Fair Grounds: Central Banker gets in Carter work

NEW ORLEANS - It had rained overnight here Thursday, so on Friday morning, trainer Al Stall Jr. stood at the outside rail during the renovation break, examining the track to see if it was in suitable condition to work his top sprinter, Central Banker, who is set to run April 5 in the Grade 1, $500,000 Carter at Aqueduct.

“This is a trainer’s Maalox moment,” he said.

Satisfied after examination that the track was safe, and eyeing an increasingly grim weather forecast for the rest of Friday – which likely would have left the track in worse shape for training Saturday morning – Stall worked Central Banker in company, and the horse breezed a half-mile in 48 seconds.

“He’s always kind of a lazy horse; that’s why I do stuff in company with him,” Stall said.

Central Banker has not raced since Dec. 26, when he was second in the Grade 1 Malibu at Santa Anita.