The richest race of Keeneland’s fall meet came up very strong this year. A full 12-horse field is lined up in Saturday’s Grade 1 Coolmore Turf Mile Stakes with a berth in the FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Mile Presented by PDJF on the line. Three entrants ship over from Europe, which makes the competition tougher and handicapping challenge even more difficult. It’s been a while since a Coolmore Turf Mile winner trained on to win the Breeders’ Cup Mile weeks later – the great Wise Dan in 2012 – but this year that streak might come to an end.

1. Donegal Momentum: Since moving to turf in fall 2024, he’s hit the board in every start on that surface save for the Kelso Stakes last summer, when he took a bad step entering the far turn and was eased. He rebounded to win the 1 1/16-mile Bernard Baruch Stakes near the end of Saratoga’s meet on the front end. Should be forwardly placed if he can get away clean from the rail and with another speedster drawn just to his outside.

JOCKEY: John Velazquez; TRAINER: Tom Morley

2. Quatrocento: Is in excellent form heading into his stakes debut, having won three out of his four most recent starts and finishing second in the other one. He was 2-for-2 at the highly competitive Kentucky Downs meet last month, winning a pair of one-mile allowance races on that Euro-style course by leading from start to finish. Dangerous if left alone on the lead, and he probably won’t be.

JOCKEY: Julien Leparoux; TRAINER: Fausto Gutierrez

3. Howard Wolowitz: Intriguing longshot who stretches out to try two turns for the first time. Has been successful sprinting on turf and all-weather and comes into the race off of a runner-up finish behind longshot pacesetter Bear River in a six-furlong turf stakes at Kentucky Downs. He’s 2-for-3 when paired with jockey Emisael Jaramillo, who figures to be aggressive early in order to get him into a secure position just behind the leaders.

JOCKEY: Emisael Jaramillo; TRAINER: Jose D’Angelo

4. Diego Velazquez: Comes in from Europe where he’s won four of his past five starts going back to summer 2024, with his only blemish coming in the prestigious Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot when he finished ninth. Since then, he’s won a Group 2 stakes at seven furlongs and then the Group 1 Prix Jacques Le Marois in France held at a mile. If that form makes the trip here, he’ll be very tough to beat with ace jockey Frankie Dettori in the irons.

JOCKEY: Frankie Dettori; TRAINER: Aiden O’Brien

5. Woodshauna: Another dangerous European shipper, he’s won four of eight career starts with one second and three thirds and never finished worse than 1 ¾ lengths behind the winner. He won a seven-furlong Group 1 stakes in France back in July on turf rated as soft and then finished third and a head out of second in a 6 ½-furlong Group 1 race in England on turf rated firm. He’ll get very firm turf in this race as well as one of Keeneland’s leading jockeys while trying two turns for the first time.

JOCKEY: Tyler Gaffalione; TRAINER: Francis-Henri Graffard

6. Mercante: Hard-knocking local runner turned heads last winter with a sharp graded stakes win on Turfway Park’s all-weather track. Since then, Mercante has made four turf starts with a Grade 3 win going 1 1/16 miles, a second, and two fourth-place efforts. Those fourths came in his most recent outings at Ellis Park and Kentucky Downs and such a finish appears to be his ceiling against this group.

JOCKEY: Joe Ramos; TRAINER: Brian Knippenberg

7. Epic Ride: A Kentucky Derby runner last year at 3, he’s been versatile this year with starts on dirt, all-weather, and recently on turf, where he took down the lucrative FanDuel TV Mint Millions Invitational Stakes held at a mile on Kentucky Downs’ Euro-style turf course. He was aggressively ridden by Edgar Morales in that race to pull off a 14.27-1 upset and might try the same approach again with some company up front.

JOCKEY: Edgar Morales; TRAINER: John Ennis

Program Trading (Mathea Kelley/BloodHorse)

8. Program Trading: Travels from New York and top turf trainer Chad Brown’s base having already tallied three Grade 1 wins through eight starts. He enters off of a runner-up effort behind Donegal Momentum in the Bernard Baruch Stakes at Saratoga, where he lost by a neck as the 1-2 favorite and when coming back after a layoff of nearly 15 months. Prefers longer distances but is far too classy to discount in his second start of the year.

JOCKEY: Flavien Prat; TRAINER: Chad Brown

9. Rhetorical: Raced twice last year at age 3 with a win and a third, and then in three starts this year (all at 1 1/16 miles) he’s displayed a powerful turn of foot and dominated his opposition. He won his first stakes appearance last out at Saratoga in a race restricted to New York-breds. Ships out of his home state for the first time and takes a huge leap in class here, with top jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. retaining the mount – a sign of confidence.

JOCKEY: Irad Ortiz Jr.; TRAINER: Will Walden

10. Brilliant Berti: Locally-based veteran has fallen slightly off form at age 4, winning two of five starts so far this year after going 5-for-7 in 2024. Both of his wins this year came in stakes races at Churchill Downs – held at one mile and 1 1/16 miles – and he won the one-mile Bryan Station Stakes at this distance and on this course last fall. Brilliant Berti rarely fails to fire but might be slightly in over his head here.

JOCKEY: Jose Ortiz; TRAINER: Cherie DeVaux

11. Beach Gold: After racing mainly at Gulfstream Park through late summer, he shipped to Kentucky and posted an upset in the Kentucky Downs Preview Mint Millions Turf Mile Stakes at Ellis Park carrying 22.89-1 odds and then finished a solid third behind Epic Ride in the Mint Millions Invitational at Kentucky Downs as a 18.18-1 longshot. Will probably be an even bigger outsider on the tote board in this race.

JOCKEY: Keith Asmussen; TRAINER: Patrick Biancone

12. Jonquil: The final Euro invader ships to North America off of a rallying win in a one-mile Group 2 stakes in England, a good bounce-back effort after two off-the-board efforts. Jonquil started his 3-year-old season with a Group 3 win back in April and then nearly won the French One Thousand Guineas, coming up a head short in second. Does his best running on firm ground, and Saturday he’ll get the firmest yet, which adds to his appeal – although the post position detracts.

JOCKEY: Dylan Davis; TRAINER: Andrew Balding

THE PICK: Diego Velazquez

LIVE LONGSHOT: Rhetorical

SUPERFECTA: 4-5-8-9