Photo:

Jessica Morgan / Eclipse Sportswire

Godolphin’s promising homebred 2-year-old filly Good Cheer remained unbeaten in four starts when she put away stablemate Éclatant at
the top of the stretch and easily turned back a late run by Quietside to
comfortably win by 2 1/2 lengths Saturday in the 81st running of the Grade 2, $400,000
Golden Rod Stakes at Churchill Downs.

Good Cheer, a 4 3/4-length winner of the $200,000 Rags to
Riches at Churchill Downs a month ago, returned to run 1 1/16 miles over a fast
track in 1:43.26 in a field of seven 2-year-old fillies. It was the second
fastest clocking in Golden Rod history, behind only legendary Rachel
Alexandra’s 1:43.08 in 2008.

Click here for Churchill Downs entries and results.

She collected the $242,470 first prize and 10 points as part
of the road to the Kentucky Oaks (G1) that offers points on a scale of
10-5-3-2-1 to the top five finishers of early prep races.

Luis Sáez rode the winner for trainer Brad Cox,
who saddled his second Golden Rod winner. The other came in 2020 with Travel
Column.

My Lil Punky tugged her way to the front and led the
field of seven through early fractions of a 24.31 and 48.66 seconds as Éclatant
pressed from second and Good Cheer was content to track in relaxed fashion from
fifth up the backstretch. Good Cheer made a sweeping, three-wide move on the
turn to draw even with Éclatant, who put away My Lil Punky after six furlongs
in 1:12.55. Good Cheer kicked clear of Éclatant at the three-sixteenths pole as
Quietside rallied to hopelessly chase the winner down the stretch only to be a
clear second-best.

“She’s been so
impressive in all four of her starts so far,” Sáez said. “She was really
tugging at me around the turn and I knew it was time to go. She finished up
really well down the lane.”

Good Cheer paid $3.32, $2.36 and $2.10 as the odds-on 3-5
favorite. Quietside, under Tyler Gaffalione, paid $3.28 and $2.30 at odds
of 7-2. Eclatant, at odds of 2-1, was another six lengths back in third and
returned $2.32 to show with Florent Geroux up.

Sturgeon Moon finished fourth and was followed by Flash
Wear, Fixin to Bee and My Lil Punky.

Good Cheer has beaten her competition by a combined 32 1/2 lengths
in four starts. Her earnings total $457,630.

“Her record
really speaks for itself, and the style in which she’s won all of those races
has been very impressive,” Cox said. “She is another testament to Godolphin’s
program. She’s handled everything we’ve done with her so far extremely well,
and I think we haven’t seen her best yet.”

By Medaglia d’Oro, Good Cheer is out of Street Sense mare
Wedding Toast. The bay filly was bred in Kentucky by her owners.