Enduringly looks promising in mile turf feature

NEW ORLEANS – Alms ran her record to four wins from four starts winning the Shantel Lanerie Memorial Stakes here Saturday, but she’s obviously not the only talented 3-year-old filly at Fair Grounds.

Several other such horses are entered in the Thursday feature, race 8, carded at one mile on grass, restricted to 3-year-old fillies, and open to first-level allowance horses or $50,000 claimers.

Alms is owned by Godolphin and trained by Mike Stidham, and Godolphin has another talented filly in the Thursday feature in Enduringly, who hails from the Brad Cox barn. Enduringly has raced once – and it was memorable. She trailed 11 rivals at the three-sixteenths pole in a maiden turf route Dec. 26 before gaining momentum, switching from inside to out, and mowing down everyone to win going away. Enduringly, a Ghostzapper filly, did benefit from a slow come-home time in that 1 1/16-mile race, though it’d be foolish to suggest Enduringly wasn’t nonetheless impressive. She does have to cut back in trip Thursday, and if her lack of debut speed really represents how she wants to run, things could be tougher on the filly this time. Also, there’s next to zero chance she’ll go postward as high as her 4-1 morning-line odds.

Outburst probably was as impressive as Enduringly while winning at Tampa Bay Downs in her last start, her first race after being imported from France, where she scored a second-start provincial-track maiden win. Outburst, however, seemingly won’t be eligible to race Thursday at Fair Grounds. Entries for Thursday’s race were taken Feb. 6 and Outburst one day later won a first-level allowance at Tampa, her second victory.

Stidham, Alms’s trainer, has Alba for this spot, and Alba, too, was really, really good in her most recent race. Alba did benefit from a prevailing front-end and inside turf bias when she raced Jan. 20, her second start, but that alone can’t account for the six-length drubbing she gave an apparently competent group of turf maidens.

Should the race be rained onto dirt it will help the connections of Charming Lady realize their hope of making the Fair Grounds Oaks with this daughter of Ghostzapper and I’m Mom’s Favorite. Charming Lady overcame a slow start and a traffic-filled inside trip to win her career debut Jan. 18, and she seems a likely candidate to transfer her talents from a sprint to a route – if she gets the chance to race Thursday.