America's Best Racing. The Jockey Club.

Serving as a feeder into the prestigious Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Stakes (G1) at Keeneland Race Course next month, Saturday’s Pucker Up Stakes (G3) at Arlington Park drew a full field of 12. In recent years, the Pucker Up has been won by some excellent sophomore turf fillies, including: Marketing Mix (2011), Hot Cha Cha (2010), Dreaming of Anna (2007), Vacare (2006) and Ticker Tape (2004).

Surprisingly, recent Virginia Oaks (G3) winner Volcat is the only graded or group stakes winner amongst the dozen, but there are several promising types, including Euro imports and top two morning-line choices Angegreen (7-2) and Miss Cato (9-2). Other viable contenders include Treasured Up, third in the Regret Stakes (G3) two starts back at Churchill Downs; and Leading Astray and Freedom Reigns, the one-two finishers, respectively, in the swifter of the two runnings of the locally run Hatoof Stakes.

Two divisions of the Hatoof Stakes were run on the Arlington Million Stakes (G1) undercard, and the one won by Leading Astray was more than a second faster than the one taken down by the longshot Julia’s Star. The winner of three straight Arlington turf races in advance of her appearance in the second division of the local Hatoof Stakes, Freedom Reigns would uncork a huge late rally, only to fall a nose short to Leading Astray, and she's since fired a bullet workout. The presence of a few contending invaders should help inflate the price.

Imported from England early summer, Miss Cato finished a respectable fourth in the American Oaks Stakes (G1) at Hollywood Park in her initial stateside start. Rated from farther off the pace when shortened up and dropped down into a first-level allowance race at Del Mar, she flew home late and just missed. She arrived early to acclimate, and must be considered armed and dangerous.

In order to call upon Mike Smith to pilot, trainer Graham Motion must think he has a serious filly in Angegreen, who most recently was seen finishing second of 13 in an Italian Group 2 race.

Treasured Up finished a solid third behind the accomplished Centre Court in the Regret on Churchill grass, but followed up with a clunker as the favorite in the Arlington Oaks (G3) on the synthetic Polytrack surface. Perhaps the return to turf will awaken her.

Volcat won the Virginia Oaks, but that race is tough to gauge. It looked weak going in, and the visuals of the actual running weren’t impressive, but take note that the 2-3-4 finishers have all since returned to win.

My selections:

Freedom Reigns

Miss Cato

Angegreen

Leading Astray

$175,000 Pucker Up Stakes (G3)

Saturday, Arlington Park, Race 8, 4:44 p.m. CDT

3-year-old Fillies, 1 1/8 Miles, Turf