despite his record now of one win from five starts, Forevamo is headed in the right direction, trainer Al Stall hopes, which is why he’s getting a shot Saturday in the Risen Star Stakes at Fair Grounds.
In 2014 Tom Benson hatched a plan to get back into horse racing after a decades-long break. Benson, a New Orleans native, owns the New Orleans Saints and the New Orleans Pelicans, along with local media outlets, a bunch of real estate, and pretty much anything else he might desire to buy. Benson came up working class and has come out upper crust. Most everything he's touched has turned to gold, and despite the odds, that's held true for his latest racing venture.
Mark Casse is squarely in the hunt for his first Kentucky Derby win, most notably with the highly regarded Airoforce, who makes his 3-year-old debut on Saturday in the Grade 2, $400,000 Risen Star Stakes at Fair Grounds. But all is not good. Casse's father, mentor, and the man he calls his “idol,” Norman, is seriously ill.
Mor Spirit, the sharp winner of the Grade 3 Robert Lewis Stakes at Santa Anita on Feb. 6, worked a half-mile in 48.60 seconds on Wednesday for an expected start in the $400,000 San Felipe Stakes here on March 12.
Kentucky Derby: Who's hot, who's not for Feb. 17
Airoforce proved his versatility last year, winning two-turn graded stakes on turf, in the Bourbon at Keeneland, and dirt, in the Kentucky Jockey Club at Churchill Downs. It remains to be seen what the colt’s best surface is.
Suddenbreakingnews remains a candidate for the Grade 2, $900,000 Rebel next month at Oaklawn Park after emerging from his win in the track’s Southwest Stakes in good order, trainer Donnie Von Hemel said on Tuesday.
Nyquist came out of his victory on Monday in the San Vicente Stakes at Santa Anita in good order and will target the Grade 1, $1 million Florida Derby at Gulfstream on April 2 for his final prep for the May 7 Kentucky Derby.
Suddenbreakingnews closed from last for a 2 3/4-length win over Whitmore in the Grade 3, $500,000 Southwest Stakes in his 3-year-old debut Monday at Oakawn Park. It was another half-length back to American Dubai in third.
