The Fair Grounds turf course was expected to be back in usable condition this
week after a solid month of wet weather forced nearly every scheduled grass
event to the main track. Saturday’s stakes quartet includes three turf events,
two of which — the Grade 3, $125,000
Colonel E.R.
Bradley Handicap and $75,000
Marie G. Krantz
Memorial Handicap — were rescheduled from last weekend.
The Bradley, for older horses at about 1 1/16 miles, is a wide-open affair on
paper with few, if any, tossouts. Optimizer, who had a busy campaign of 14
starts in 2012, make his four-year-old debut for the hot D. Wayne Lukas barn.
Although he won or placed in only four of those starts, the son of English
Channel began to show more consistency in the second half of the year when
concentrating on grass stakes. The colt’s season highlight was a 4 1/2-length
score in the Grade 3 Kent, and he ended the term with a third against older
rivals in the Grade 2 Hollywood Turf Cup.
A trio of contenders exit the Buddy Diliberto Memorial, contested at Fair
Grounds on December 22. Strike Impact prevailed by a length that day for his
second stakes win of the season, and he’s joined in the lineup by fellow
nine-year-old Dubious Miss, who finished third, and Canadian Grade 2 victor
James Street, who ran fifth as the favorite. Dubious Miss was the runner-up in
the last two editions of the Bradley, while James Street has yet to place in
three prior starts on grass.
Louisiana-bred ace String King has won five of his last seven, including a
pair of state-bred stakes at the current meet, while the lightly-raced Unlatch
brings a three-for-four mark into the Bradley including a last-out win in the
November 23 Woodchopper.
Bim Bam, whose last win occurred in June 2010, has placed in a number of
stakes in the interim, including the Grade 1 Manhattan Handicap in 2011. He
returned to action following a one-year layoff in a November 4 allowance at
Churchill Downs, finishing fourth in a field of six.
Completing the field are Trend, who was multiple Grade 3-placed at Gulfstream
Park last winter but has just two wins to nine second-place finishes, and
Tetradrachm, who makes his stakes debut off back-to-back allowance scores.
Unlike the Bradley, the Krantz Memorial looks pretty straightforward as Daisy
Devine is expected to go off a prohibitive favorite. The Grade 1 queen is
perfect in three starts over the Fair Grounds lawn, including a six-length
tour-de-force in last month’s Blushing K.D. Handicap. For that lack of respect
toward her opposition, Daisy Devine will be asked to shoulder 125 pounds in the
Krantz, conceding anywhere from eight to 12 pounds.
Artemus Kitten, whose signature win occurred in last year’s Bayou Handicap,
and Pago Hop heroine Zapper Belle are the main upset possibilities in the field
of six going about 1 1/16 miles.
Agave Cat is among the likely favorites in a field of 10 three-year-olds in
the $75,000 Van
Berg, an about 5 1/2-furlong turf dash. Successful in his career debut over
turf at Arlington Park in September, Agave Cat enters the Van Berg off a solid
second-place finish against allowance company on the main track for trainer John
Good.
Others of note are Party Lad, a turf optional claimer winner at Gulfstream
last month; Strong Response, an impressive Keeneland maiden winner in October;
Kentucky Downs graduate Strike the Note; and last-out maiden winners Animal
Style and Evan’s Calling.
Delaunay will be a strong favorite to make it four in a row in the day’s only
main track stakes, the $75,000
F.W. Gaudin
Memorial at six furlongs. The Smoke Glacken gelding has impressively
captured the Temperence Hill, Bet on Sunshine and Thanksgiving Handicap in his
last three, twice beating returning rival Gantry, hero of last year’s Grade 2
Smile Sprint Handicap. Grade 2 veteran Flashpoint and former Canadian champion
Hollywood Hit are also in the field of seven.
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