A pair of Virginia-breds – Chess Chief and Attachment Rate – ran in the Grade 2 Alysheba Friday, where they were bidding to topple 1-2 favorite Maxfield. They couldn’t – Maxfield won by three lengths in a sharp time of 1:41.39 for 1 1/16 miles on the main track. Chess Chief and Luis Saez rallied mildly into third, almost eight lengths behind the winner, while Attachment Rate was never involved en route to finishing sixth, and last, under Joe Talamo.

Previously undefeated Aunt Pearl, the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf winner who went off at 3-10 in the Grade 3 Edgewood on the green stuff, was a soundly beaten fifth. But that didn’t do Maryland-bred Postnup any good. The Cherie DeVaux trainee finished three parts of a length behind that runner in sixth, never much involved while finishing almost eight behind the winner.

Maryland-bred Fiya went off the lukewarm 2.30-1 favorite in the Grade 2 Twin Spires Turf Sprint under jockey Luis Saez. But after dueling for the lead for the opening four furlongs, he faded readily from the scene and ultimately finished last. The Tom Albertrani trainee had to be vanned off. Subsequently, owner Robert Masiello said on Twitter that the horse was “sound and cooling out well,” and they think it most likely was heat exhaustion that got him.

Fiya was vanned off today. Fortunately he’s sound and cooling out well. Think most likely it’s a case of heat exhaustion. He tends to be a sweaty horse but wasn’t sweating at all in the paddock or after the race

— Robert Masiello (@rmasiello) April 30, 2021

As for Saturday on the Kentucky Derby undercard, only two Midlantic-breds were among the stakes entries, and neither will post. Virginia-bred Attachment Rate will not run in the Grade 1 Churchill Downs after finishing sixth in the Alysheba at Churchill, and Jakarta will skip the Grade 2 Distaff Turf Mile after having finished eighth in the License Fee Stakes at Belmont Park.