HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Willful Woman helped owners Alex and JoAnn Lieblong and trainer Steve Asmussen get off to a fast start at the Oaklawn Park meet last season, when she won her maiden opening weekend in January 2021. Willful Woman is back for another Oaklawn opening weekend Saturday and will start as one of the top contenders in the inaugural running of the $150,000 Mistletoe. The race for 3-year-old fillies will be run over 1 1/16 miles and the field of 10 includes stakes winners Lovely Ride, Oliviaofthedesert, and Bobbin Tail, as well as the promising Amendment Nineteen and Mariah’s Princess. Willful Woman, who won two races last meet at Oaklawn, enters the Mistletoe off a third-place finish in a two-other-than allowance route Nov. 12 at Churchill Downs. It was her first start since May when she was the runner-up in the Grade 2 Black-Eyed Susan at Pimlico. “She got a little tired her last start.” Asmussen said. “She’s trained nicely since. This is a good spot for her. Her second in the Black-Eyed Susan was an indication of her quality. She got a nice freshening after that race and we’re hoping for a big meet with her.” Willful Woman is a daughter of Nyquist and the mare Foxy Danseur, a multiple stakes winner who produced Ever So Clever, a Grade 3 winner at Oaklawn who earned more than $500,000. :: DRF Bets players get free Daily Racing Form Past Performances and up to 5% weekly cashback. Click to learn more. Willful Woman, who has won at the Mistletoe distance at Oaklawn, will break from post 2 under Ramon Vazquez. Jockey Ricardo Santana Jr., a multiple title winner at Oaklawn, has ridden Willful Woman throughout her career, but he will be in Puerto Rico on both Saturday and Sunday to ride in the Caribbean Classic series of stakes, according to agent Ruben Munoz. Willful Woman has tactical speed, and could get a nice stalking trip behind Mariah’s Princess and Amendment Nineteen. Both are stretching out around two turns off allowance wins. Amendment Nineteen has made one start at two turns in her career, finishing third in the Grade 3, $200,000 Remington Park Oaks. She was favored in the Oaks, which was won by Southern California-based Lady Mystify. Pauline’s Pearl, who was second, came back in her next start to win the $200,000 Zia Park Oaks over Lady Mystify. Florent Geroux has the mount on Amendment Nineteen for Juddmonte Farms and trainer Brad Cox. Lovely Ride was fifth in the Remington Park Oaks in her last start Sept. 26. Prior to the race, she won the $150,000 Cathryn Sophia on Aug. 24 at Parx. Reylu Gutierrez has the mount from post 10 for Allied Racing Stable and trainer Bret Calhoun. Trainer Ken McPeek will counter with Oliviaofthedesert, who is moving back to dirt, which is the surface over which she has registered both of her stakes wins. McPeek also saddles the up-and-coming Semble Juste, a recent allowance winner at the Mistletoe distance. Mariah’s Princess comes off an allowance win over seven furlongs at Churchill Downs and, as a daughter of Ghostzapper, is bred to relish the two-turn trip. ◗ Oaklawn will have 50-cent corned beef sandwiches Saturday in what has become an opening weekend staple in Hot Springs.