The Fair Grounds Oaks has been a gold mine for producing winners of the Kentucky Oaks: Six of the last 11 winners of the Fair Grounds Oaks, starting with Ashado in 2004, went on to capture the Churchill Downs filly classic.
Odds are that the trend won’t repeat itself this year, given how Songbird and Cathryn Sophia have been so dominant on opposite coasts. Even a huge effort by the Fair Grounds Oaks winner on Saturday would make her no better than a fringe player going forward to Kentucky.
For all they’ve accomplished in their illustrious training careers at their hometown track of Fair Grounds, neither Tom Amoss nor Albert Stall Jr. has ever won the Louisiana Derby. The former roommates at Louisiana State University are hoping that changes Saturday when the Louisiana Derby is run for the 103rd time.
Amoss has the 5-2 morning-line favorite for the $1 million Louisiana Derby in Mo Tom, while Stall will saddle Forevamo, a 10-1 chance in the field of 11 3-year-olds.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Trainer Dale Romans said he was pleased with the performance of Cherry Wine in Saturday’s Rebel Stakes at Oaklawn. In his stakes debut, Cherry Wine finished a late-running fourth behind the winner, Cupid.
”He ran like a Kentucky Derby horse should,” said Romans. “He wound up in traffic, he took all the worst of it, and he still finished up running. I don’t know where I’m going to go back with him, whether it will be in the Wood, the Blue Grass, or go back to Arkansas, but we’ll figure something out.”
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Add Majesto to what is currently a very short list of 3-year-olds who will tackle division leaders Mohaymen and Nyquist a week from Saturday in the $1 million Florida Derby.
Majesto, a son of Tiznow, won his maiden going 1 1/16 miles on the Fountain of Youth card Feb. 27, earning a career-best 84 Beyer Speed Figure. The win came in his fifth start. Majesto, owned by the Grupo 7C Racing Stable, began his career last fall at Belmont Park, finishing third behind recent Tampa Bay Derby winner Destin.
OLDSMAR, Fla. – Trainer Eoin Harty has a talented 3-year-old filly in Felt in Pocket, who surged to a 2 1/2-length victory last Friday in a first-level optional $75,000 claimer on turf. That effort has him pointing Felt in Pocket to the Grade 3 Appalachian Stakes, a one-mile turf race for sophomore fillies at Keeneland on April 14.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Jose Ortiz won three races Sunday at Aqueduct and has virtually wrapped up his second straight Aqueduct winter-meet riding title.
Ortiz enters the final three days of the meet with an 85-79 lead over his brother Irad. While Jose is scheduled to ride all three days this week, Irad’s final day is Thursday, and he is named on seven mounts. Following the races, Irad will leave for Dubai, where on Saturday he is scheduled to ride Lady Shipman in the $1 million Al Quoz Sprint for trainer Kiaran McLaughlin. It is Irad’s lone mount on the World Cup card.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – The New York Racing Association plans to schedule its first turf races of the year for April 6 at Aqueduct, according to Martin Panza, the senior vice president of racing operations for NYRA.
It has been a relatively mild winter, and Glen Kozak, vice president of facilities and racing surfaces, was able to get a tarp over the course several months ago to shield it from the elements.
The 19-day spring meet officially begins March 31 and runs through April 24. Racing switches to Belmont Park on April 29.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Sunny Ridge, fourth in the Grade 3 Gotham on March 5, will skip the Grade 1, $1 million Wood Memorial on April 9, trainer Jason Servis confirmed on Monday.
Servis had previously said that Sunny Ridge, a New Jersey-bred gelding by Holy Bull, had come out of the Gotham a bit tired and likely would need more time before his next start.
Sunny Ridge, who won the Grade 3 Withers on Jan. 30, remains based at Belmont Park, and his next objective has not been chosen.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. – When last seen in New York, Behrnik’s Bank suffered her first defeat, losing a neck decision to Frosty Margarita in a division of the New York Stallion Stakes last December at Aqueduct.
Behrnik’s Bank has returned to New York seeking redemption. Exactly where she will seek it remains a question.
An understandably downcast Peter Eurton was accepting condolences on Sunday morning at Santa Anita, the day after the trainer lost two of his horses following stakes races, one at Oaklawn, one at Santa Anita.
Kyriaki died after running in the Azeri at Oaklawn. Eurton said that the leading theory on her death is that she suffered a severed femoral artery during the race – possibly from a fracture to her pelvis -- and died from internal bleeding later while in her stall.
