Ashbrook Farm and Upland Flats Racing’s Red Carpet Ready looks poised to finally make into the starting gate at Keeneland Saturday in the 23^rd running of the Resolute Racing Madison (G1) going 7 furlongs.

“It is just a matter of circumstances that she hasn’t raced here,” trainer Rusty Arnold said of Red Carpet Ready, who has logged 19 works over the track dating to her arrival in Arnold’s barn in the summer of 2022.

“She was not ready to run here that fall, and she went to Churchill for their opening week and then came back to win a stake on the closing weekend,” he added. “Then the timing wasn’t right last spring and we waited for Churchill and she beat a quality bunch (in the Eight Belles-G2 Presented by Sysco).”

Red Carpet Ready exited the Victory Ride (G3) at Belmont Park in July “with a minor issue that we got taken care of” and did not return to the races for eight months. In the return, Red Carpet Ready won the Hurricane Bertie (G3) going 6 ½ furlongs at Gulfstream Park on March 9.

“I was very happy with that race,” Arnold said. “She was back to her old self and a lot of times you don’t know how they will come back, especially fillies.”

A winner of five of seven races, Red Carpet Ready will be making her Grade 1 debut on Saturday.

Early on, Arnold thought Red Carpet Ready might be a Grade 1-caliber runner.

“She trained like she might be, but you never know until they do it,” said Arnold, who is third all-time among Keeneland trainers with 294 victories here.