By Jarrod Horak
The Grade 2 Gulfstream Park Oaks and Grade 3 Fantasy Stakes were the latest road to Kentucky Oaks 2024 points races. In this report, I will look back at those events and update my “Fabulous 5” Oaks contenders. The Grade 1 Ashland on April 5 and the Gazelle (G3) and Santa Anita Oaks (G2) on April 6 are the final three Kentucky Oaks points races.
Kentucky Oaks 2024 Points Race Recaps
Gulfstream Park Oaks (3-30-24)
Fractions: 24.18, 47.86, 1:11.66, 1:37.55, 1:44.19
Top 5 Finishers: Power Squeeze, Ways and Means, Into Champagne, Gun Song, Scalable
They were bunched up and jockeying for position in the early going, and post time favorite Ways and Means probably took the worst of it. She was bumped around pretty good and shuffled back, and was forced to move outside around the first turn. Chad Brown’s returnee made a quick wide move on the backstretch to challenge for the lead, and hit the front turning for home and was looking pretty good. One horse in this race avoided all of the traffic and that was Power Squeeze. The latter broke from the inside post and saved all the ground stalking the pace. Power Squeeze was all alone in fourth behind Into Champagne, Gun Song, and Ways and Means, and the latter emerged as the leader turning for home. Daniel Centeno was getting busy aboard Power Squeeze and she started making inroads, and she caught Ways and Means late and scored by a length. The runner-up was 5 3/4 lengths in front of Into Champagne and Gun Song. Power Squeeze has now won four straight. Ways and Means was making her first start since September 2023 and could have easily won this race with a better trip, and she is the runner I want out of this heat.
