Valadorna fine after subpar performance in Houston Ladies Classic

Valadorna exited her sixth-place finish at odds of 7-2 in the Jan. 28 Houston Ladies Classic at Sam Houston without any issues, trainer Mark Casse said, but there are no immediate plans for Valadorna’s next start.

Valadorna scored open-lengths wins in a Fair Grounds allowance race and the Tiffany Lass Stakes before the Houston Ladies Classic. The Sam Houston main track was rated good for the race, and Casse isn’t sure Valadorna cared for the surface.

At some point this year, Casse said, Valadorna is likely to make her turf debut, but in the shorter term the filly will be considered for the $350,000 Azeri Stakes on March 17 at Oaklawn.

Casse also said he plans to start Holding Gold in the $50,000 Colonel Power on the Feb. 17 Fair Grounds card. Holding Gold, a Grade 2 winner, closed his season with a close seventh-place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint and is being considered for the Al Quoz Stakes on the Dubai World Cup undercard.