meet does not attract the toughest competition, and Infinite Diamond will probably not be able to set as slow an early pace as she did last time.

Fun and Feisty: It took her three starts to get off the duck, but she has been strong in her last two. She graduated by daylight in a six-furlong maiden special at Churchill Downs in August, then stretched out to 1 1/16 miles and romped in the Pocahontas. She keeps rider Julien Leparoux in the irons from those two races, as well. Especially if the early pace gets hot, she could mean trouble for the others late—for a trainer who has won two of the last four editions of this race.

Kaling: She stepped up from a debut maiden win to the Spinaway, and was well bet in that race. In range through much of it, she flattened out a bit in the end. That was still only her second start, and she has the pedigree to move forward and embrace a two-turn distance as she grows into herself—especially since trainer Todd Pletcher shines going first-time route.

Just Cindy: She stalked and pounced to win each of her first two starts, but after a bad break she was out of contention in the Spinaway. With a better start she should be back to her preferred trip in this spot, and her pedigree supports the stretch out to a two-turn distance like this. Off of her first two starts, she should provide ample value on the tote given her excuse in the Spinaway.

Take Charge Briana: She raced three times in maiden specials at Saratoga, getting over the mark on September 4 in a seven-furlong race. She stumbled at the start that day, and still managed to keep coming in the lane and get up. That is a positive, since it shows she can keep her head together even when things do not go her way. She also has a strong distance pedigree. Even so, she needs a sharp step up in speed terms, so demands a price.

Sabra Tuff: She got off the mark on debut at Churchill Downs, but has yet to look like a winner since. She chased on fine for minor shares in the Churchill Debutante and the Adirondack (G3), though never kicked on in the Spinaway and faces an even deeper bunch this time. She also has to handle a challenging gate.

Boss Lady Bailey: She tracked close to the pace and got up by a neck to graduate on debut in a dirt sprint at Ellis. Though she was nowhere near the lead in the Pocahontas, she still managed to chase on with some interest to finish fourth behind Fun and Feisty. It was not a bad first try routing, but both of her races have come back on the slow side and she has to deal with the far outside post.

Alcibiades Stakes Past Winners Past Performances

Over the last ten years, there is not a specific race that typically supplies winners of the Alcibiades. Only one winner has come out of the Spinaway (G1); Restless Rider (2018) finished second in that race. The only other dirt stakes in the last ten years that has produced an Alcibiades winner was the off-turf P. G. Johnson in 2020, which Simply Ravishing won on the way to this race. The other three stakes to produce Alcibiades winners include the Del Mar Juvenile Turf, where Gomo (2015) ran third, the Natalma (G2), where Spring in the Air (2012) ran second, and the Summer (G2), where My Conquestadory (2013) won. Do note, however, that the Alcibiades was contested on polytrack in 2012 and 2013.

The other five recent winners came out of non-stakes races. Four of them came out of maiden special weight victories at four different tracks: Laurel, Kentucky Downs, Saratoga, and Ellis. The only horse to come out of an allowance-type race was Peace and War (2014), who had last raced in a novice race at Haydock in England.

Alcibiades Stakes Undercard

The Alcibiades Stakes is scheduled as the ninth of 10 races on Keeneland’s Friday card. There are two other graded events on the card: the Phoenix (G2), a Breeders’ Cup Sprint Win and You’re In race, and the Jessamine (G3) for juvenile turf fillies. With big fields and classy horses all day long, make plans to watch and wager on the card all day at TVG and FanDuel!

Keeneland Race Track

Keeneland is located in the heart of horse country in Lexington, Kentucky. The Keeneland Association opened the facility in 1936, and the site features both a top-class racetrack as well as a sales pavilion. The track has run meets in April and October since then, though ran the April meet in July of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keeneland hosted its first Breeders’ Cup in 2015, and held it again in 2020 without spectators. Open to the public once again, the track will host its third Breeders’ Cup in 2022.

The main track covers just over a mile on the dirt. There is a seven-furlong chute extending from the backstretch, known as the Beard Course. Keeneland also has a four-and-a-half-furlong chute, the Headley Course, off the far turn. The dirt course surrounds a seven-and-a-half-furlong turf course. The track uses two different turf configurations: the Keeneland course, with a rail 15 feet out, and the Haggin Course, with no temporary turf rail.

Alcibiades Stakes FAQ

Q: When is the Alcibiades Stakes?
A: Friday, October 7, 2022, at 5:16 p.m. Eastern time.

Q: Where is the Alcibiades Stakes?
A: It takes place at Keeneland Race Track in Lexington, Kentucky.

Q: Which trainer has the most wins in the Alcibiades Stakes?
A: Trainer D. Wayne Lukas leads with six victories in the Alcibiades, most recently with Be Gentle in 2003. Lukas will try to extend his record this year with Take Charge Briana.

Q: Who is the favorite for the Alcibiades Stakes?
A: Fun and Feisty, off of a smart victory in the Pocahontas, is the 7-2 morning line favorite in the Alcibiades. Off of that win, she will probably go off the favorite in the race. However, rail-drawn Wonder Wheel is 9-2 on the morning line; her class and her trainer Mark Casse’s record in this race make it possible that she will be a closer second choice than that.

Q: Who is the best Alcibiades Stakes jockey?
A: Don Brumfield and Rafael Bejarano are tied with three wins apiece in the Alcibiades. Bejarano, the only one of those riders who is still active, takes the call on long shot Mustang Lady.

Q: Who won the Alcibiades Stakes in 2021?
A: Juju’s Map won the 2021 Alcibiades Stakes for Brad Cox and Florent Geroux. Both return for this year’s Alcibiades, but not together. Cox conditions Chop Chop, who Joel Rosario will ride. Geroux rides Infinite Diamond for trainer Patrick Biancone.