Fair Grounds notes: Hall of Fame welcomes Robideaux, Calhoun, Proud Spell
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Retired trainer Larry Robideaux Jr., trainer Bret Calhoun, and Proud Spell, who swept the Fair Grounds Oaks/Kentucky Oaks double in 2008, were inducted Wednesday into the Fair Grounds Hall of Fame.
Robideaux, who retired in 2012 with 1,963 career victories, won the Fair Grounds Oaks with My Charmer in 1972 and with Honest and True in 1980.
“The biggest thrill I ever got in horse racing was winning with a first-time starter, any first-time starter,” said Robideaux, 80. “That means I did my job.”
Calhoun, 49, has ranked among the leading trainers at Fair Grounds for years.
“I thought this was a place I had to come to [in order] to be successful in this business,” he said.
Larry Jones, who trained Proud Spell, said: “She wasn’t the most gifted athlete I ever trained, but she had the most try in her.”
Also on Wednesday, track photographer Lou Hodges Jr., former Fair Grounds video director Glenn Gremillion, and retired chart caller A.J. Paretti joined the Fair Grounds Press Box Hall of Fame.
Class Leader sharp again
Class Leader, trained by Neil Howard for Will Farish’s Lane’s End Racing, made a solid stretch run to win a first-level optional-claiming race Thursday.
A 3-year-old son of Smart Strike, Class Leader has won two consecutive races at a mile and 70 yards and is 2 for 3 overall.
“I’m thrilled, but he’s just getting started,” said Howard, who hasn’t mapped out a racing schedule for Class Leader. “I’ll talk to Mr. Farish. Probably, he’s a horse that we’re ready to do some thinking about.”
Fillies running in Sunday feature
Twelve 3-year-old fillies, including two main-track-only runners, were entered for the first-level optional-claiming feature Sunday on the turf. The about one-mile race is the eighth race on a nine-race card starting at 1:25 p.m. Central.
Artist Cry will be tested in open company after winning three consecutive turf races, including the Sarah Lane’s Oates, against Louisiana-breds.
Notte d’Oro, Opposite Day, and Thieves Guild scored solid victories against maidens on this course this year, and Bern Legacy finished second in the Happy Ticket on turf last year at Louisiana Downs.