Fair Grounds: Palace Malice on far outside for New Orleans Handicap

Palace Malice, the 2013 Belmont Stakes winner who made a victorious 4-year-old debut earlier this month at Gulfstream Park, was assigned the outside post as the 121-pound highweight in a field of eight older horses entered in the Grade 2, $400,000 New Orleans Handicap, one of six supporting stakes on a blockbuster Louisiana Derby program Saturday at Fair Grounds.

Mike Smith will be taking over for fellow Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez aboard Palace Malice when the colt stretches out to 1 1/8 miles in the New Orleans Cap. Trained by Todd Pletcher, Palace Malice comes off a narrow victory in the March 8 Gulfstream Park Handicap at a one-turn mile.

Normandy Invasion (post 5, Rosie Napravnik, 115), another 4-year-old entered off a sharp Gulfstream triumph, figures as perhaps the chief threat when in receipt of six pounds from Palace Malice.

From the rail, this is the field: Bradester, Mister Marti Gras, Golden Soul, Prayer for Relief, Normandy Invasion, Sunbean, Fordubai, and Palace Malice.

The New Orleans Cap is carded as the 10th of 13 races and directly precedes the Louisiana Derby.

In the earlier undercard events:

◗ Grade 2, $300,000 Mervin H. Muniz Jr. Memorial Handicap (race 8): Trainer Chad Brown will send out Real Solution, winner of the 2013 Arlington Million by disqualification, as the likely favorite in the Muniz, the premier grass race of the four-month Fair Grounds meet. Real Solution, with Napravnik riding, was assigned post 3 among the six older horses entered in the about 1 1/8-mile race.

Also entered are Amira’s Prince, Burn the Mortgage, Real Solution, Potomac River, Mister Marti Gras, and Skyring. Amira’s Prince is cross-entered in Saturday’s Grade 2 Pan American Handicap at Gulfstream Park.

◗ Grade 2, $400,000 Fair Grounds Oaks (race 7): Untapable will try to strengthen her position as a major candidate for the May 2 Kentucky Oaks as the favorite over Unbridled Forever and three other 3-year-old fillies in this 1 1/16-mile race.

Mary Rita, Fiftyshadesofgold, and Artist Cry also entered.

◗ $60,000 Crescent City Derby (race 9): In what is clearly one of the best betting races of the day, a full field of 14 (plus two also-eligibles) was entered in this 1 1/16-mile race for 3-year-old Louisiana-breds.

◗ $60,000 Crescent City Oaks (race 4): Closing Report, already a three-time stakes winner in restricted company, looks like a solid favorite among the eight 3-year-old statebred fillies entered in this mile and 70-yard race.

◗ $60,000 Dixie Poker Ace Stakes (race 3): Populist Politics looms the class of the bunch among seven older statebreds entered in this about one-mile turf race.