My Boy Jack, winner of the Southwest Stakes, and Bravazo and Snapper Sinclair, the one-two finishers from the Risen Star Stakes, head the 10-horse field of 3-year-olds entered Saturday for the $1 million Louisiana Derby on March 24 at Fair Grounds.
My Boy Jack, winner of the Southwest Stakes, and Bravazo and Snapper Sinclair, the one-two finishers from the Risen Star Stakes, head the 10-horse field of 3-year-olds entered Saturday for the $1 million Louisiana Derby on March 24 at Fair Grounds.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Saturday was a busy morning throughout the state of Florida for 3-year-olds pointing for the $1 million Florida Derby at Gulfstream Park on March 31. Four potential starters were on the work tabs at three different venues, including Holy Bull winner Audible, Fountain of Youth winner Promises Fulfilled, and Catholic Boy, the runner-up in the Sam F. Davis at Tampa Bay Downs this winter.
Diamond King was scratched from the $100,000 Private Terms at Laurel Park on Saturday after spiking a fever, according to trainer John Servis.
A promising 3-year-old son of Quality Road, Diamond King was purchased for $235,000 as a 2-year-old last May by the Cash Is King Stable of Chuck Zacney. His ownership group now also includes the DJ Stable of Leonard Green and the LC Racing of Glenn Bennett.
"It's not bad," Servis said of the fever, "but I told Chuck that if we send him to Laurel, he probably isn't going to run good, and the race will take a lot out of him."
Add Givemeaminit’s name to the list of horses who were likely to be entered Saturday for the March 24 Louisiana Derby, trainer Dallas Stewart said Friday.
Givemeaminit was third, beaten a neck, in the Grade 1 Hopeful Stakes last summer and fourth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile last fall. Stewart added blinkers for a romping Louisiana-bred maiden win in which Givemeaminit kept up with a solid sprint pace, but the Star Guitar colt had no speed in the Feb. 17 Risen Star Stakes and finished eighth in a race where almost no passing took place.
Forever Unbridled had her final Fair Grounds workout for the March 31 Dubai World Cup on Thursday, and trainer Dallas Stewart couldn’t be more pleased about it.
Forever Unbridled’s five-furlong time of 59.60 seconds sparkles on the surface, but it was how the mare went about her business that so encouraged Stewart. Forever Unbridled ran her final quarter-mile in a fast 23 seconds and galloped out with good energy, Stewart said.
Cosmic Burst, Amy’s Challenge, and Sassy Sienna – the first three finishers in the Grade 3, $200,000 Honeybee on March 10 at Oaklawn – are all bound for the Grade 3, $400,000 Fantasy on April 13 at Oaklawn.
Cosmic Burst picked up 50 points for the Kentucky Oaks with her win in the Honeybee. She won by 1 3/4 lengths over Amy’s Challenge, a multiple stakes winner who was making her two-turn debut. Cosmic Burst earned a career-high Beyer Speed Figure of 84.
Exclamation Point, the undefeated half-brother to champion Classic Empire, has a couple of stakes options for his next start, trainer Brad Cox said Wednesday.
Cox said Exclamation Point could run next in either the Grade 3, $200,000 Lexington on April 14 at Keeneland or the $150,000 Northern Spur the same day at Oaklawn.
“We won’t have any decisions until April,” Cox said.
Exclamation Point won his debut Feb. 3 at Oaklawn, winning a maiden special weight sprint. He made the move to two turns March 3 and won a first-level allowance at a mile at Oaklawn.
The unbeaten Dream Tree, one of the top 3-year-old fillies in the country, will miss the Kentucky Oaks on May 4 at Churchill Downs after emerging from her most-recent work at Santa Anita with a minor injury, trainer Bob Baffert said Friday morning.
Dream Tree “came out of her last work with a little issue,” said Baffert, who declined to be specific about the setback, but said it was “just a little thing, not that big a deal.”
Dream Tree last worked on March 7 at Santa Anita, when she went a half-mile in 48.80 seconds.