Saturday’s $500,000 Coaching Club American Oaks at Saratoga is the second of three prestigious and historic races for 3-year-old fillies in New York. The CCA Oaks falls on the calendar between the DraftKings Acorn Stakes in June and the Alabama Stakes Presented by Keeneland Sales in August. The Grade 1 race will feature a rubber-match meeting between Longines Kentucky Oaks winner Always a Runner and Acorn winner Counting Stars. A victory by either filly in the field of nine would push them to the top of the division.

1. Counting Stars: A good third in the Kentucky Oaks, she took things to a new level last time out with an impressive victory in the Acorn. That win was her first start over the track at Saratoga and came at the direct expense of her top rival here, Always a Runner. She has thrown in a few dull efforts in her career, but has been very good in her four most recent starts. A repeat of her Acorn performance likely sees her back in the winner’s circle on Saturday.

JOCKEY: Irad Ortiz Jr.; TRAINER: Mark Casse

2. Dandona: This is a tough spot for a young filly who’s made her last four starts on turf. She won a graded stakes on grass back in March but in two starts since has fallen short of late against quality opponents. Her breeding suggests that she will handle the main track, and she did win her debut on dirt back in August 2025, a race rained of the turf. She also posted a sharp workout at Saratoga late last month for an always-dangerous trainer. Still, she is hard to recommend here using the turf-to-dirt angle as she takes on the best in the division.

JOCKEY: Tyler Gaffalione; TRAINER: Saffie Joseph Jr.

3. La Rascasse: Young trainer Will Walden continues to unveil talented horses, and this filly looks to be his latest. She was a game winner in her debut at Keeneland in April, and followed that up by beating a solid field decisively last time out in the Monomoy Stakes at Churchill Downs. She should be ahead of the two favorites early, which could work in her favor. Her inexperience may come into play Saturday, but she’s a dangerous newcomer.

JOCKEY: Axel Concepcion; TRAINER: Will Walden

4. Miss Fulton Gal: The good news for this Mid-Atlantic based filly is that she is coming in off her second career stakes victory. Unfortunately, that Delaware Park win came against a much lower class level than she will see at Saratoga. No match for the top ones in the George E. Mitchell Black-Eyed Susan Stakes two starts back, it is hard to believe she can make a serious challenge in this Grade 1 test. She is cross-entered in the Monmouth Oaks Saturday. An outsider.

JOCKEY: Jaime Rodriguez; TRAINER: Mike Gorham

5. Measure: After showing some progress as a 2-year-old, she did not make it back to the races until May. Her return was nothing to write home about but she improved to finish second behind Directive last time. Another move forward on Saturday would make her somewhat interesting, but she has very little early speed. She is more likely to get up for a minor share in the exotics rather than being a true win contender.

JOCKEY: Manny Franco; TRAINER: Mark Casse

6. Always a Runner: She reached the top of the 3-year-old filly division after her win in the Kentucky Oaks in only her third career start, but then was knocked down a peg when no match for Counting Stars in the Acorn. Still, she ran a solid race while suffering her first career defeat. She will need to do better Saturday, but it would come as no surprise to see her bounce back for a top Saratoga trainer.

JOCKEY: Jose Ortiz; TRAINER: Chad Brown

7. Directive: The likely third betting choice come post time has done little wrong to this point in her career. Second in her career debut, she has won her last two, including an allowance win over this track last month. That victory came at 0.43-1 odds and was slightly underwhelming when beating Measure by one length. This well-bred filly is eligible to move forward, but is in a tough spot for her stakes debut. Mixed signals. 

JOCKEY: Flavien Prat; TRAINER: Chad Brown

8. Zany: She was the slight favorite over Always a Runner and Counting Stars in the Kentucky Oaks, but did not have much punch in the stretch run. She was also upset at low odds in the Central Bank Ashland Stakes before that. Given plenty of time for her return, she must get back to her best form with the addition of blinkers to turn the tables here. She is cross-entered in the Monmouth Oaks on Saturday. Bounce-back possibility.

JOCKEY: John Velazquez; TRAINER: Todd Pletcher

9. Nycon: This well-bred filly returns after nearly four months away from racing. She showed promise early on in her career but was unable to close the deal in her first three stakes attempts. She is eligible to improve with maturity, but has found a difficult spot for her comeback race. Not without hope.

JOCKEY: Luis Saez; TRAINER: Whit Beckman

THE PICK: Counting Stars

LIVE LONGSHOT: La Rascasse

SUPERFECTA: 1-6-3-5