After big Sam Houston win, Palazzi to stay at home, for now

The 3-year-old colt Palazzi is 0 for 4 on dirt and now 2 for 2 on turf after moving from a Fair Grounds grass maiden win in December to a winning performance Sunday at Sam Houston in the $200,000 Texas Turf Mile.

Palazzi is back at Fair Grounds and appeared to have come out of his race in good shape, trainer Mark Casse said, but the problem now is a paucity of options for 3-year-old grass horses. Until April, there is no North American race in the division worth more than $100,000, so it could make good sense for Palazzi just to run back in the $75,000 Black Gold Stakes on Feb. 27 at Fair Grounds. The money, compared to Sunday’s pot, isn’t great, but Palazzi can run out of his own stall and take a step toward bigger races this spring and summer if he continues to develop.

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“He’s probably as good as any 3-year-old turf horse in North America right now,” Casse said. “I saw he got an 82 Beyer, which is not bad for this time of year.”

Palazzi took a solid bump in upper stretch Sunday, which cost him momentum, but he gathered himself and was up by a nose over fellow Fair Grounds shipper Excess Magic.

“I think if he doesn’t get bumped, he wins easier,” Casse said.

◗ The nine-race Thursday card lacks high-level racing but ends on a high note with a pair of 3-year-old maiden-special-weight contests – a dirt sprint and a turf route – and a competitive first-level Louisiana-bred dirt-sprint allowance.