Fair Grounds: Sugar Bowl winner Exfactor will point to Lecomte

The Lecomte, a mile-and-70-yard stakes on Jan. 21, is the target for Sugar Bowl winner Exfactor, who won his third race in a row Saturday at Fair Grounds while making a successful return from a five-month layoff that began after a victory in the Bashford Manor Stakes at Churchill.

Exfactor was stuck down on the fence most of the Sugar Bowl trip after breaking from post 1, but he maintained his poise and outgamed Laurie’s Rocket to win the Sugar Bowl by a nose.

“He’s always been a good horse as far as controlling him,” said Bernie Flint, who trains Exfactor for owner Jim Stone. “He did well, came through on the fence, got stopped, came out, made his run, and won it.”

Flint has been pointing Exfactor toward the Lecomte since coming to New Orleans, and believes the son of Exchange Rate will be suited to route racing, though the horse never has been beyond six furlongs and was an early-developing 2-year-old. Exfactor was assigned an 82 Beyer for his Saturday win.

Colonel Power likely target for Chamberlain Bridge

Chamberlain Bridge appeared to have come out of his one-length, bounce-back victory Saturday in the Bonapaw Stakes in good shape, trainer Bret Calhoun said, and is likely to make his next start Feb. 25 at Fair Grounds in the Colonel Power Stakes.

Chamberlain Bridge had lost six races in a row before Saturday’s win, leaving even Calhoun wondering if the 7-year-old could regain his form. But Chamberlain Bridge, sent to the lead in the Bonapaw, ran his best race since winning the 2010 Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint.

“Hopefully, mentally, that will have been a positive thing for him,” said Calhoun.