2025 Central Bank Ashland Stakes Betting Odds and Contenders Preview

The spring meet at Keeneland opens Monday, April 7, and the racing starts hot with the Ashland Stakes: a 100-50-25-15-10 point Kentucky Oaks prep race for three-year-old fillies. The race covers 1 1/16 miles on the dirt, and drew a field of eight to contest for those points and a $600,000 purse, plus $150,000 in Kentucky-bred incentives. All but one runner, the Louisiana-bred Supa Speed, is racing for the Kentucky money as well.

The Ashland Stakes was originally scheduled for Friday, April 4, but heavy rains expected in Kentucky through the weekend caused the track to push out the Friday card to Monday. It also means that a stakes-laden day featuring the Blue Grass (G1), a final-round prep in the Kentucky Derby season, will be run on Tuesday.

Through the history of the Ashland, 14 fillies have parlayed wins in Keeneland’s signature three-year-old filly race into Kentucky Oaks lilies, most recently Malathaat in 2021. Leaders in the 2025 Ashland Stakes field include Demoiselle (G2) winner Muhimma, Busanda winner Running Away, and Supa Speed, who was nosed out in the Santa Ysabel (G2) at Santa Anita last out. However, at this time in the three-year-old season, anyone can take a step forward, and it should be an excellent betting opportunity!

Keep up with the latest Kentucky Derby odds and discover the top Kentucky Derby contenders as they are revealed.

Ashland Stakes 2025 Information

• Race Date: Tuesday, April 8, 2025
• Track: Keeneland
• Post Time: 5:16 p.m. Eastern Standard Time
• Distance: 1 1/16 miles
• Age/Sex: three-year-old fillies
• Where to Watch: FanDuel TV
• Where to Bet: FanDuel Racing

Ashland Stakes Odds

These are the entrants for the 2025 Ashland Stakes, including post positions, trainers, jockeys, and morning-line odds for each horse.

Ashland Stakes Prep Results

The eight runners in the Ashland come out of six different races, all Kentucky Oaks points preps this year. The only one with more than one last-out runner is the Honeybee (G3) at Oaklawn Park, with three last-out runners. Muhimma did best of them: she tracked the pace and finished third behind Quietside and Five G, next-out winners of the Fantasy (G2) and Gulfstream Park Oaks (G2), respectively. Look Forward tries to bounce back from a troubled seventh-place effort in the Honeybee, while Take Charge Milady had a tough trip as well and finished tenth.

A pair of runners come out of different preps in New York. Running Away, the only last-out winner in the field, wired the Busanda at Aqueduct last out. Amarth comes out of the Busher, also at Aqueduct, where she made an early rally and finished a close second behind Drexel Hill. La Cara was a chasing second behind The Queens M G in the Davona Dale (G2) at Gulfstream, Supa Speed was nosed out by Maysam in the Santa Ysabel (G3) at Santa Anita, and Admit switches to dirt after running a chasing third in the Bourbonette Oaks on the Turfway Tapeta.

Ashland Stakes Contenders

These are the contenders in the Ashland Stakes, organized by post position:

1. Look Forward: She does her best work on or near the pace, but did not start well in the Honeybee and chased to finish midfield, seventh of 13. The good news is, she has been able to win from a stalking spot, important since she may not be as fast early as Muhimma or Running Away outside of her. But, the rail draw may make starting well and working her preferred trip a little thorny. She fits if she takes a reasonable step forward from her best work, and trainer Michael McCarthy is a shrewd shipper, but there are reasons that may be a tough ask.
2. La Cara: With eight starts, she is the most seasoned horse in the field. She won the Suncoast, which tends to be a very live prep race for the Ashland—but has raced once since then, too. That race wasn’t a bad effort, she tracked the pace and chased for second behind The Queens M G. The Queens M G didn’t exactly frank that effort next out, but La Cara has a right to improve now that she switches back from one turn to two, and her tactical versatility can help her work a trip.
3. Supa Speed: A two-time winner and multiple stakes-placed on the lawn, Supa Speed tried dirt for the first time last out in the Santa Ysabel, and she took to it well, attending the pace, battling in the lane, and missing by only a nose. She does not need to be quite that close to the pace, as evidenced by her two-back allowance win in which she rallied into a torrid pace to win, but the ability to stay close to West Coast speed and keep going certainly won’t hurt her at often speed-friendly Keeneland.
4. Muhimma: She does her best work on or near the pace. She should be fast enough to be forward, though she may be forced to send with the also-speedy Running Away just outside her. Her last-out third in the Honeybee is a concern since she was forward but not quite as close as she had been in her wins, and she was no match for the top two in the race. But, on the other hand, it turns out she was facing legit company: both horses who beat her, Quietside and Five G, won 100-point preps in their next start.
5. Running Away: She has set the factions in all of her races, and shapes as the speed of the speed in this spot. She turns back from a win in the 1 ⅛-mile Busanda, but won at this distance at Churchill two back, suggesting she can be effective. It’s a positive as well that she handled front-end company in both her maiden win and her Busanda win, as Muhimma will probably give her some challenge up front in this spot; the question is if she can keep going after a challenge from a horse of that quality.
6. Take Charge Milady: She was never involved in the Honeybee, though she has excuses: a tough start, as well as some traffic during the race. If she comes away better, she should be able to work a more tactical trip, akin to what she did two back when she won the Martha Washington—over a quality horse in Quietside. If she can work that kind of trip again, she has a chance to bounce back.
7. Amarth: To her credit, she is the only horse with a win at Keeneland: she got her diploma last October in a seven-furlong sprint, and then looked quite promising when she stretched out to 1 1/16 miles next out to win a November allowance at Churchill Downs. Her next two starts haven’t been bad: she ran into some trouble when sixth in the Untapable, and didn’t miss by much in the Busher next out. The stretch out to two turns might help this daughter of McKinzie along, and trainer Eddie Kenneally does well with runners second off a lay. She needs to move forward, but at the likely huge price, there’s quite a bit to like.
8. Admit: She tried a couple of maiden races on the Horseshoe Indianapolis dirt last year, but came into her own over the Tapeta at Turfway through the winter. She could get a clean tracking trip from the outside, but the question is whether she can improve and run a career best on the dirt. It isn’t out of the question, as Admit is a daughter of Blame out of a War Front half to Pulpit. But between the class rise and surface change it will be a tough task, especially for a barn that underperforms in graded stakes.

Ashland Stakes Past Winners Past Performances

As is common at a short, boutique meet like Keeneland, winners of the Ashland come from a range of tracks. In the ten years since the Ashland shifted back to dirt from the all-weather, the strongest trends are that winners are not making their sophomore debuts, and that they hit the board in their last races.

The only horse in the last ten years to win the Ashland in her three-year-old debut was Malathaat (2021), who started for the first time since winning the Demoiselle (G2) at Aqueduct the year before. The only horse in the last ten years who missed the board in her last race before the Ashland and went on to win was Defining Purpose (2023), who rebounded from a sixth in the Honeybee (G3) at Oaklawn.

No race has been the source of more than two next-out Ashland winners over the last ten years. The Rachel Alexandra (G2) at Fair Grounds has had two: Monomoy Girl (2018) won it, while Lovely Maria (2015) was second. The Suncoast at Tampa Bay Downs also has two: both Weep No More (2016) and Nest (2022) won the Ashland off of wins in the Suncoast.

Two other Kentucky Oaks prep races have produced next-out Ashland winners in the last ten years. Speech (2020) was second in the Santa Anita Oaks (G2) in her start before the Ashland, though this is unlikely to be a common prep since the Ashland was delayed due to the COVID pandemic. Leslie’s Rose (2024) won the Ashland after a third-place finish in the Davona Dale (G2) at Gulfstream.

The other two recent winners of the Ashland came out of allowance-optional claiming races. Sailor’s Valentine (2017) was second over the Tampa Bay Downs turf in her last prep, while Out for a Spin (2019) beat off-turf allowance foes on the Fair Grounds dirt.

Ashland Stakes Undercard

The Ashland is the ninth of ten races on Monday’s card at Keeneland, which was originally scheduled for Monday but rescheduled due to severe weather in the forecast. The card features a trio of stakes races. In addition to the Ashland, there is also the $600,000 Transylvania (G3) for sophomores on the lawn as well as the $400,000 Transylvania for sophomore dirt sprinters.

Make sure to watch the Keeneland card all day long on Monday, with first post at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. You can get all the races and up-to-the-minute analysis with FanDuel TV, and you can bet every race through FanDuel!

Keeneland

Lexington, Kentucky, is the home of one of the most important venues in worldwide horse racing—Keeneland. A group of horsemen opened the track in 1936, three years after the closure of the Kentucky Association track. Keeneland is unique in that it is not only home to a top-class racecourse, but also a sales ground from which top-class horses are purchased not just by US-based owners and trainers but from those as far afield as England, Ireland, France, and Dubai.

Racing fans flock to Keeneland for both top-class racing and excellent betting opportunities during two meets, held annually in April and October. Keeneland’s standing was highlighted again in 2009 when the Horseplayers Association of North America introduced its rating system which placed it right at the top at number one. Nestled in the heart of Kentucky horse country, it is also a designated National Historic Landmark.

Ashland Stakes FAQ

Q: When and where is the Ashland Stakes?

A: The Ashland (G1) (for sponsorship purposes, known as the Central Bank Ashland Stakes) happens Monday, April 7 at 5:16 p.m. EDT at Keeneland in Lexington, Kentucky. The race is the ninth of 10 on the Keeneland race card.

Q: Which trainer has the most wins in the Ashland Stakes?

A: Woody Stephens has the most Ashland Stakes wins of any trainer, with four between 1949 and 1963. Among trainers with a horse in the 2025 edition, Kenny McPeek leads with three wins: Defining Purpose (2023), Rosalind (2014), and the great broodmare Take Charge Lady (2002). He can tie Stephens if Take Charge Milady—a granddaughter of the aforementioned Take Charge Lady, through her son Take Charge Indy—wins.

Q: Who is the favorite for the Ashland Stakes?

A: Despite a last-out defeat, Muhimma is the 9-5 favorite on the morning line for the Ashland Stakes. It makes sense: she was a competitive third in the Honeybee, which has emerged as a key race after the top two horses both came back to win 100-point Kentucky Oaks prep races.

Q: Who is the best Ashland Stakes jockey?

A: Don Brumfield, Randy Romero, Shane Sellers, and Bill Shoemaker lead all jockeys with three Ashland Stakes wins apiece, though none of them are still active. Among the jockeys entered in the 2025 edition of the Ashland, Joel Rosario leads with two wins. He won the Ashland with Rosalind (2014) and Malathaat (2021), and can gain a share of the record if he pilots Supa Speed to victory.

Q: Who won the 2024 Ashland Stakes?

A: Leslie’s Rose won the 2024 Ashland Stakes for trainer Todd Pletcher and jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr. Neither one returns to the race for 2025.

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