Buchu

Buchu, a Justify filly trained owned and bred by Rigney Racing and trained by Phil Bauer, finished third in her career debut June 16 at Ellis Park, racing on dirt. She was then sent to Saratoga for a start on turf, but the July 30 race was moved to dirt due to rain and Buchu finished third once again.

In his first try on turf, the filly finished a rough-trip sixth of 10 in an Aug. 20 race going 1 1/16 miles. She then returned to Kentucky and broke through in her fourth career start, taking a 1 1/16-mile turf maiden at Churchill Downs by 4 ¾ lengths on Sept. 23.

Her next start came Oct. 6 at Keeneland in the Grade 2 Jessamine Stakes Presented by Keeneland November, a “Win and You’re In” race for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies. Under Martin Garcia, Buchu rallied from near the back of an 11-horse field to win the 1 1/6-mile race by 3 ¾ lengths in a visually impressive effort. Subsequently in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, Buchu finished sixth.

In her 3-year-old debut, Buchu was back at the site of her biggest triumph at Keeneland in the Grade 2 $400,000 Appalachian Stakes going one mile on the turf on April 6, 2024. Buchu once again showed she loves Keeneland with an impressive winning performance atop a 12-horse field of 3-year-old fillies in the Appalachian. Sent off at odds of 6.52-1, Buchu raced mid-pack through the first half of the race and then rallied to win the Madison by a margin of a half a length.

Buchu is out of the winning Galileo mare Flowering Peach. Her second dam (maternal grandmother) is two-time Grade 3 winner Naples Bay, who is a half-sister to $5 million earner and leading sire Medaglia d’Oro.