Barn Notes

February 5, 2008 --

FAIR GROUNDS BARN NOTES

Headlines for Tuesday, February 05, 2008

· Horse of the Year Curlin Breezes Mardi Gras Morning at Fair Grounds

· Pyro Gets In Final Work For Risen Star

· Risen Star, Silverbulletday Runners Named in Future Wager Pools

· Two Fillies Work Tuesday for Saturday’s Silverbulletday

· Save Big Money, Inca King in Moves for Fair Grounds Handicap

· ‘Blackberry’ Ripening on ‘Road’ to Derby

· Florida Shippers for ‘Preview’ Program Delayed Until Wednesday

 

Horse of the Year Curlin Breezes Mardi Gras Morning at Fair Grounds

NEW ORLEANS, La. – Newly-crowned Horse of the Year Curlin breezed seven furlongs in 1:25.20 Tuesday morning at Fair Grounds in preparation for a Dubai campaign to include the $6 million Dubai World Cup on March 29.

Winner of the Preakness and Breeders’ Cup Classic as a 3-year-old, Curlin had been considered for a start in Saturday’s Grade III Mineshaft Handicap, but is now being pointed for a prep race at Nad al Sheba on Feb. 28.

With Curlin headed to Dubai, the focus for the Mineshaft shifts to millionaire Magna Graduate and last summer’s Travers runner-up Grasshopper, who also just missed in last fall’s Super Derby.

Magna Graduate is conditioned by Todd Pletcher, Eclipse Award-winning trainer for the last four years. After winning Oaklawn’s Grade III Razorback Handicap last March, Magna Graduate was beaten a head when second in Churchill’s Grade I Stephen Foster Handicap in June and then second by a half in the Grade II Meadowlands Cup last October.

 

Pyro Gets In Final Work For Risen Star

Winchell Thoroughbreds Pyro, runner-up in the Grade I Breeders’ Cup Juvenile last fall but unraced as a 3-year-old, breezed five furlongs Tuesday morning at Fair Grounds in 1:00.80 in preparation for Saturday’s Grade III Risen Star Stakes.

The Risen Star is the anchor of a six-stakes program with purses totaling $1 million on Saturday’s Louisiana Derby Preview Day.

Trained by Steve Asmussen, who has already saddled more stakes winners this season than any other trainer in Fair Grounds history during a single meeting, Pyro is the 3-1 morning-line choice in the Risen Star, followed closely by Lecomte Stakes winner and fellow Asmussen trainee Z Fortune at 7-2.

 

Risen Star, Silverbulletday Runners Named in Future Wager Pools

The Risen Star Stakes and Silverbulletday Stakes coincide with Pool 1 of the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks Future Wagers, and seven horses running at Fair Grounds on Saturday are named as individual wagering interests.

While the “All Others” bet is the 5-2 morning-line favorite in each Future Wager, Fair Grounds fans will see one of co-second choices in both the Risen Star and Silverbulletday.

Risen Star morning-line choice Pyro is listed at 12-1 on the Derby Future Wager morning-line. Pyro’s stablemate in the Steve Asmussen barn, Z Fortune, is at 20-1 on the Derby Future Wager early line, as is the David Carroll-trained Blackberry Road. California shipper Signature Move is also an individual betting interest in the Future Wager at 50-1 on the morning-line.

Silverbulletday favorite and 2-year-old filly champion Indian Blessing is one of two horses at 8-1 on the Oaks Future Wager morning-line. Proud Spell, runner-up to Indian Blessing in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies, is at 12-1, while Tiffany Lass Stakes winner Jolie the Cat is 30-1.

Wagering on both Future Wager pools opens at 11 a.m. CST Thursday. The Derby Future wager closes at 5 p.m. Sunday, with the Oaks Future wager closing 30 minutes later.

 

Two Fillies Work Tuesday for Saturday’s Silverbulletday

Briarwood Stable’s Highest Class, who rallied to finish third beaten four lengths in Fair Grounds’ Tiffany Lass Stakes Jan. 12, breezed four furlongs in :50 Tuesday morning at the New Orleans oval as a final prep for Saturday’s Silverbulletday Stakes.

Also breezing a half-mile in advance of the Silverbulletday was Ronald Keith Kinmon’s Absolutely Cindy, who accomplished the distance in :51. That daughter of Arch, third in the Tropical Park Oaks Jan. 1, shipped from South Florida for Saturday’s test – the final major local prep for the Grade II Fair Grounds Oaks.

Brereton Jones’ Proud Spell, 7-2 the early second choice on the Silverbulletday morning-line, breezed five furlongs Monday morning at Fair Grounds in 1:02.

 

Save Big Money, Inca King in Moves for Saturday’s Fair Grounds Handicap

Save Big Money breezed four furlongs Tuesday morning in :50 while completing final preparations for Saturday’s Grade III Fair Grounds Handicap at about nine furlongs over the local Stall-Wilson turf course.

The Neil Howard trainee was fourth in the Grade III Col. E.R. Bradley Handicap in his last start.

Also breezing four furlongs on Tuesday for that same graded grass test was Inca King, who was clocked in :51. Inca King won Fair Grounds’ Woodchopper Stakes Dec. 24, Churchill Downs’ Commonwealth Turf Nov. 11 and Keeneland’s Bryan Station Stakes Oct. 14.

 

‘Blackberry’ Ripening on ‘Road’ to Derby

Dogwood Stable’s Blackberry Road worked Sunday morning at Fair Grounds preparing for Saturday’s Risen Star.

“Our colt worked a half in :48.40 (co-bullet work for the distance) finishing the last eighth in :11 with Julien Leparoux aboard,” said Dogwood president Cot Campbell. “His regular rider Calvin Borel (winner of last year’s Kentucky Derby astride Street Sense) is at Oaklawn but will travel to New Orleans for the race.

“We are hoping for an honest pace up front and are anxious for Calvin to respond earlier with this late- running horse if there are soft fractions in front of him,” said Campbell. “We are going to discuss this with him Saturday.

“We are pleased that Blackberry Road is listed among the top Derby contenders on www.kentuckyderby.com, Churchill Downs’ website for the event,” Campbell added.

 

Florida Shippers for ‘Preview’ Program Delayed Until Wednesday

An equine charter flight to New Orleans from South Florida for Saturday’s Louisiana Derby Preview Day program – originally scheduled to arrive Tuesday – has been delayed a day due to mechanical problems and is now scheduled to arrive locally Wednesday.

Also scheduled to arrive Wednesday is the equine charter from California carrying the West Coast’s Louisiana Derby Preview Day shippers.