Mark Casse Weighs Kentucky Oaks Path for Undefeated French Friction

Mark Casse is weighing a decision that will immediately affect Kentucky Oaks positioning, Oaklawn entries and purse opportunities for his undefeated 3-year-old filly French Friction. The City of Light daughter, purchased for $250,000 by D. J. Stable partners Jon and Leonard Green at the 2024 Keeneland September yearling sale, has won both career starts at Oaklawn and now sits on a short list that includes the Purple Martin (March 14, six furlongs, $150,000), the Honeybee (listed March 7 by one schedule, 1 1/16 miles, $750,000, Grade 3), the Grade 2 Fantasy (March 27, $1,000,000) and the Grade 1 Ashland at Keeneland (April 3, $750,000).

French Friction turned in a front-running Dixie Belle victory at Oaklawn on Feb. 14, a win that increased her stock and raised the question of two-turn capability. She covered six furlongs in 1:10.18 on a sloppy track while holding off Little Miss Curlin, who entered as the even-money choice and suffered her first loss after five straight wins in Louisiana. Jockey Cristian Torres, who recorded a daily three-bagger and his fourth stakes victory of the meeting, said, “(Trainer) Mark (Casse) didn't give me any instructions. He said: 'Just have a fun ride.'”

The filly’s numbers and style complicate the choice. French Friction has won her two Oaklawn starts by a combined 11 3/4 front-running lengths, and Casse has been measured in public about projecting her beyond sprints. “So far, knock on wood, we’ve always kind of thought she was a really good horse,” Casse said, adding, “I try not to make that judgment after only two races, but so far she’s been pretty impressive.” He emphasized the strategic element, saying the next step “could depend on what the other girls do,” a comment that directly ties French Friction’s path to entries in the Honeybee and Fantasy and to the presence of stablemates.

That intra-stable calculus is concrete: Casse has two Honeybee entrants, Search Party and Counting Stars. Search Party won the Martha Washington Stakes on Feb. 6 by a neck in her stakes debut, while Counting Stars finished eighth in the same race and is positioned to rebound. Meanwhile, Casse’s broader Oaklawn operation endured a setback when Ewing finished sixth in the Feb. 16 Ozark Stakes and returned to Ocala, Florida, as next-race plans remained pending. Casse sits second to Steve Asmussen with 18 meet victories, including seven stakes, underscoring the competitive environment in which French Friction’s schedule will be set.

The business stakes are obvious: the Fantasy’s $1,000,000 purse and Grade 2 status would accelerate Kentucky Oaks points and enhance broodmare value for a daughter of millionaire multiple Grade 1 winner City of Light. The Dixie Belle purse figure in reports varies, with one account listing $150,000 and another $100,000, a discrepancy that highlights how purse accounting can complicate campaign math. With the Honeybee, Purple Martin and Fantasy clustered across March, Casse’s choice over the next weeks will determine whether French Friction remains a sprint specialist or pivots into the Oaks trail and a national spotlight.