Month: March 2020

Homeland Security to Issue 35,000 Additional H-2B Visas

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LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 5, 2020) – The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) earlier today communicated to Congressional offices its intent to release 35,000 additional H-2B visas for the summer season of Fiscal Year 2020. This nonimmigrant visa program is used by many industries that need temporary non-agricultural help when domestic workers are unavailable. For the horse racing industry, racehorse trainers rely heavily on the H-2B program to fill various backside positions.

While DHS has not yet released a final rule outlining specific details, the agency has provided the following:

  •  Federal regulators will release the supplementals in two phases. The first batch of 20,000 will be available for employers requiring start dates  beginning April 1, and 15,000 to those having start dates beginning May 15.
  •  DHS will “generally limit” issuance of supplemental H-2B visas to returning workers “who are known to follow immigration law in good faith.”
  •  And in a first-time effort to align visa policy with the Administration’s border security goals, DHS will award 10,000 supplemental visas to citizens of Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, countries DHS has designated as “key Central American partners” on border security policy.

“We are pleased that the Administration and acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf decided to allocate an additional 35,000 H-2B visas for the remainder of fiscal year 2020,” said NTRA President and CEO Alex Waldrop. “Hopefully, this will provide relief to horse trainers who continue to struggle to hire foreign workers for backstretch positions that U.S. citizens are not filling. While this number of supplemental visas is 5,000 greater than in Fiscal Year 2019, it is likely to fall short of demand.”

Country Day Makes TDN’s List of Regional Value Sires for 2020

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Excerpted from TDN

 

By Chris McGrath

After our exhaustive survey of Bluegrass stallions, good manners demand at least a browse through the alternatives available elsewhere in North America. But this must be a very different exercise, and a pretty unsatisfactory one too. The Kentucky market is entirely coherent, with hundreds of stallions clustered within a few miles of each other at fees to suit all budgets. Regional stallions, in contrast, serve regional mares. If you’re in Ohio, you’re not going to van a mare down to Too Much Bling (Rubiano). If you’re in Texas, equally, you don’t need telling that you can’t have too much of that guy.

Each regional market is organic, and value must be judged accordingly. Is your state program sustained by slots, for instance? Are you splitting a fee between 10 buddies from the bowling alley at a couple of hundred bucks apiece? Or are you trying to beat the Bluegrass at its own game–to breed another Chrome in California; or launch another Malibu Moon in Maryland, another Mr. Prospector in Florida?

So this is just a cursory cross-section picked from some (but by no means all) of the principal regions. They’re at various stages of their careers, at different fee tiers, and have only one thing in common: the potential–in a single, highly subjective opinion–to punch above their fees.

 

LOUISIANA

COUNTRY DAY (Speightstown–Hidden Assets, by Mt. Livermore), Peach Lane Farms, $2,500

Having been reduced to just four mares in his sixth season, last year Country Day was moved from Kentucky to make a fresh start in the Pelican State. How apt, then, that at Fair Grounds on New Year’s Day, his daughter Break Even launched her flamboyant spree of six straight wins, highlighted on Oaks day at Churchill by the GII Eight Belles S.

It had been on the equivalent card the previous year that a member of Country Day’s debut crop, Will Call, had become his first graded stakes winner. He went on to run fifth in the GI Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint–the race in which Country Day himself had enjoyed his finest hour, when second in the 2011 running. Only a few days ago, moreover, Will Call’s sister, Play On, landed her third black-type success; and their sire’s overall record now stands at 59 winners from 78 starters.

You have to look past Country Day’s relatively modest track career to account for a runner as freakish as Break Even, albeit his versatility in terms of surface was replicated when she switched to turf to run away with a Saratoga stake last summer. You very seldom see a horse clock such wild fractions with such a contained, relaxed air. The most striking thing about Country Day’s pedigree is that the bottom line so closely mirrors that of Giant’s Causeway; and, farther back, it traces to the Calumet foundation mare Blue Delight, through one of her three GI Kentucky Oaks winners. His dam, meanwhile, was a graded stakes winner who has produced four stakes scorers besides Country Day.

So it all makes sense, quite apart from the emergence of Munnings and others to advertise Speightstown as a sire of sires. Country Day, remember, produced Break Even from the most unpromising material: under the first two dams, there is otherwise a solitary black-type third at Canterbury Downs. And nor has he been a one-trick pony.

Country Day was welcomed to his new home only by a couple of dozen mares, but that surely has to change. It’s not hard, after all, to break even at this kind of money–and you might yet get a Break Even of your own.

 

 

Read Full TDN Article

Texas Summer Yearling Sale Set for August 24 at Lone Star Park

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(Austin, Texas – March 5, 2020) – This year’s Texas Summer Yearling and Mixed Sale has been set for Monday, August 24, at Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie. This will mark the fifth renewal of the auction held jointly by the Texas Thoroughbred Association and Lone Star Park. The entry deadline is June 15.

“We have a record number of entries for the Texas 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale on April 3, and we anticipate added interest in this auction thanks to all the positive things going on with Texas racing,” said Mary Ruyle, executive director of the TTA.

Up to $25 million annually is being pumped into the Texas horse industry thanks to legislation passed last year, and purses at the current Sam Houston Race Park meet and upcoming Lone Star Park meet are at their highest levels in many years.

“With the enhanced purses at Texas tracks and added incentives for accredited Texas-breds, the Southwest region has never been stronger,” added Tim Boyce, sales director. “In addition to an added number of horses, we anticipate an increase in quality just like we saw with the consignments for the 2-year-old sale.”

For more information, go to www.ttasales.com.

Obituary: R. Carson Llewellyn Jr.

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Raeburn Carson Llewellyn Jr

September 10 1953 March 1 2020 (age 66)

Raeburn Carson Llewellyn, Jr., 66, died peacefully on March 1, 2020 in Houston, Texas following a courageous battle with leukemia.

He is survived by his wife, Gail Ohman Llewellyn, his sisters Mary Rebecca Llewellyn and Patricia Lee Llewellyn (Filip Loncke), his nieces Lora Marguerite Hansel! Deel (Justin) and Rebecca Llewellyn Hansell, his great nephews Jude and Silas Deel, his sisters-in-law Sarah Ohman Madrid and Julie Ohman Gilkey (Bob), his nephew Matthew Ohman Madrid, his great nephew Paul Ohman Madrid, and numerous cousins.
Carson attended St. Martin’s Episcopal School in New Orleans. He graduated from the University of Virginia with a BA in History and from Tulane University Law School. He also received a Master’s degree in Petroleum Engineering from Tulane and, later, a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Rice University. Carson was truly a “renaissance man.” In addition to having four degrees in four different areas of study, he supported himself through college by being a “roustabout” on oil rigs during the summers, worked construction for a year to save up money for law school, and worked as a respiratory therapist during law school.
Carson worked in New Orleans and then in Houston in oil and gas law. He threw himself into every endeavor 100% and lived his life with love, laughter, and integrity.
Carson married Gail, the love of his life, in 2007 at the University of Virginia Chapel. She brought out the best in him, and he in her. She supported him in all of his many interests, particularly his devotion to family, friends, and horses. He was always smiling, always supportive and caring of others, and always had a funny story to tell. He never met a stranger and never forgot a friend.
He took on a leading role in preserving the heritage of the family through the restoration of the family home in Alabama, the two-room schoolhouse on the family property, and Valley Creek Presbyterian Church. He was also an avid fan of University of Virginia, University of Alabama, and Tulane University sports, and had a life-long love of animals, specifically adopting stray cats and owning and caring for racehorses.
He was much loved by his family and friends and will be greatly missed.
A graveside service will be held at Valley Creek Church cemetery in Valley Grande, Alabama on March 7th at 2pm, immediately followed by a memorial service at Valley Creek Presbyterian Church with Dr. Cecil Williamson officiating and Lawrence Brown-Service Funeral Home directing. Honorary pallbearers are George Cook, Bill Cook, John Cook, and Justin Deel. For those of you who would like to post comments and memories of Carson, please feel free to visit carsonllew.com (password: carson). In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts and donations may be made to Valley Creek Presbyterian Church, 4715 Alabama Highway 22, Valley Grande, AL 36701, to the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF.org) or to Equine Reflections, Inc. (equinereflections.org).

FAUCHEUX IS HAPPY TO CONTINUE TO BUILD HIS LOUISIANA EMPIRE

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Faucheux battling with Brad Cox for the Fair Grounds training title

 

New Orleans (March 4, 2020) – Ron Faucheux, a 37-year-old Louisiana native with over 500 career training wins to his name, has made a name for himself in his home state of Louisiana with the ability to train both graded stakes caliber horses and also play the Louisiana bred claiming game to perfection.

 

Now over 10 years into his training career, Faucheux has 513 wins from 2,076 starts (as of March 4, 2020) and career purse earnings of over $11.9 million.

 

I had the chance to sit down with Faucheux Friday morning and get to know more about the early stages of his career, as well as where he’s aiming to be.

 

 

How did you get involved in racing? Was it something you have always been around?

 

“I wasn’t raised around horses from an early age,” Faucheux said Friday morning near the Fair Grounds paddock. “I was about 11 or 12-years-old and I went with my step-dad Louie Roussel to the track for the first time and just the surroundings and the people involved is what got me hooked. Right away I knew I wanted to do something with racehorses.”

 

“I started to go work over the summer for Billy Badgett in Saratoga and Belmont when I was about 16-years-old,” Faucheux continued. “Around high-school I knew that I wanted to be a trainer and that was the path I was going to take. I transferred high schools my sophomore year and wasn’t eligible to play sports until my senior year and by that time all I wanted to do was be around the racetrack.

 

What were the early days of your career like? When did you go out on your own and start to build your stable?

 

“In 2009 is when I went out on my own,” Faucheux said. “I started off with two horses. We won three races with the two horses. One of them I thought we had no shot with; he had run like seventh the past two starts and I thought we just didn’t have a chance. I was entering in a state-bred non-winners of three lifetime race and the race didn’t go. The racing office convinced me to run the horse in an open company $5,000 claimer and my horse (Built to Precision) won by like three of four lengths. I don’t remember what it paid but it was a nice price and that was my first career win.”

 

“After that I was able to get Frank Calabrese to send me some money to start claiming,” Faucheux continued. “I claimed three horses in Louisiana and Frank invited me to go to Chicago so I went up there and that’s where I really started my stable. We had anywhere between 10 and 15 horses that meet at Arlington. After the Chicago meet we went down to Florida and were running at Calder and the start of Gulfstream Park.

 

After your time in Chicago and Florida, did you ever have any thoughts to come back to Louisiana and train?

 

“I always wanted to get back to New Orleans,” Faucheux said. “I convinced Frank Calabrese to let me bring about four horses down and we started our first horse at Evangeline Downs. The horse was like 3-5, completely missed the break and got beat so Frank calls me and tells me he wants the horses out of there and back to him. I knew if I lost those horses I would be in trouble so I talked Frank into letting me keep the horses to try to sell them to some owners down here that were looking to run in Louisiana so he wouldn’t have to pay for them to be shipped around the country. I was able to sell three of the horses and I ended up buying one of them for $15,000 for myself. Her name was Paper Shredder and she did well for me winning some races, she helped pay for some of the tack and just helped me get my barn started.”

 

Gantry was your first graded stakes winner, what was that experience like and how did you get the opportunity to train a horse like that at the beginning of your career?

 

“Over the summer of 2010 I started training for Evelyn Benoit at Evangeline Downs,” Faucheux said. “Thanksgiving Day at Fair Grounds is obviously a big day and she kept mentioning that she had never won a race on that day. I was looking at my condition book and saw a $17,500 claimer on the turf and thought we could claim one and be aggressive in that spot, but she got back to me and said she was eyeing the Thanksgiving Handicap. I only had some nickel claimers in my barn and I’m thinking wow, okay let’s do it. We went look at Gantry and got him in October from Belmont. He was 8-1 on the morning line in the Thanksgiving and I had some doubts but he of course ended up winning that race and sweeping the sprint series at Fair Grounds that year. He gave me my first career graded stakes win in the Smile Sprint Handicap (G2) at Calder and we got to run in Breeders’ Cup so it was a fun journey with him.”

 

Guys like Brad Cox, Steve Asmussen, Al Stall Jr., etc.. come to Fair Grounds every winter, and you always find a way to stamp yourself near the top of the leaderboard. You’re sitting just behind Brad Cox on the leaderboard right now, what’s it like getting to compete against these guys and more than hold your own?

 

“It’s special to be able to hold my own against these trainers that come here for the winter,” Faucheux said. “The goal and the dream for most trainers is to win a Kentucky Derby, but for me my dream was always that I wanted to win and be competitive at the Fair Grounds. If those big horses and a Derby or races like that happen its great and I would love it, but I like being in Louisiana and training here and winning races at the Fair Grounds.”

 

“We treat each horse as an individual and try to spot them where they are competitive,” Faucheux continued. Obviously if it were to happen and I was leading trainer for the meet that would be a dream come true but at the same time we’re just trying to spot our horses in the right places here and take our time with them.”

 

 

 

You have obviously made a name for yourself in the claiming game, what goes into claiming a horse and what do you credit your claiming success too?

 

“There is defiantly a skill to claiming horses,” Faucheux said. “I was never around much either early on. Working for Todd Pletcher in my early days that’s obviously not what he does. When I started out on my own I figured out how important claiming was when you’re trying to build a stable. Working for Frank Calabrese that’s really all you do so I was able to sharpen my skills with him. I realized as I started doing it more that I had a pretty good idea of how to play the claiming game and sort of found my niche. It’s all about fitting conditions.”

 

 

10 years from now, where do you hope to be in your training career?

 

“I have two kids and we live here in Louisiana,” Faucheux said. “I take pride in being here with them and getting to be around them. I know a lot of trainers don’t get to be with their kids as much with all the travelling. Being able to train nice horses and be here with my kids in Louisiana is big for me. If we eventually branch out and go around the country I wouldn’t completely be against it, but I’d like to stay here continue building what I have. To be honest, I like being the trainer that stays here year around and can still compete with these bigger names when they come down here over the winter.”

 

THORNTON, BROBERG AND END ZONE ATHLETICS EARN LEADING HORSEMEN TITLES AT DELTA DOWNS DURING 2019-20 SEASON

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FAMILIAR FACES DOMINATE STANDINGS THROUGHOUT 84-DAY STAND 

  

VINTON, LA. –  The 2019-20 Thoroughbred season at Delta Downs wrapped up on Saturday with familiar names topping the standings. Tim Thornton won his second straight leading rider title while Karl Broberg notched his ninth consecutive crown in the training ranks. Broberg and Matt Johansen’s End Zone Athletics, Inc. earned their fifth straight leading owner title and their eighth in the last nine years.

Thornton’s season included 110 wins and $2,287,415 in mount earnings after riding 142 winners and setting a single season record with $2,894,080 in earnings last year.

Thornton, a husband and father of three, won two stakes races during the meet. On December 28 he rode Bending Saint to victory in the $70,000 B Connected and on January 11 he booted home Flat Lucky in the $65,000 Sam’s Town.

Following Thornton in the jockey standings were C. J. McMahon (75 wins), Paulina Ramirez (54), Diego Saenz (52), Joel Dominguez (51), Gerard Melancon (49), Jose Guerrero (42), Devin Magnon (31), Thomas Pompell (28), and Kevin Smith (26).

Broberg continued his dominance at Delta Downs in 2019-20 by sending out 95 winners and totaling $1,826,580 in earnings. The accomplishment capped off a season that saw him win his ninth straight training title at the Vinton, Louisiana racetrack. During the Delta Downs season Broberg also capped off another calendar year (2019) of leading the nation in wins by a trainer with a personal record of 548 trips to the winner’s circle. It was the sixth straight time he has accomplished that feat.

Rounding out the top 10 trainers for the Delta Downs meeting were Robertino Diodoro (41), Beverly Burress (29), Isai V. Gonzalez (26), Lee M. Thomas (23), Joel Berndt (21), Eduardo Ramirez (20), Allen Landry (19), Sam Breaux (16), and Scott Gelner (16).

End Zone Athletics, Inc. saw 46 of their runners win and earn a total of $868,765. Rounding out the top 10 owners for the season were Empire Racing Stables LLC (Jason D. Bullard) (24), Adriel Gonzalez (14), Brittlyn Stable Inc. (Evelyn Benoit) (12), Dale White, Sr. (11), Red Rose Racing (Jimmy Johnson) (11), Patti Turner (11), Elite Thoroughbred Racing, LLC (Michele Rodriguez) (10), Danny R. Caldwell (9), Allied Racing Stables, LLC (Chester Thomas) (8).

Delta Downs now looks forward to its upcoming American Quarter Horse season which gets underway on April 17 and runs through July 4. The 46-day meeting will feature live racing each Wednesday through Saturday night after opening weekend. Post times on Wednesday and Thursday nights will be at 5:15 pm CST. The first race on Fridays and Saturdays will be at 6:15 pm.

For more information about the Delta Downs go to the track’s website at www.deltadownsracing.com. Fans can also follow the track on Facebook and Twitter.

 

Delta Downs Racetrack Casino and Hotel, a property of Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE:BYD), features exciting casino action, live horse racing and fun dining experiences. Delta Downs is located in Vinton, Louisiana, on Delta Downs Drive. From Lake Charles, take Exit 7 and from Texas, take Exit 4.

 

NINETY ONE ASSAULT POWERS HOME IN DIXIE POKER ACE STAKES

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Dixie Poker Ace Stakes
Fair Grounds, 2-29-20, ant 1 mile, turf
Four-year-Olds and Upwards, Accredited Louisiana-breds, $60,000

Ninety One Assault_F_2-29-2020
Ninety One Assault, with Shaun Bridgmohan aboard, wins the 40th running of the Dixie Poker Ace Stakes at the Fair Grounds in New Orleans. Hodges Photography / Lou Hodges, Jr.

NINETY ONE ASSAULT
Artie Schiller-Lilly Ladue
Breeder: Richey & Strode Stables, LLC
Owner: Thomas Morley & Paul Braverman
Trainer: Thomas Morley
Jockey: Shaun Bridgmohan

2nd
Shang
Shanghai Bobby-Humble Janet
Breeder: Cloyce C. Clark Jr.
Owner: L. William and Corinne Heiligbrodt
Trainer: Steven M. Asmussen
Jockey: Brian Joseph Hernandez

3rd
In The Navy
Midshipman-Southern Princess
Breeder: Ken Standlee
Owner: Kendel D. Standlee
Trainer: Scott Gelner
Jockey: Adam Beschizza

 

For the third consecutive time at Fair Grounds, Tom Morley and Paul Braverman’s Ninety One Assault put in his signature closing kick and spurted clear in the final 1/16th of a mile to score in the $60,000 Dixie Poker Ace Stakes by two lengths as the 7-5 favorite. Swallowing up Shang late in the stretch, Ninety One Assault stopped the clock in 1:40.92 for the about one mile turf journey. It was ¼ lengths back to In the Navy in third.

Now a six-time winner over the Fair Grounds turf course, Ninety One Assault closed the door on his 6-year-old campaign with a win in the Louisiana Champions Day Turf in early December at Fair Grounds. Following the victory trainer Tom Morley spotted Ninety One Assault in an open company $80,000 optional claimer race in January, a race in which he blasted home at odds of 10-1 to score by ¾ of a length.

The now 7-year-old son of Artie Schiller has put together a career record of 31-7-3-6 with earnings of $344,683.

“He was just the best horse today” said jockey Shaun Bridgmohan, who swept both stakes races on the Saturday card. “I like to get him covered up and breaking from post 11 today was a little tricky but I was able to get covered up for a bit down the backside and when I started to ask him around the 3/8th’s pole he was there for me.”

“The pace up front was slower today,” Bridgmohan continued. “This horse is so tactical and believe me if I wanted to be up on the lead at any point he would have responded and gone up there but that’s not his style and I tried to ride him the way he likes to run and not take him out of his game.

A multiple stakes winner on dirt, Shang moved to the turf course for the first time in his career and put in a valiant effort to run second with jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. aboard.

“He handled the grass great,” Hernandez Jr. said. “We got to go as easy as we wanted to and turning for home he switched leads right on que and was really running down the lane. The winner was just much the best today.”

Midnight Fantasy Wins $125,000 Spring Fever Stakes at Oaklawn Park

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Spring Fever Stakes
Oaklawn Park, 2-29-20, 5.5 furlongs
Four-Year-Olds and Upwards, Fillies and Mares, $125,000

midnight_fantasy_-_spring_fever_-_32nd_running_-_02-29-20_-_r09_-_op_-_finish_02_big
Midnight Fantasy wins Spring Fever Stakes at Oaklawn Park. Coady Photography

MIDNIGHT FANTASY
Midnight Lute-St. Jean
Breeder: J. Adcock & Hume Wornall
Owner: Carl R. Moore Management LLC
Trainer: Joe Sharp
Jockey: Martin Garcia

2nd
Amy’s Challenge
Artie Schiller-Jump Up
Breeder: Sierra Farm (KY)
Owner: Novogratz Racing Stable Inc.
Trainer: McLean Robertson
Jockey: Alex L. Canchari

3rd
What A Fox
Bernardini-Twisted Tale
Breeder: Gary & Mary West Stables Inc (KY)
Owner: Lawrence P. Roman
Trainer: Robertino Diodoro
Jockey: Orlando Mojica

 

Carl R. Moore Management LLC’s Midnight Fantasy gained the lead at the top of the stretch and had just enough left to hold off defending champion Amy’s Challenge by a neck in Saturday’s $125,000 Spring Fever Stakes before a crowd of 20,000.

Ridden by Martin Garcia, Midnight Fantasy settled behind the early leaders in fourth as Mt. Brave held a narrow advantage through opening fractions of :21.43 and :45.10 for the first half mile. The winner began to make her move rounding the turn for home and was well clear of the field until Amy’s Challenge rallied late. She completed the 5 ½ furlongs in 1:03.61 over a fast track.

“She was doing really good,” Garcia said. “That was exactly where I wanted to be. I was able to stay on the outside and when I asked her to go, she just took off. It was really nice.”

What a Fox finished third and was followed by Mt. Brave, Artistic Diva and 4-5 favorite Break Even.

 

The victory was the second of the day for owner Carl Moore and trainer Joe Sharp and third for jockey Martin Garcia.

When asked if he expected to win two races Saturday, Moore replied, “No. I was just hoping to hit the board twice. It was a tough race. I mean that race right there, she beat some good horses. She ran huge. Joe (Sharp) and I, we talked about it (Spring Fever) and we saw it up here. The distance – she likes 5 1/2 (furlongs). I think she’ll stretch out and go farther, too. We’re trying to decide. She’s doing so good short.”

Midnight Fantasy, a 4-year-old Midnight Lute filly, improved her record to 5-3-0 in 12 career starts and has now earned $327,180. She returned $19.40, $6.60 and $3.80 at odds of 8-1.

Live racing resumes Sunday with a 1:30 p.m. first post.

UNDERPRESSURE WINS ANOTHER THRILLER IN THE OWNER APPRECIATION CUP

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Owner Appreciation Cup
Delta Downs, 2-29-20, 1 mile
Four-Year-Olds and Upwards, $70,000

Underpressure - OA Cup - 02-29-20
Underpressure wins the Owner Appreciation Cup at Delta Downs. Coady Photography.

UNDERPRESSURE
Birdstone-Charming Colleen
Breeder: James McIngvale
Owner: Mallory Greiner
Trainer: Chris Richard
Jockey: Gerard Melancon

2nd
Treasure Trove
Tapizar-Cashmere
Breeder: John Fradkin & Diane Fradkin (KY)
Owner: Bayou Bengal Racing Stable
Trainer: Thomas M. Amoss
Jockey: Diego Saenz

3rd
Paddock Pick
Graydar-Fiery Pulpit
Breeder: Taylor Brothers Properties LLC, Pollock Farms, Patrick H. Payne, et al (KY)
Owner: Claiming Game Racing
Trainer: Karl Broberg
Jockey: C.J. McMahon

 

Underpressure’s victory in the Owner Appreciation Cup came in come-from-behind style as his used his deadly late kick to run down pacesetter Treasure Trove in the stretch. The Chris Richard trainee, who was ridden by Gerard Melancon, hit the finish line 1-1/4 lengths to the good of Treasure Trove with Paddock Pick finishing another 2-1/4 lengths back in third. The final time for Underpressure was 1:38.79.

 

The win by Underpressure came with some drama after the race. Treasure Trove’s jockey Diego Saenz claimed foul against the winner for drifting in front of his mount in mid-stretch. The stewards took several minutes to review video of the race before disallowing the claim and keeping the order of finish intact.

 

Underpressure has now won 13-of-36 races and the $48,000 prize on Saturday night raised his career bankroll to $741,382. The 6-year-old Louisiana-bred son of Birdstone, out of the Charismatic mare Charming Colleen, won all three of his starts at Delta Downs this meet, each with Melancon in the saddle. The biggest score came in the $150,000 Louisiana Premier Night Championship on February 8, which was the richest race of the season.

 

Our Lost Love Wins Take Charge Brandi S. Among Open Company

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Take Charge Brandi S.
Delta Downs, 2-28-20, 7 furlongs
Three-Year-Old Fillies, $70,000

Our Lost Love - Take Charge Brandi - 02-28-20
Our Lost Love wins the Take Charge Brandi Stakes at Delta Downs. Coady Photography

OUR LOST LOVE
Half Ours-Lost Love Baby
Breeder: Tri-Star Racing
Owner: Tri-Star Racing
Trainer: Joseph M. Foster
Jockey: Joel Dominguez

2nd
West Bank Baby
Candy Ride (ARG)-Rever de Vous
Breeder: Fred W. Hertrich III & John D. Fielding (KY)
Owner: Allied Racing Stable, LLC
Trainer: W. Bret Calhoun
Jockey: C.J. McMahon

3rd
Green Monster
Bayern-Contrition
Breeder: Animal Science Sept/ U of K (KY)
Owner: Wayne T. Davis
Trainer: Shane Wilson
Jockey: Filemon T. Rodriguez

 

 

VINTON, LA. – Delta Downs kicked off its final weekend of Thoroughbred racing for 2019-20 on Friday night with an 11-race program that featured a pair of stakes events. The $76,300 Take Charge Brandi was won by Our Lost Love and the $70,600 Owner Appreciation Distaff was annexed by Shes Our Fastest.

 

The Take Charge Brandi, a seven-furlong test for 3-year-old fillies, was over soon after it began, as Our Lost Love broke sharply form her inside post position and dictated the pace throughout before reporting home 1-1/4 lengths in front of West Bank Baby and Green Monster, who finished another 2-3/4 lengths behind the top pair.

 

Under jockey Joel Dominguez, the dark bay or brown winner carved out fractional times of 23.57 seconds for the opening quarter mile, 48.41 for the half, and 1:14.17 for three-quarters before finishing up in 1:28.22. The race was contested over a fast track.

 

The win by Our Lost Love, who is trained by Joey Foster, was the fourth of her seven-race career. She’s won two-of-four starts at Delta Downs. Her $48,000 first-place prize on Friday raised her bankroll to $181,820.

 

Bred in Louisiana by her owner Tri Star Racing, LLC, Our Lost Love is a 3-year-old filly by Half Ours, out of the Private Vow mare Lost Love Baby.

 

Sent to the gate as the betting favorite at odds of 3-2, Our Lost Love paid $5 to win, $3.40 to place and $3 to show. West Bank Baby was worth $7.20 to place and $4.80 to show. Green Monster paid $5 to show.