Explora Tabbed 3-5 Favorite For Dogwood Stakes

Mike Pegram, Karl Watson and Paul Weitman’s Grade 1 winner Explora was tabbed as the 3-5 morning line favorite against five 3-year-old fillies entered in Saturday’s 51st running of the $300,000 Dogwood Stakes presented by Resolute Racing (G3), one of three stakes on the Downs After Dark program at Churchill Downs.

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Trained by Bob Baffert, Explora scored an impressive five-length victory in last month’s Test Stakes (G2) at Saratoga. As a 2-year-old, Explora won the Oak Leaf (G2) before finishing second in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies. She began her 3-year-old campaign by winning the seven-furlong Santa Ynez (Listed) then stretched out around two turns and won the Honeybee (G3) prior to a fourth-place finish in the Longines Kentucky Oaks. In June, Baffert returned Explora to one-turn, where she won the Leslie’s Lady (Listed), a prep for the Aug. 8 Test. Jockey Juan Hernandez will have the riding assignment in Saturday’s race and will break from the rail.

The complete lineup from the rail out for the seven-furlong Dogwood, which goes as the evening’s eighth race at 9:39 p.m. (with jockey, trainer and morning line odds):

1. Explora (Juan Hernandez, Baffert, 3-5)
2. My Steel Magnolia (Cristian Torres, Caio Caramori, 30-1)
3. Where Luck Lives (Tyler Gaffalione, Brian Lynch, 12-1)
4. Conceit (Mario Gutierrez, Brad Cox, 7-2)
5. Movie Night (Axel Concepcion, Will Walden, 9-2)
6. A Fine Chardonnay (Brian Hernandez Jr., Ian Wilkes, 6-1)

Two races earlier, a field of six 3-year-olds were entered in the sixth running of the $300,000 Harrods Creek, led by Gervais Racing’s Maxfield Stakes (G3) runner-up American Man as the 9-5 morning line favorite.

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The field for the Harrods Creek in order of post position (with jockey and trainer):

1. Gilded Bandit (Luan Machado, Bill Mott, 3-1)
2. American Man (Cristian Torres, Dallas Stewart, 9-5)
3. Stop the Car (Brian Hernandez Jr., Brendan Walsh, 7-2)
4. Tagermeen (Jaime Torres, Steve Asmussen, 4-1)
5. Creole Chrome (Axel Concepcion, Joe Sharp, 6-1)
6. Doublecents (Francisco Arrieta, Brett Creighton, 12-1)

The stakes action will close in Race 10 where Juddmonte’s G2 winner Consequent was made the 6-5 favorite in the $200,000 Seneca Overnight Stakes (Listed).

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The field for the Seneca from the rail out (with jockey and trainer):

1. Woodstock (Ben Curtis, Joe Sharp, 20-1)
2. Answered Prayers (Jaime Torres, Bill Mott, 5-1)
3. Consequent (Juan Hernandez, Baffert, 6-5)
4. Knickleandime (Rafael Bejarano, Randy Morse, 6-1)
5. A. P.’s Girl (Brian Hernandez Jr., Peter Eurton, 3-1)
6. In Total Awe (Axel Concepcion, Al Stall Jr., 7-2)

First post for Saturday’s card is 6 p.m.

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This story was originally published September 16, 2026 at 8:35 AM.