Girvin draws post 8 in nine-horse field for Louisiana Derby

In 2014, when Joe Sharp was working as an assistant for trainer Mike Maker, owner Brad Grady gave him the financial backing to go out on his own and begin claiming horses. Next Saturday at Fair Grounds, Sharp and Grady will send out two horses in the $1 million Louisiana Derby, including likely favorite Girvin.

On Saturday, a field of nine was entered for the Grade 2 Louisiana Derby, which will award 170 Kentucky Derby qualifying points to the first four finishers on a scale of 100-40-20-10. Girvin already has assured himself a berth in the Derby via his win in the Grade 2 Risen Star at Fair Grounds on Feb. 25. His two-length victory earned 50 points.

Girvin will start from post 8 in the Louisiana Derby, just to the inside of his stablemate Hootfoot, who drew the outside gate. Sharp was pleased with the draw for the 1 1/8-mile race.

"We're ecstatic with the post position," he said. "Girvin had post 1 last time, but now that he's the key horse in the race, it's nice to be outside."

Girvin was 8-1 in the Risen Star but will be a much shorter price next Saturday. Hootfoot, on the other hand, will be one of the longer shots in the field, if not the longest. A winner of two of eight starts, Hootfoot does have good early speed, and he should ensure a lively pace to set up Girvin.

Todd Pletcher entered a pair of last-out maiden winners, Patch and Monaco. Patch, a Calumet Farm homebred by Union Rags, won a one-mile race at Gulfstream Park in mid-February, earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 89. Monaco earned a much lower figure for his 12-length victory around two turns at Tampa Bay Downs. Pletcher will add blinkers to Monaco's equipment for the Louisiana Derby.

The lineup also includes Local Hero, Guest Suite, and Sorry Erik, the third-, fourth-, and seventh-place finishers in the Risen Star. The field is completed by Senior Investment, who has won three consecutive races for Ken McPeek, and Hollywood Handsome, who is coming off a close third-place finish in a Fair Grounds optional-claiming race.

Girvin breezed five furlongs in 1:01 at Fair Grounds on Saturday while Sharp was en route to Turfway Park to send out Kitten's Cat in the $500,000 Spiral Stakes for owners Ken and Sarah Ramsey. Sharp's wife, Rosie Napravnik, who gets aboard Girvin on a daily basis, was happy with the work, according to Sharp, and sent him a video of the drill.

"Everyone is very pleased," said Sharp, 32.

Sharp has a third promising 3-year-old, Cool Arrow, who also races for Grady. He won a pair of stakes at Remington Park at 2 and finished 10th in the Risen Star in his season debut.

"It's nice to have three good 3-year-olds in the barn," Sharp said. "It shows people how we've shifted from being a claiming outfit. It shows that we can train a young horse too."

In the other Louisiana Derby Day stakes:

Fair Grounds Oaks

Farrell will shoot for a sweep of the major Fair Grounds stakes for 3-year-old fillies in the Grade 2, $400,000 Fair Grounds Oaks.

Trained by Wayne Catalano, Farrell in her first two starts of the year has won the Silverbulletday Stakes and the Grade 2 Rachel Alexandra. She concluded her 2-year-old season by winning the Grade 2 Golden Rod at Churchill Downs.

Mark Casse has entered Summer Luck and Corporate Queen in the 1 1/16-mile Oaks. Summer Luck finished a closing third to Miss Sky Warrior in the Grade 2 Davona Dale at Gulfstream Park on March 4. Corporate Queen was privately purchased by Gary Barber after winning her career debut at Laurel Park in January. In her first start for Casse, she rallied to finish second in a first-level optional-claiming race at Gulfstream on March 10.

Also entered are the West Coast shipper Majestic Quality and the locally based Wicked Lick, who finished second and fourth in the Rachel Alexandra, and eight-length maiden winner Daria's Angel. Neil Drysdale has entered Vexatious, who is 1 for 3 in her career.

New Orleans Handicap

The Grade 2, $400,000 New Orleans Handicap has drawn a wide-open group of 10.

The unpredictable front-runner Noble Bird is a top contender in the 1 1/8-mile race for Casse but enters off two of his poorer efforts. The field also includes Hawaakom, who was second to Gun Runner in the Grade 3 Razorback at Oaklawn Park in February. Breaking Lucky, who was second to Gun Runner last fall in the Grade 1 Clark, also is in the field.

Other contenders include Iron Fist, the winner of the Maxxam Gold Cup; International Star, who is 4 for 7 at Fair Grounds; and Honorable Duty, who has won the Grade 3 Mineshaft and the Tenacious at the meet.

Mervin Muniz Memorial Handicap

Three horses are co-highweighted in the Grade 2, $300,000 Muniz Handicap, a 1 1/8-mile turf race. Enterprising and Oscar Nominated finished one-two in the Fair Grounds Handicap. Granny's Kitten, who won the Grade 3 Colonel Bradley in January, stumbled at the start of the Fair Grounds Handicap and finished fifth.

Weighted a pound lighter is Kasaqui, who finished a fast-closing second in the Grade 3 Tampa Bay Stakes in his last start.

• The card also includes three Louisiana-bred stakes, the Costa Rising and the Crescent City Derby and Oaks. The first stakes of the day is the New Orleans Ladies, a $50,000 race for fillies and mares at 1 1/16 miles on turf.

First post for the 15-race card will be 12:30 p.m. Central.