Dry Summer put himself into the Grade 3, $800,000 Sunland Park Derby on Saturday, when he turned back a bid from Show Some Magic and went on to a 1 1/2-length win in the $120,000 Mine That Bird Derby. The race, formerly called the Borderland Derby, was the local prep for the Sunland Derby on March 24.
“That’s our plan,” said winning trainer Joel Marr.
[ROAD TO THE KENTUCKY DERBY: Prep races, point standings, replays]
NEW ORLEANS – Three-year-old stakes horses capped the 2011 – 2012 Fair Grounds racing season with a burst of insanity when 109-1 shot Hero of Order won the Louisiana Derby. Oxbow restored a measure of order winning the first 3-year-old stakes this meet, the Jan. 19 Lecomte, at a reasonable 9-2. But wackiness returned Saturday when Ive Struck a Nerve rallied from last to edge Code West in the Risen Star Stakes at odds of 135-1.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Trainer Shug McGaughey should have been rubbing his hands in delight after they posted a 45.45-second opening half-mile split for Saturday’s 1 1/16-mile Fountain of Youth Stakes at Gulfstream Park. But at the time, the Hall of Fame trainer was otherwise occupied.
“I was watching the race on TV and I couldn’t find him,” said McGaughey, referring to his stretch-running Orb. “But when he came into the picture I said to myself if they slow down, he’s going to get them.”
NEW ORLEANS – Scratched from the Risen Star, Sunbean dominated fellow 3-year-old Louisiana-breds in a 4 3/4-length romp in the Gentilly Stakes on Saturday at the Fair Grounds.
Ridden by Colby Hernandez for trainer Al Stall Jr. and Maurice and Evelyn Benoit’s Brittlyn Stable, Sunbean rated in mid-pack off a fast pace set by Skip the Pinot, who ran the first half-mile while pressed by Heitai in 46.76 seconds. In the stretch, Sunbean swept around rivals and pulled away.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Itsmyluckyday turned in his first workout since upsetting Eclipse Award champion Shanghai Bobby in the Grade 3 Holy Bull when he breezed an easy half-mile in 48.77 seconds at Calder on Saturday morning.
Itsmyluckyday, a son of Lawyer Ron trained by Eddie Plesa Jr. rallied from just off the pace to a two-length victory over Shanghai Bobby in the 1 1/16-mile Holy Bull on Jan. 26. The win was the second of the meet for Itsmyluckyday, who also captured the Gulfstream Park Derby by nearly seven lengths on New Year’s Day.
NEW ORLEANS – Departing was to be scratched from the Risen Star Stakes on Saturday because of a wide post-position draw, trainer Al Stall said.
Departing will be redirected to Sam Houston Park, where he’ll start next weekend in the $50,000 Texas Heritage Stakes over one mile and around two turns. Were Departing to perform impressively in that spot, the timing would be favorable for him to come back in the Louisiana Derby here at Fair Grounds on March 30.
The eighth season of Countdown to the Crown returns as one of the most comprehensive handicapper’s scouting reports of the 3-year-old scene. Posted each Friday at DRF.com from Jan. 4 through the Belmont Stakes, Countdown keeps you apprised of the rising stars of the 3-year-old class from the maiden ranks through the Grade 1 stakes. You can access daily updates, opinions and interactive features at Countdowntothecrown.com as well.
Straight from the gate
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. — When the Fountain of Youth Stakes at Gulfstream Park and the Risen Star Stakes at the Fair Grounds are run on Saturday, people who follow thoroughbred racing will watch intently, even if they don’t have a financial stake in the outcome. The prep races that lead to the Kentucky Derby annually engage the attention of fans trying to spot the future winner of America’s most famous race.
NEW ORLEANS – A niggling problem with talking about the Risen Star Stakes as a Kentucky Derby prep is the race’s minimal historic impact on the Derby. Nine of the last 15 Risen Star winners made it to the Derby. Their average finishing position was 11th. Among that set, only Mucho Macho Man cracked the Derby trifecta, coming in third in 2011.
