Life Of Joy Reels in Bella Ballerina to Upset Grade 2 Fair Grounds Oaks
NEW ORLEANS (March 21, 2026) – Will Stroud, Andrew Farm, Mountmellick Farm and For the People Racing Stable’s Life of Joy reeled in Bella Ballerina to win the Grade 2, $400,000 Fasig-Tipton Fair Grounds Oaks going away, earning 100 qualifying points to Kentucky Oaks 152.
Trained by Brad Cox, Life of Joy finished 3 3/4 lengths ahead of post-time favorite Bella Ballerina, covering 1 1/16 miles in 1:42.27, just off the track record of 1:42.01.
Cox has now won five Fair Grounds Oaks titles, including Good Cheer (2025), Tarifa (2024), Travel Column (2021) and Bonny South (2020). Good Cheer went on to win Kentucky Oaks 151.
Flavien Prat piloted Life of Joy, as well as Emerging Market for the local Oaks-Derby sweep.
Life of Joy settled comfortably just off the inside as Maximum Offer set the 23.24 and 46.83 fractions, with pressure from Bella Ballerina and others through the opening stages. Advancing between rivals on the second turn, Life of Joy came under urging and began to close in on the leaders. Angled to the outside approaching the stretch, she reeled in the front-runners, overtook Bella Ballerina inside the three-sixteenths pole and drew clear to win convincingly. Bella Ballerina, who had tugged her way to the lead and briefly held command at the top of the lane, fought on gamely but could not match the winner’s late kick. Luv Your Neighbor rallied three wide but weakened late while holding third. Further back, Newtown Pike made a mild, wide rally after a troubled start to finish fourth. Maximum Offer held on for fifth.
With her win in the Rags to Riches, fourth in the Golden Rod and second to Zany last out in the Suncoast, Life of Joy now stands at the top of the leaderboard with 122 points.
“I thought last time she got beat by a good filly and I didn’t think the set up of the race was to her favor,” Prat said. “But today she had a lot of pace to run at and she ran a great race.”
Rachel Alexandra winner Bella Ballerina added 50 for a total of 110 points, ranking second. Luv Your Neighbor added another 25 and now sits fourth with 65 points.
Newtown Pike earned 15 for a total of 25 points. Maximum Offer earned 10 and has 14 points.
“We wanted to freshen her up a little bit after the Suncoast,” Cox said. “We ran into a really good filly in Zany that day. Today we got a good set up and Flavien did a great job. I think she is a filly that can handle a mile and an eighth.”
Life of Joy paid $9.40, $3.60 and $2.60.
Life of Joy’s career record now stands at 5-3-1-0 with earnings of $420,620.
Additional Quotes
Tyler Gaffalione, jockey of place-finisher Bella Ballerina
“Honestly, she’s just getting a little forward on us, you know, last time, when she was a little bit, fresh off the layoff, we kind of attributed it to that. Today, she just wanted to get a little forward. When the horse came up outside of it down the lane, when she saw her, she reengaged and finished up really well. Obviously, we always want to win these races, but I think we got enough out of this race. It’s a stepping stone and we’re just going to keep moving forward with her.”
Luis Saez, jockey of third-place finisher Luv Your Neighbor
“She was right there, but she got tired. She just got a little tired. I was following Tyler the whole way. Beautiful spot.When we came to the turn she didn’t take of like she did last time.”
Francisco Arrieta, jockey of fourth-place finisher Newtown Pike
“She was ready and somebody was moving and she broke through the front. By the time they reset and opened the gate, she skirted a bit and missed the first jump. She made a nice run and galloped out strong. She’s a nice filly.”
Brian Hernandez, Jr., jockey of fifth-place finisher Maximum Offer
“She broke sharp. I talked to Kenny about it and he said if she breaks sharp, let her run into the first turn, and that’s what we did. Unfortunately she just wasn’t quick enough to sustain the whole way”
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About Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots
Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, one of the nation’s oldest racetracks, has been in operation since 1872. Located in New Orleans, La, Fair Grounds, which is owned by Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ Global Select Market: CHDN), also operates a slot-machine gaming facility and 13 off-track betting parlors throughout Southeast Louisiana. The 154th Thoroughbred Racing Season–highlighted by the 113th running of the Louisiana Derby–will run from Nov. 20, 2025 through March 22, 2026. More information is available online at www.fgno.com.
