NEW ORLEANS – A punishing rainstorm caused Fair Grounds to cancel its Friday card in an attempt to have the main track in optimum shape for racing Saturday, when the Louisiana Derby highlights a card that includes four Grade 2 stakes.

The cancellation was announced about an hour before first post. It rained hard late in the morning, and there was considerable standing water just inside the inner turf course rail. The forecast was for more rain throughout the day, but the storm showers are supposed to end Friday night.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – The Ontario Racing Commission has lifted training restrictions placed on Barn 10 at Woodbine after a single case of equine herpesvirus, or EHV-1, was reported in a 5-year-old filly stabled there March 13.

Horses in Barn 10 are now free to train during regular training hours. The racing commission had limited training for those horses to the end of regular training hours since March 18. Ponies in Barn 10 will still only be allowed to pony horses in Barn 10, however.

ARCADIA, Calif. - The 3-year-olds Friendswith K Mill and Twenty Percent, both trained by Doug O’Neill, were among the late nominations for the Triple Crown last week. On Thursday, O’Neill said he considers the pair to be candidates for the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico on May 17 as opposed to the Kentucky Derby on May 3.

Friendswith K Mill, second in an allowance race at Santa Anita on March 16, could start in the $1 million Santa Anita Derby on April 5, but O’Neill said the $200,000 Coolmore Lexington Stakes at Keeneland on April 19 is more likely.

ARCADIA, Calif. – There will be no major strategy session between jockey Joe Talamo and trainer Mike Mitchell in the paddock before Saturday’s $75,000 American Beauty Stakes at Santa Anita.

Talamo will ride Fanticola for Mitchell, who said the less coaching he does, the better the situation may turn out.

“I won’t say anything to Joe,” Mitchell said Thursday. “If he wants to use her a bit, he can.”

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Owner Ron Sanchez said Wednesday he will not make any deal to sell Social Inclusion until at least after his undefeated 3-year-old makes his next start April 5 in the Grade 1 Wood Memorial.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – It speaks to the depth of his roster of 3-year-old fillies that trainer Todd Pletcher could lose two of his top prospects and still have several contenders for the Kentucky Oaks, a race he won last year with Princess of Sylmar.

In Tune, the winner of her first two starts here this winter, will try to punch her ticket to the Oaks when she makes her stakes debut against seven rivals in Saturday’s Grade 2, $300,000 Gulfstream Oaks. The Gulfstream Oaks is one of seven undercard stakes on the 14-race program highlighted by the $1 million Florida Derby.

NEW ORLEANS – For trainer Al Stall Jr., a local boy made good, this has been a fairly quiet winter at Fair Grounds, where he has lamented the purse cuts and quality of racing, factors that led to him giving his stable stars an easier winter than might have been expected.

NEW ORLEANS – Louies Flower won three straight races at Remington Park last year, then headed to Oaklawn Park, where he was purposely kept out of the Smarty Jones Stakes in January to await the Southwest Stakes on Feb. 17. His trainer, Bret Calhoun, now thinks that was a major mistake and believes that Louies Flower, who ran last in the Southwest, can improve when he starts in the Grade 2, $1 million Louisiana Derby on Saturday at Fair Grounds.

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - Ami’s Holiday, who is 10-1 on a winter-book line for the $1 million Queen’s Plate, likely will launch his 3-year-old season next month at Keeneland, trainer Josie Carroll said Wednesday. The winner of last year’s Grade 3 Grey on Polytrack at Woodbine, the horse breezed six furlongs in 1:14.80 at Oaklawn on March 20. He last raced Dec. 8 and was third as the favorite in the $134,000 Display at Woodbine.

Horses competing in Aqueduct’s upcoming $1 million Wood Memorial on April 5 will be subject to out-of-competition blood testing for banned substances, be required on the grounds by April 2, and are subject to 24-hour monitoring at their trainers’ own barns and stalls on the grounds, the New York State Gaming Commission announced.