Stall to watch Sir Alfred James from afar

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Al Stall Jr. was hoping the month of November would represent the high point of his year, but it wasn’t to be. Tom’s d’Etat finished ninth in the Nov. 7 Breeders’ Cup Classic before being whisked away to stud, providing a somber end to what had been a terrific couple of seasons with him as the stable star.

“It was great having him, but you’ve got to keep moving forward,” Stall said. “We’re racetrackers.”

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To further the point, Stall was fully immersed Monday in one of his bi-annual transitions from Churchill Downs to Fair Grounds. He’s leaving a handful of horses behind for the balance of the Churchill meet, but Stall himself was set to leave Tuesday. On Thursday, he’ll watch from New Orleans when Sir Alfred James, one of the more accomplished runners remaining in his care, goes postward in an $89,000 allowance (race 8), a one-turn mile that anchors a nine-race Churchill card.

“We’re just trying to make a money run like everybody else,” Stall said. “I actually entered him as a main track only for this race when it was going to be carded for the grass, but then they switched it around. Hopefully, that works out in our favor.”

Because of a deteriorating turf course, all turf racing has been suspended at Churchill through this week. Track officials have left open the possibility of running on turf during the meet’s final week (Nov. 25-29).

Sir Alfred James, with Adam Beschizza riding from post 2, figures to vie for favoritism with the two outside horses, Hembree (post 6, Tyler Gaffalione) and Gun It (post 7, Julien Leparoux) in the second-level allowance.

Sir Alfred James gave Stall one of his more memorable scores of the year when capturing a first-level allowance on the Sept. 5 Kentucky Derby undercard. The 4-year-old gelding has posted back-to-back fourth-place finishes in two subsequent attempts at this level.

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Hembree is making a rare afternoon appearance on dirt, having made 32 of his 38 prior starts on turf, while Gun It will be looking to snap an eight-race losing streak after having last won on Nov. 20, 2019.

The only other allowance of the day directly precedes the nominal feature as race 7. Palomita, part of the local Chad Brown string being overseen by Whit Beckman, will clash with the Wesley Ward-trained Sequin in an $87,000 five-furlong dash that drew nine fillies and mares.

First post Thursday is 1 p.m. Eastern. Sunshine and a high of 64 are in the local forecast.