2025 Beverly D. Stakes Preview at Colonial Downs

Key Takeaways:

• Be Your Best is the 9-5 morning-line favorite and the lone U.S. Grade 1 winner in the field, but faces questions about distance and pace pressure.
• Beach Bomb, a multiple Group 1 winner from South Africa, has acclimated well in the U.S. and may thrive if the turf comes up soft.
• Duvet Day and Spanish Eyes are the strongest closers in a pace-heavy race and offer strong value with a likely setup in their favor.
• A competitive six-horse field with no Chad Brown runners marks a rare open edition of this historic turf race.

Filly and mare turf routers take the stage Saturday, August 9, at Colonial for the Grade 2 Beverly D. Stakes. This $500,000 race, at 1 3/16 miles on the grass, drew a field of six, including Grade 1 winner Be Your Best and multiple South Africa Group 1 winner Beach Bomb to vie for one of the most historic prizes in American turf racing.

The Beverly D. takes its name from Beverly Duchossois, the late wife of former Arlington owner Richard Duchossois. The race began in 1987, the fillies’ and mares’ complement to the Arlington Million. Like the Arlington Million, it has moved around a bit recently: after Arlington Park closed in 2021, the Beverly D. went to Churchill Downs in 2022, and then found a home at Colonial Downs starting in 2023.

A Grade 1 race between 1991 and 2023, the winners’ list is a who’s who of top female turf horses of recent decades, including Hatoof, Possibly Perfect, Stacelita, Dank, and Sistercharlie. And, even though the race was downgraded to a Grade 2 for 2024, the winner, Moira, went on to win the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf and take down an Eclipse Award for champion turf female.

2025 Beverly D. Stakes Information

• Race Date: Saturday, August 9
• Track: Colonial Downs
• Post Time: 5:17 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time
• Distance: 1 3/16 miles on the turf
• Age/Sex: three-year-olds and up, fillies and mares
• Where to Watch: FanDuel Racing
• Where to Bet: FanDuel Racing

Beverly D. Stakes Draw and Odds

This is the field for the 2025 Beverly D. Stakes, including post positions, trainers, jockeys, and morning-line odds for each runner.

Beverly D. Stakes Prep Race Results

The six entrants in the Beverly D. Stakes come out of five different races, with five of the six coming out of stakes company.

Three horses come out of graded-stakes races, including two at the top level. Be Your Best broke through at the top level in her most recent start when she wired the Gamely (G1) at Santa Anita on May 26. Beach Bomb also comes out of a strong effort in a Grade 1 race: she tracked the pace and fought on to finish second by just a half length behind She Feels Pretty in the New York (G1) at Saratoga on June 6. The other last-out graded-stakes runner is Spanish Eyes, who missed by a head in the Robert G. Dick Memorial (G3) on July 5 at Delaware Park.

Two others come out of the ungraded Anchorage, a 1 ⅛-mile race at Churchill Downs on June 29. Duvet Day rallied from near the rear to finish second, beaten just three-quarters of a length by Pin Up Betty. Charlene’s Dream pressed a quick pace and flattened late to fifth, but was still only beaten 1 ¾ lengths for top honors.

Chick’s Shadow is the only horse coming out of non-stakes company for the race. She most recently finished second, beaten 2 ¾ lengths in a conditioned allowance at Colonial, overcoming a stumble at the start to rally late.

Beverly D. Stakes Contenders

This is a closer look at the horses in the 2025 Beverly D. Stakes, from the rail out.

1. Chick’s Shadow: She is a Colonial Downs horse for the course, never finishing worse than second in four tries over it, including a last-out second when she overcame a poor start to chase on for second. Still, she was beaten 3 ¼ lengths by the winner, and that race (like all her local efforts) was nowhere near fast enough to beat the top contenders in this race if they show up with their usual race. She also tries this distance for the first time—that last race was 1 ⅛ miles, so she’s only stepping up another sixteenth of a mile, but most of her better races have been shorter, and her last win came almost a year ago on Tapeta. She should appreciate all the speed drawn in, and may round out a trifecta or superfecta based on a favorable pace, but that looks like the ceiling.
2. Be Your Best: She is a last-out Grade 1 winner, but this won’t be an easy spot. After all, she does her best work on or near the lead. And, she is drawn inside Beach Bomb and Charlene’s Dream – two more horses who have early pace to spare. To her credit, she has been able to win from a stalk-and-pounce shape, like she did in the Pegasus World Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G2) and the Sewanee River (G3) three and four starts back. Though, that could be a tougher trip to work since she is drawn inside. And, the distance is on the long side for her. In short, she has class and tactical ability, but between the draw and the distance, be careful at a short price.
3. Beach Bomb: Though it took a few starts for this multiple South Africa Group 1 winner to put it together in the United States, she is settled now for trainer Graham Motion. She won a pair of long-distance graded-stakes races at Gulfstream over the winter, and has finished second against the New York set in her last two starts, meaning she fits with the top echelon of American grass mares. With all the pace in the race, there is some concern—her two wins stateside have been on the front end at every call, and she has fallen just short when forced to stalk in her last two. She is fast enough to be part of the pace this time—but with Be Your Best inside and Charlene’s Dream outside, she’ll either have to gun early or prove she can stalk, pounce, and finish the job. Still, the distance suits her kindly, and the rain in the forecast benefits her more than anyone, so she may put it together despite the pace question.
4. Charlene’s Dream: Three of the six horses in this field have lots of pace, and she is the best drawn of the set, coming from the outside of that cluster. She wasn’t quite the same last out, being forced to stalk a quick pace and pounce—against this calibre of company, she probably needs to be on the front end. She also has to prove she can stay this distance, as her best work has come at distances like a mile or 1 1/16 miles. The best suggestion that she can finish in the frame, though, comes in the turf condition. With rain likely this week, it reflects well that she has won both her outings over less-than-firm going.
5. Spanish Eyes: Last year’s German Oaks (G1) runner-up, she has yet to win in two starts in the United States this year, and neither of her outings have come back particularly fast. Those are concerns. However, she still has room to improve in just her third start stateside and her eighth race total. And, for the first time since racing in Germany, she is finally likely to get rain-affected going. Between the course conditions, the fact that she should appreciate getting some pace to chase into, and the fact that she gets red-hot Colonial Downs jockey Ben Curtis in the irons? She has serious upside at a square price.
6. Duvet Day: She rallied fiercely into a hot pace in the Anchorage last out, missing by less than a length in the end. With three of the six horses in this field doing their best work on the lead, this setup bodes well for her. She has some upside to improve on form cycle as well, coming third off the layoff for trainer Michael McCarthy, who has won 25% of the time with a flat-bet profit in that circumstance over the last three years. Watch the price, though—she has never been better than third in five starts over 1 3/16 or 1 ¼ miles, and also has limited experience on turf with any sort of give in it, given how much of her career she has spent in California.

Beverly D. Stakes FAQ

Q: When and where is the Beverly D. Stakes?

A: The Beverly D. Stakes will be run Saturday, August 9, at Colonial Downs in New Kent, Virginia. It is the 10th of 12 races on the card, with post scheduled for 5:17 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time.

Q: Which trainer has the most wins in the Beverly D. Stakes?

A: Chad Brown has the most Beverly D. Stakes wins of any trainer, with six between 2011 and 2019, all at Arlington Park. Brown does not have a horse entered in 2025. All of the trainers entered this year are going for their first win in the race.

Q: Who is the favorite for the Beverly D. Stakes?

A: The 9-5 morning-line favorite is Be Your Best. She should hold as the choice come post time—she won the Gamely last out, making her the only United States Grade 1 winner in the field, and also won the Pegasus World Cup Filly and Mare Turf three back. However, she does have distance questions and even track-condition questions … if those factors influence the betting, there is a good chance that Beach Bomb (4-1)—a Group 1 winner in South Africa and Grade 1-placed in New York—could be significantly shorter than her morning line.

Q: Who is the best Beverly D. Stakes jockey?

A: Kent Desormeaux and Ryan Moore have been the winning jockey in the Beverly D. Stakes three times each. However, none of them take a call in this year’s edition. John Velazquez, who won this race in both 2018 and 2019 at Arlington Park with Sistercharlie, can tie the record if he wins with Duvet Day.

Q: Who won the Beverly D. Stakes in 2024?

A: Moira won the 2024 Beverly D. Stakes for trainer Kevin Attard and jockey Jose Ortiz. Neither returns to the race in 2025.

New to FanDuel Racing? Place your first bet up to $500 and get it back in Racing Bonus if it doesn’t win! Valid in participating states. See here for full terms and conditions. Head over to FanDuel Racing to see all of today’s horse racing odds.

Looking for more horse racing betting opportunities? Head over to FanDuel Racing to see all of today’s horse racing odds.