Revolutionary 3-1 favorite in full Louisiana Derby field; Flashy Gray tops Oaks

Revolutionary 3-1 favorite in full Louisiana Derby field;
Flashy Gray tops Oaks

Revolutionary (white silks) surged late to win the Withers (Jessie Holmes/EquiSport Photos) Revolutionary, who overcame severe traffic problems to win Aqueduct’s Grade 3 Withers in his last start on February 2, has been installed as the lukewarm 3-1 morning-line favorite in the 100th anniversary edition of the Grade 2, $1 million Louisiana Derby at Fair Grounds on Saturday. The nine-furlong contest is the feature event on the penultimate day of the New Orleans oval’s 2012-2013 Thoroughbred racing season. A total of seven stakes are scheduled, including the Grade 2, $500,000 Fair Grounds Oaks, and the Louisiana Derby will be televised nationally on NBC Sports Network as part of a “Road to the Kentucky Derby” broadcast that starts at 6 p.m. (EDT). This year’s milestone 100th Louisiana Derby festivities include the first-ever Infield Festival, a celebration in the green expanse within the racing oval with concerts by Cowboy Mouth and Flow Tribe, as well as a gathering of 17 food trucks and pop-up vendors. The Louisiana Derby is worth 170 points — 100 for first, 40 for second, 20 for third and 10 for fourth — in the new “Road to the Kentucky Derby” points series that determines starters for the Kentucky Derby on May 4 at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky.

Revolutionary, conditioned by five-time Eclipse
Award-winning and two-time Louisiana Derby-scoring trainer Todd Pletcher, will
be ridden by Javier Castellano, who was aboard for his Withers win. That was the
War Pass colt’s sophomore bow after closing out his juvenile season with an 8
1/2-length romp in a maiden special weight at Aqueduct.

Prior to that first win, Revolutionary ran third behind last month’s Grade 2
Fountain of Youth victor Orb in a maiden special weight contest at the Big A.
Orb is scheduled to return on Saturday as part of a 10-horse field in the Grade
1, $1 million Florida Derby.

Pegged as the 9-2 second choice in the Louisiana
Derby is Code West, who invaded from California last month
to finish second by a nose in Fair Grounds’ Grade 2 Risen Star as the
final local designed prep for Saturday’s showcase.

The Lemon Drop Kid ridgling, who is trained by Bob Baffert and will be ridden
by West Coast-based jockey Martin Garcia, was making his stakes bow in the Risen
Star. He entered that race off another runner-up effort in an optional claimer
at Santa Anita, where he finished second behind next out Grade 3 Southwest
scorer Super Ninety Nine.

Palace Malice just missed by a nose when making his stakes bow in the Risen Star (NYRA/Adam Coglianese Photography) Also exiting the Risen Star is Palace Malice, the third choice at 5-1 on the Louisiana Derby morning-line off his third-place run. A stablemate to Revolutionary, the bay son of Curlin was making his stakes debut, and first start around two turns, in the Risen Star. Palace Malice had Rosie Napravnik aboard for that race, but will get a jockey switch to Edgar Prado on Saturday. Undefeated Departing and Titletown Five are the co-fourth choices on the early line at 8-1. Conditioned by three-time Fair Grounds champion trainer Al Stall Jr., Departing won Sam Houston’s Texas Heritage on March 2 and remains unbeaten after three career starts. Regular jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. is named to ride once again. D. Wayne Lukas will send out Titletown Five with Jon Court handling the reins. The Tiznow colt broke his maiden at Churchill Downs by nine lengths last October, and opened his three-year-old campaign with a second-place effort in his stakes bow, the Gazebo at Oaklawn Park on March 2. Ground Transport suffered his only career loss to Departing in his career debut in December, and will be looking to hand that rival a first defeat of his own on Saturday. The Big Brown colt has since captured a pair of mile-and-70-yard contests at Fair Grounds, including a three-length optional claiming win over a good track on February 23. Regular rider Mark Guidry will be in the irons once again.

Louisiana-bred Sunbean will try to keep the Derby trophy in his homestate
following three stakes wins over the local oval. The bay son of Brahms bypassed
the Risen Star to run in the Gentilly on the undercard that day, and brings a
confidence-building, 4 3/4-length score, as well as jockey Colby Hernandez, from
that race into the Derby.

Golden Soul, a well-beaten second in the Grade 3 LeComte in his seasonal bow,
was just three lengths back in sixth in the Risen Star, and will have jockey
Calvin Borel taking over the mount in his third consecutive stakes try on
Saturday.

Hip Four Sixtynine will make his stakes bow in the Louisiana Derby off a 3
1/4-length maiden win going six furlongs over the track on February 23. He,
Texas Heritage fourth-placer Whiskey Bravo, OBS Championship runner-up Brazilian
Court and Grade 3 El Camino Real Derby second Nina’s Dragon are the co-longest
shots on the morning-line at 30-1.

Mylute and Proud Strike, the respective seventh- and eighth-place runners in
the Risen Star, complete the Louisiana Derby field.

Flashy Gray was an easy winner in her sophomore bow at Gulfstream Park (Adam Coglianese Photography) Earlier on the card, Flashy Gray gets a chance to make amends for her runner-up effort as the 2-5 favorite in Oaklawn’s Grade 3 Honeybee on March 9 when she is pegged as the solid 6-5 morning-line choice in the Grade 2, $500,000 Fair Grounds Oaks. Four of the last eight winners of the Fair Grounds Oaks — the filly equivalent of the Louisiana Derby — have gone on to victory in Churchill Downs’ Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks on the day before the Kentucky Derby. The most recent of those was Believe You Can, who accomplished the double Oaks parlay last spring for trainer Larry Jones. Prior to her Honeybee second-place effort, Flashy Gray had broken her maiden with an impressive 10 1/4-length score in her final start as a juvenile last fall at Churchill and made it two straight tallies with a 4 3/4-length win against optional claiming company on February 10 at Gulfstream in her first start as a sophomore. The Flashy Bull filly is conditioned by Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott and will have the riding services of Junior Alvarado for Saturday’s Fair Grounds Oaks.

Capable of providing strong competition for Flashy Gray is
undefeated Unlimited Budget, who is already familiar to Fair Grounds
fans after capturing the Grade 3 Rachel Alexandra last month with an
impressive 3 3/4-length tally for Pletcher. Installed as the 9-5 second
choice on the Oaks early line, the Street Sense bay was also 1 1/4 lengths the best in Aqueduct’s
Grade 2 Demoiselle last November, and will be ridden by Javier Castellano for
the first time Saturday.

Promise Me More will be looking to turn the tables on Unlimited Budget
following her second in the Rachel Alexandra, and the 10-1 morning-line shot
will keep Miguel Mena aboard for Saturday’s race.

Not to be discounted in the Fair Grounds Oaks is So Many Ways, who won Saratoga’s Grade
1 Spinaway and Grade 3 Schuylerville last summer to complete an undefeated juvenile campaign.
Established as the 6-1 third choice on the early Oaks line, the Sightseeing miss suffered
from a poor start in her only appearance as a sophomore in the Primal Force at
Gulfstream on March 1 and finished third.

So Many Ways is trained by Tony Dutrow and will have Hernandez Jr. in the
irons.

Joining her in the starting gate will be Seaneen
Girl, who hasn’t been seen in competition since taking the Grade 2 Golden Rod
under the Twin Spires last November; Blue Violet, third in the Rachel Alexandra
in her stakes bow for trainer Larry Jones; and stakes victress Ante Up Annie,
who was runner-up in the Azalea earlier this month at Delta Downs.

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