Festival card lures 124

BOSSIER CITY, La. - With over a million dollars at stake, interest in Saturday's Louisiana Breeders' Festival continues to run high. A total of 124 were entered Wednesday morning for the 13-race, all-stakes program that will represent all divisions of Louisiana-breds. Eight Thoroughbred and five Quarter Horse events are on the program, which begins 1:10 p.m.

The two stakes for 2-year-olds generated the most attention, with 10 colts and geldings entered in the Stardust and 11 fillies entered in the Laurel Lane.

The colt and gelding division will feature a shootout between Voodoo Gold, a two-time stakes winner trained by Cole Norman, and Here Tiger, a local stakes winner trained by Steven Asmussen.

The best of the 3-year-old classwill be put to the test in the Louisiana Breeders' Derby and the Louisiana Breeders' Oaks. Each drew evenly matched fields and will be run at 1 1/16 miles.

The Cajun and Victoria Stakes will determine the best statebred sprinters, and the Shiskabob and Walmac International Matchmaker Stakes will determine the best turf horses.

Quarter Horse superstar Val's Fortune, a winner of 18 of his 20 career starts, puts his gaudy record on the line in the third race of the afternoon, when he squares off against seven foes at 400 yards.

Alabama-breds in feature

While Saturday's focus will be on Louisiana-breds, Friday's feature shifts to horses a couple of states east in the Alabama Belle Stakes. A full field of 13 Alabama-bred fillies and mares, including two three-horse entries, will go six furlongs.

, who won this race last year as the prohibitive favorite, will once again be a short price. Trained by Larry Robideaux Jr., Comalagold comes into this year's edition off a fourth-place finish against allowance foes Aug. 29, a race similar to the one Robideaux used to prepare her last season. Gerard Melancon rides.