The Filly and Mare Sprint is shaping up as one of the more competitive races on the two-day Breeders’ Cup extravaganza at Del Mar. Trainer Chad Brown has won the seven-furlong event three times, including the last two with Goodnight Olive, and has a prime contender in Ways and Means. The 3-year-old captured her last three starts by a combined 14 3/4 lengths and had no problems besting elders in the Grade 2 Gallant Bloom last Sunday at Aqueduct. Sweet Azteca could be the one to beat. The 4-year-old gray filly has won 5 of 6 starts, including her last four races, and earned triple-digit Beyer Speed Figures in her last three. After defeating the now-retired Adare Manor in the Grade 1 Beholder Mile, Sweet Azteca returned to sprinting with two facile victories. A seven-length winner of Del Mar’s Grade 3 Rancho Bernardo Handicap on Aug. 25, Sweet Azteca might make her final prep in Saturday’s Grade 3 Chillingworth at Santa Anita. :: BREEDERS’ CUP FILLY AND MARE SPRINT: See DRF’s special section with top contenders, odds, comments, news, and more After finishing fourth in last year’s Filly and Mare Sprint with Society, trainer Steve Asmussen’s plan for 2024 was to have the Gun Runner mare prep twice before returning to the Breeders’ Cup. After a third-place finish in her seasonal debut, the Grade 3 Chicago on June 22 at Churchill Downs, Society indicated a return to form with a 102 Beyer win in the Grade 1 Ballerina on Aug. 24 at Saratoga. It was the fifth triple-digit Beyer performance of Society’s career. Vahva is one of the more talented filly and mare sprinters in the division, having hit the board in her last nine starts. She grabbed the Grade 1 Derby City Distaff during the spring, beat Society in the Chicago, then ran third as the favorite in the Ballerina. Trainer Cherie DeVaux has indicated that Vahva runs well fresh and might not have cared for the Saratoga racing strip. Regally bred Scylla, a multiple graded stakes winner around two turns, might have found her niche as a closing sprinter with a runner-up effort in the Ballerina for trainer Bill Mott. :: ON SALE NOW: DRF Breeders' Cup Packages! Get everything you need to win and save 41% off the retail price. Soul of an Angel gave champion Idiomatic a scare when second, beaten a head, in Monmouth’s Molly Pitcher on July 20. She might be at her best around one turn, however, and rallied from last to win Gulfstream’s Princess Rooney on Sept. 21. ◗ The division’s two final major preps will be contested Saturday. Brightwork might go favored in Keeneland’s Grade 2, $350,000 Thoroughbred Club of America at six furlongs, but trainer John Ortiz plans to skip the Breeders’ Cup to instead focus on Santa Anita’s Grade 1 La Brea for 3-year-old fillies on Dec. 26. She’ll face a field in the TCA that includes graded winners Spirit Wind, Clearly Unhinged, and Red Carpet Ready. Entries for the Chillingworth at 6 1/2 furlongs were to be finalized Wednesday afternoon. Sweet Azteca is nominated along with the impressive 3-year-old filly Hope Road, a winner of her last three starts by open lengths, and the promising One Magic Philly. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.