Calhoun getting ambitious with Kupuna
That trainer Bret Calhoun has a horse for the Fair Grounds Oaks comes as no surprise, but Calhoun’s intended starter in the Louisiana Derby is less well known.
Kupuna finished second to Cyberknife in a highly rated first-level dirt-route allowance race on Feb. 19 at Fair Grounds and will get a chance March 26 in the $1 million Louisiana Derby, Calhoun said Monday. Kupuna won an Oaklawn maiden race two starts ago and earned a career-best 82 Beyer Speed Figure last month.
In 2019, By My Standards went on from a Fair Grounds maiden win, where he got an 86 Beyer, to win the Louisiana Derby with a 97.
Epicenter, who romped in the Feb. 19 Risen Star, is expected for the Louisiana Derby, but the second- and third-place finishers in the Risen Star, Smile Happy and Zandon, are not. The race might not come up even as strong as the Risen Star and its 1 3/16-mile trip appeals to Calhoun.
“This horse acts like he wants a little more ground,” Calhoun said. “Maybe it’s a good spot to test him.”
Hidden Connection is Calhoun’s runner in the Fair Grounds Oaks. She finished fourth as the 2-1 favorite in the Rachel Alexandra Stakes on Feb. 19, an outside post working against her.
“Very happy with how she came out of the race,” Calhoun said. “She came back and worked very well, and we’ll work her again Friday or Saturday.”
Who Took the Money had to be scratched Saturday from the Eddie Johnston Memorial Stakes, a Louisiana-bred turf race in which he was the overwhelming favorite. Who Took the Money reared in the gate, unseating his jockey, broke through the stall doors and briefly ran loose on the turf course.
“He’s fine and trained today,” Calhoun said. “He’s never done anything in the gates before.”