One Magic Philly returns to form with Roxelana Stakes upset at Churchill Downs

One Magic Philly looked like a mare who had finally found her rhythm again, and Churchill Downs gave the proof in the form of a sharp, inside-running six-furlong score. Under Tyler Gaffalione, the Brendan Walsh trainee tracked third behind Jersey Pearl and Asternia, then sliced through when Jersey Pearl drifted off the rail turning for home. One Magic Philly shot through the opening, took command quickly and drew off to win the $200,000 Roxelana Stakes by two lengths in 1:08.64 on a fast track. She returned $7.20 and gave Walsh a timely opening-day feature on the Churchill spring meet card.

The setup mattered as much as the finish. Lucille Ball and Lotsandlotsofcandy were scratches, and the latter’s absence removed a major early-speed threat from the race. That left Jersey Pearl to control the pace with Asternia in chase mode, while Zeitlos, the 8-5 favorite, was left to try to close into a race that never fully fell apart. Steve Asmussen said Zeitlos was a closing sprinter who “needed the race” after her March comeback, and that showed in the final result, with Zeitlos only fourth behind Jersey Pearl and Asternia. The race chart listed a 30-foot run-up, but the important number was the one on the clock: One Magic Philly was simply faster when the running started.

The bigger story was not upset, it was restoration. Walsh had backed off after a poor Florida trip in December and a flat effort on Jan. 24, then regrouped her with a regular breeze pattern in mid-March. The mare also returned to blinkers for the first time since December 2024, and she looked sharper for it, using her speed more efficiently without wasting energy early. BloodHorse noted that this was her first six-furlong start since May 2025, and the shorter trip fit the way she finished: alert early, economical in the middle, and strong when Gaffalione asked for the response.

One Magic Philly’s record now stands at 5-3-1 from 14 starts with earnings of $492,662, and this was her second stakes victory after the Grade 3 Chillingworth Stakes at Santa Anita in October 2024. The homebred, by Good Magic out of My Philly Girl by Empire Maker, was foaled May 8, 2021 in Kentucky and is owned and bred by John Gallegos. She has already shown she belongs with graded company after racing in California for Phil D’Amato, then winning an allowance at Keeneland and running second in the Chilukki Stakes before the Florida slide. Saturday’s Roxelana was the cleaner version of that mare, and if Walsh has her back in this lane against older fillies and mares, she is again a live stakes player.