Category: Clear Creek Stud

Clear Creek Stud to Host Stallion Presentation, Saturday, December 16

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Clear Creek Stud is holding their annual Stallion Presentation Saturday, December 16th from 10:30 am until 2:00 p.m., at their farm in Folsom, Louisiana.

Several Louisiana legislators as well as thoroughbred industry dignitaries will be on hand to speak and visit with guests. Louisiana Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner, Dr. Mike Strain; Louisiana Attorney Generel-elect Liz Murrill; Louisiana State Senator, Beth Mizell (R.-Dist. 12); Louisiana State Senator, Sharon Hewitt (R.-Dist. 1); and notable St. Tammany Parish businessman Peter Egan; are a few of the lawmakers and leaders who are planning to attend. This is an opportunity for horsemen and women to share ideas and concerns with each other as well as political leaders across the state.

The highlight of the day will be the presentation of Clear Creek Stud’s 2024 stallion roster.  Clearly Now (Horse Greeley-Bend, by Arch) is a multiple graded stakes winning millionaire. Clearly a Test  became his first black-type stakes winner capturing the $75,000 Donovan L. Ferguson Mem. Stakes on Fair Grounds opening weekend. Proven sire Custom For Carlos (More Than Ready-Meadow Oaks, by Meadowlake) is the #2 leading sire of Louisiana-breds for 2023, and the only advertised stallion standing in Louisiana who has a Grade 1 winner (Big World) to his credit. The only full brother to two-time Horse of the Year, California Chrome, Faversham (Lucky Pulpit-Love the Chase, by Not for Love) has moved to Clear Creek for the 2024 breeding season. Imperial Hint (Imperialism-Royal Hint, by Lahint) is a multi-millionaire, four time Grade 1 Stakes Winner and record setting sprinter. His first crop sold well at the 2023 yearling sales and will be running in 2024. Mr. Money (Goldencents-Plenty O’Toole, by Tiznow), a Grade 1 placed multiple graded Stakes Winner is one of only two sons of Goldencents at stud anywhere. His first crop are yearlings of 2023, and they are exceptional. Star Guitar (Quiet American-Minit Towinit, by Malagra) completes the 2023 stallion roster. Unequivocally the best Louisiana-bred runner in history, Star Guitar is a perennial leading sire in Louisiana. With seven crops to run, he has an impressive 43 stakes horses to date including three graded stakes horses.

A catered buffet  lunch will be provided starting at 11:30, with the stallion presentation beginning at 12:00 noon. A family friendly event, there will be pony rides, Santa Claus and many children activities to entertain younger visitors.

 

Clear Creek Stud Stallion Presentation
Saturday, December 16, 2023
10:30 a.m. till 2:00 p.m.

Opening Ceremony 11:00 a.m.
Buffet 11:30 a.m.
Stallion show 12:00 noon

Entertainment
Special Guest Speakers
Including State Officials, Representatives from
the Racing Commisssion and HBPA
Door Prizes and more

11591 Hwy 1078
Folsom, LA 70437

Faversham, Full Brother to California Chrome, Relocating To Louisiana’s Clear Creek Stud For 2024

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Faversham. Ron Mesaros Photo

 

Folsom, Louisiana — Faversham, the only full brother to two-time Horse of the Year and 2023 Racing Hall of Fame inductee California Chrome — sire of 2021 Louisiana Horse of the Year Cilla, is relocating to Clear Creek Stud in Louisiana for the 2024 breeding season.

 

Faversham’s introductory fee for Louisiana is $3,000 payable when foal stands and nurses or $2,000 payable by September 1, 2024; both options offer a live foal guarantee. The multiple winner and promising young sire, now 8, is nominated to Breeders’ Cup.

 

By two-time leading California sire Lucky Pulpit out of two-time California Broodmare of the Year Love the Chase, a winning daughter of 12-time leading Maryland sire Not For Love, Faversham was a dual-surface winner in California and Kentucky for owners Perry and Denise Martin. A California-bred who was named after respected Thoroughbred pedigree analyst Rommy Faversham, he stood at Daehling Ranch in his home state from mid-2020 through 2023, and will be represented by his first full crop of 2-year-olds in 2024.

 

Faversham shares an identical pedigree with racing icon California Chrome, his older sibling who earned four Eclipse Awards and $14,752,650 from 2013 through 2017. California Chrome won the 2014 Kentucky Derby (G1), the 2016 Dubai World Cup (G1) and five additional Grade 1 races on dirt and turf before he retired to stud in Kentucky with extraordinary credentials as North America’s highest-earning runner in history and as Horse of the Year for 2014 and 2016. California Chrome stood three seasons domestically and shuttled twice to Chile before he was sold and exported to Japan in 2019.

 

The top performer to date from California Chrome’s three U.S.-sired foal crops is the Grade 1-placed Louisiana-bred Cilla, a Grade 2 winner out of 2020 Louisiana Broodmare of the Year Sittin At the Bar. Cilla won three stakes races and two championship titles in her home state and earned $509,000 overall.

 

“Faversham is a tailor-made fit for Louisiana,” said Perry Martin, who also bred and campaigned California Chrome in partnership. “I believe breeders in this state will appreciate his championship pedigree, his very reasonable stud fee and his ability to win on two different racing surfaces, a skill that should equip his Louisiana-bred foals to compete throughout the state’s racing circuit in the future.”

 

Faversham will be available for inspection during Clear Creek Stud’s 2024 Stallion Roster Presentation on December 16, 2023. He joins a quality line-up that is led by Star Guitar, a four-time leading sire of Louisiana-bred runners.

 

Free nicking reports for Faversham are available at www.clearcreekstud.com.

Clearly A Test Scores on Opening Day at the Fair Grounds

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Clearly A Test became Clearly Now’s first listed stakes winner when she captured the Donovan L. Ferguson Memorial Stakes race on the opening day card at Fair Grounds on Friday. Clearly A Test hit the starting gate when they opened but quickly secured a mid pack position. Coming around the turn she swung to the outside and began to pick up horses down the long Fair Grounds stretch to win the five and one half furlong race by and length and a half. The Ferguson Memorial is a prep race for Louisiana Champions Day on December 9th. Clearly A Test is a true homebred for the Brittlyn Stable of Evelyn Benoit, being by the multiple Graded Stakes winner Clearly Now, who was raced in the latter part of his career for Brittlyn. Clearly A Test is out of the Brittlyn daughter of Louisiana’s all time leading racer in Star Guitar, Testing One Two. Testing One Two was a multiple stakes winner for Brittlyn, winning six stakes races. Trained by Shane Wilson, Clearly A Test had earned $63,900 in her career which began at Saratoga Race Course in upstate New York. The Ferguson was Clearly A Test’s maiden win also.

Clearly Now and all of the Clear Creek Stallions will be on display at our Annual Stallion Show on December 16th. Come join us for some food, fun and see some great stallions. Clear Creek Stud can be contacted at 985-796-5563 or visit our web site at www.clearcreekstud.com.

Deadline Extended to May 19 for $5000 Scholarship for Students Within the Louisiana Horse Industry

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Clear Creek Stud is making a $5000 Scholarship Donation in the name of their clients to a college student with Louisiana based connections to the Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse Breeding and Racing Industry.

Clear Creek Stud recognizes that for many of the people who perform the hard work of this industry day in and day out, the rewards are often not financial. “We want to help the children who come from these families who put in the long hours and hard work that are essential to keep our industry in operation,” says Val Murrell, general manager of Clear Creek Stud. 

The scholarship recipient will be chosen by the Louisiana Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (LaHBPA) and based on their opinion and evaluation of need and merit.

The deadline for consideration has been extended from Friday, May 12 to Friday, May 19, 2023. Interested students should send a letter and resume to Eddie Fenasci at the La.H.B.P.A. office by end of business day, Friday, May 19, 2023. Letters can be mailed to La.H.B.P.A. attention to Eddie Fenasci 1535 Gentilly Blvd. New Orleans, La. 70119 or email to efenasci@lahbpa.org.

The recipient will be named on Saturday, June 3, 2023 at the LTBA Awards Banquet at Evangeline Downs.

Clear Creek Stud Offers Scholarship for Students from Within the Louisiana Horse Industry

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With an eye toward the future of our industry, Clear Creek Stud will once again be making a $5000 Scholarship Donation in the name of their clients to a college student with Louisiana based connections to the Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse Breeding and Racing Industry.

Clear Creek Stud recognizes that for many of the people who perform the hard work of this industry day in and day out, the rewards are often not financial. “We want to help the children who come from these families who put in the long hours and hard work that are essential to keep our industry in operation,” says Val Murrell, general manager of Clear Creek Stud. 

The scholarship recipient will be chosen by the Louisiana Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (LaHBPA) and based on their opinion and evaluation of need and merit.

Interested students should send a letter and resume to Eddie Fenasci at the La.H.B.P.A. office by end of business day, Friday, May 12, 2023. Letters can be mailed to La.H.B.P.A. attention to Eddie Fenasci 1535 Gentilly Blvd. New Orleans, La. 70119 or email to efenasci@lahbpa.org.

The recipient will be named on Saturday, June 3, 2023 at the LTBA Awards Banquet at Evangeline Downs.

Afternoon Deelites Dies at Old Friends

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Just six days after the passing of his owner Burt Bacharach, Afternoon Deelites, a six-time graded-stakes winner, was euthanized Feb. 14 at Old Friends, the Kentucky-based thoroughbred retirement farm, due to complications from colic. He was 31. Old Friends President and Founder Michael Blowen announced his passing Wednesday morning.

Bred by Blue Seas Music Inc., the son of Private Terms–Intimate Girl, by Medaille d’Or, was foaled in West Virginia on Feb. 28, 1992. For his entire racing career he was owned by Bacharach, trained by Richard Mandella, and ridden by Kent Desormeaux.

Afternoon Deelites opened his racing career in spectacular fashion, winning his first five races between 1994 and 1995, four of them stakes races. After winning a Santa Anita maiden special weight as a 2-year old in 1994, he won the GIII Hollywood Prevue Breeders’ Cup Stakes to earn his first graded stakes win, and followed that up with a win in the GI Hollywood Futurity, defeating future Kentucky Derby winner Thunder Gulch.

In 1995 as a 3-year old, Afternoon Deelites continued his winning streak with victories in the GIII San Vicente Breeders’ Cup S. and the GII San Felipe S. His final win in 1995 was in the GI Malibu S. He was second in the GI Santa Anita Derby, and eighth in the GI Kentucky Derby.

At four, Afternoon Deelites won one of his four races, the GII Commonwealth Breeders’ Cup S. at Keeneland. In his final career start, he finished second in the GI Metropolitan H. at Belmont Park on May 27. Afternoon Deelites retired with seven wins (including six of the 11 graded stakes in which he ran) three seconds, and $1,061,193 in earnings in 12 career starts.

Afternoon Deelites began his stud career in 1997 at Brereton Jones’s Airdrie Stud in Midway, KY, and stood there through 2003. He then moved to Clear Creek Stud, LLC, in Folsom, LA, where he stood the rest of his career. He was pensioned in 2011, and sent to Old Friends courtesy of Val Murrell of Clear Creek Stud. “We were honored to have Afternoon Deelites at Clear Creek Stud,” said Murrell. “We are blessed to see him live on through his many daughters.”

“Afternoon Deelites was a beautiful friend,” said Blowen. “I remember Kent Desormeaux standing in front of his stall a few years ago saying ‘Michael, I won the Kentucky Derby on Real Quiet, Fusaichi Pegasus, and Big Brown, and this is the fastest horse I ever rode.’ And he was one of the best retirees who ever called Old Friends home.

“Thanks to Burt, his ex-wife, Angie Dickinson, and his widow, Jane, for loving Afternoon Deelites as much as we did.”

Clear Creek Stud to Host Stallion Presentation, Saturday, December 3

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Clear Creek Stud is holding their annual Stallion Presentation Saturday, December 3rd from 10:30 am until 2:00 p.m., at their farm in Folsom, Louisiana.

Several dignitaries will be on hand to speak and visit with guests, including Louisiana Commissioner of Agriculture Dr. Mike Strain, State Senator Beth Mizell, LAHBPA Executive Director Ed Fenasci, LAHBPA President Benard Chatters, LTBA President Warren Harang, and Louisiana Solicitor General Liz Murrill, the top litigator on the Louisiana Attorney General’s staff. This is an opportunity for horsemen and women to share ideas and concerns with each other as well as political leaders across the state.

The highlight of the day will be the presentation of Clear Creek Stud’s 2023 stallion roster.  Clearly Now (Horse Greeley-Bend, by Arch) is a multiple graded stakes winning millionaire . His first foals are just beginning to run, with his first winner breaking his maiden at two by 4 ¾ lengths. Proven sire Custom For Carlos (More Than Ready-Meadow Oaks, by Meadowlake) is the 2022 leading sire of Louisiana-breds. His current leading runner, Janet is Ready, has already won three stakes as a juvenile.  Imperial Hint (Imperialism-Royal Hint, by Lahint) is a multi-millionaire, four time Grade 1 Stakes Winner and record setting sprinter. His first crop are very attractive and will be yearlings in 2023. Mr. Money (Goldencents-Plenty O’Toole, by Tiznow) is an exciting new addition to the Clear Creek Stud roster. A Grade 1 placed multiple graded Stakes Winner, he is one of only two sons of Goldencents at stud anywhere. His first crop are yearlings of 2023, and they are exceptional. Star Guitar (Quiet American-Minit Towinit, by Malagra) completes the 2023 stallion roster. Unequivocally the best Louisiana-bred runner in history, Star Guitar is a perennial leading sire in Louisiana. With seven crops to run, he has an impressive 43 stakes horses to date including three graded stakes horses.

A catered buffet  lunch will be provided starting at 11:30, with the stallion presentation beginning at 12:00 noon. A family friendly event, there will be pony rides, Santa Claus and many children activities to entertain younger visitors.

 

Clear Creek Stud Stallion Presentation
Saturday, December 3, 2022
10:030 a.m. till 2:00 p.m.
Opening Ceremony 11:00 a.m.
Buffet 11:30 a.m.
Stallion show 12:00 noon
Entertainment
Special Guest Speakers
Including State Officials, Representatives from
the Racing Commisssion and HBPA
Door Prizes and more
11591 Hwy 1078
Folsom, LA 70437

Cupid Colt Tops LTBA Breeders Sales of Louisiana Sale

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The Louisiana Thoroughbred Breeders Association’s Breeders Sales of Louisiana held its 2022 Yearling Sale followed by Mixed Session, Saturday, October 1st at the Equine Sales Facility in Opelousas. 

138 yearlings were cataloged with 18 outs. 101 yearlings sold for a gross of $1,690,600, and an average of $16,739 and a median of $10,000. 19 RNAs.

3 weanlings sold for a gross of $20,000 and an average of $6,667.

1 horse of racing age sold for $7,000.

9 broodmares sold for a gross of $67,800 and an average of $7,530.

The gross for the overall sale was $1,785,400.

Hip number 60,  out of the Brehon Farm consignment topped the sale bringing down the hammer at $63,000. The colt, by Cupid, who is among the leading second crop sires in North America, is out of Bronze Abe, a multiple stakes winning stakes producing Two Punch mare, and was purchased by Mintmere.

Hip number 23, out of the Clear Creek Stud consignment, was purchased by Valene Farms for $62,000, the second highest price of the day.  The dkbb colt is by the late stallion Half Ours, a four time leading Louisiana Stallion out of the multiple stakes winning Louisiana bred mare Smitty’s Sunshine, and is a full brother to multiple stakes winner Smitty’s Cougar.

Complete results can be found on the LTBA Website at https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vTEi66bt8ngPPv6RGu2_htzjrcYF3iKf9wuFKVsdKNs0wmr8c3BzTKuBJOmhi3bIl83eTdjxUbyCIY6/pubhtml

Mr. Money relocates to Louisiana’s Clear Creek Stud

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Mr. Money relocates to Louisiana’s Clear Creek Stud

‘I’m hoping a lot of people cash in on Mr. Money in Louisiana, me included’

(Photo: Mr. Money/Tandra Downs)

FOLSOM, La. (Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022) — Owner Chester Thomas is following the money: In this case, moving his five-time graded-stakes winner Mr. Money as a stallion from Florida to Louisiana’s Clear Creek Stud for the 2023 breeding season.

Thomas bred 24 mares to Mr. Money in 2021, with 16 foaling in Louisiana this year while they also remain eligible for Florida’s stallion stakes series. Thomas bred 20 mares to Mr. Money this breeding season.

Spendthrift Farm also is a partner in Mr. Money.

A fan of the Louisiana breeding program and racing in the Pelican State, Thomas decided to go all in by relocating Mr. Money to Clear Creek Stud near Folsom. With the breeding industry getting revenue from the state’s legalized sports wagering, the purses for Louisiana-foaled and Louisiana-sired horses are expected to explode. In addition, historical horse racing gaming terminals, which are being installed at tracks and their off-track-betting facilities, will boost purses for all horses racing in the state.

“I just really like the way the Louisiana program is heading,” said Thomas. “I think Mr. Money has everything it takes to be a successful sire, and I believe having him at a top farm in a growing regional market gives him the best chance to show what he can do. Most of my horses race in New Orleans in the winter anyway, and I’m sure going to have a lot of Louisiana-bred Mr. Money babies. I thought I might just as well take advantage of having Louisiana-sired as well as Louisiana-born Mr. Moneys.

“We think he will excel in Louisiana. They have one of the best — if not the best — breeding programs outside of Kentucky. I’m hoping a lot of people cash in on Mr. Money in Louisiana, me included. It’s exciting to have him there with such good people as those at Clear Creek.”

Mr. Money, out of the Tiznow mare Plenty O’Toole, is the son of two-time Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner Goldencents and grandson of international super-sire Into Mischief. He won six of 18 starts, including the Grade 3 quintet of the Pat Day Mile, Matt Winn, Indiana Derby and West Virginia Derby as a 3-year-old and Churchill Downs’ Ack Ack at 4. Mr. Money’s earnings of $1.36 million include finishing second by a neck in the Grade 1 Pennsylvania Derby. He was fourth in the 2018 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Churchill Downs off of his maiden victory.

Among the horses that Mr. Money defeated on the racetrack were future Horse of the Year Knicks Go, Preakness winner War of Will and Grade 1 winners Improbable, Spun to Run, Mind Control, Math Wizard and Hog Creek Hustle.

“Mr. Money was an unbelievable racehorse,” Thomas said. He beat a multitude of Grade 1 horses that year, just got a little unlucky and didn’t get the Grade 1 himself. His babies are coming out and are looking like stone-cold runners. They’ve got a lot of leg and their physicals are unbelievable. I’m very, very excited with what we’re seeing.”

Mr. Money’s third-year stud fee will be $3,500 if paid by Sept. 1 or $4,000 live foal. A limited number of lifetime breeding rights are available.

Clear Creek Stud is one of Louisiana’s premier stallion operations, including standing leading Louisiana sire Star Guitar.

“Mr. Money is a very attractive individual,” said Clear Creek general manager Val Murrell, who has been at the breeding farm since 1977. “He’s put together well, which likely explains how he held together so well while successfully competing in top company, retiring clean and sound. Talent and longevity are super significant.

“He complements an already strong roster. It’s a known sire line. Everybody knows Goldencents and Into Mischief. That’s going to appeal to our breeders. He was very successful at middle distances and beyond. Just as important around here is speed, and he had speed. I’ve seen some of his foals that were conceived in Florida. They’re a pretty impressive group. Muscle, bone, balance, put together very well. That goes a long ways. People get to see those, and that will make a difference.  He’s an exciting addition to a pretty great Louisiana program.”

Media contact:

Val Murrell, general manager

Clear Creek Stud

(985) 796-5563

info@clearcreekstud.com
Chester Thomas’ Mr. Money filly out of Very Cherry. Tandra Downs photo
Mr. Money colt out of the Uncle Mo mare Mo Gayle. Tandra Downs photo
Chester Thomas’ Mr. Money winning the Grade 3 Ack Ack as a 4-year-old at Churchill Downs under Gabe Saez. Coady Photography
Mr. Money winning the Grade 3 West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer Park, one of four straight graded stakes he won at 3. Coady Photography

Faucheux, Graham, Brittlyn Stables Take Home Meet Titles as Fair Grounds Closes Out 150th Season of Racing

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Top Kentucky Derby contender Epicenter puts on a season-long show

 

(New Orleans, Louisiana – Tuesday, March 29, 2022) – Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots wrapped up its sesquicentennial (150th) season of racing on Sunday, March 27, and although the destruction caused by Hurricane Ida (late August/early September) offered plenty of challenges, fans were welcomed back to the facility as the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic slowed and business was solid due to the tremendous support from both horseman and bettors alike. The meet, which kicked off with the traditional Thanksgiving Day opener on November 26, included 80 racing days and it was highlighted, as always, by the 109thrunning of the $1 million TwinSpires.com Louisiana Derby (G2).

“The damage to the barn area, parts of the facility and the loss of the infield tote board due to Hurricane Ida leading into our meet caused some challenges, but we are New Orleans, and we are resilient,” Fair Grounds senior director of racing Jason Boulet said. “We are extremely proud of everyone who came together to put out a great product on a day-in, day-out basis and as always, we are extremely grateful to the horseman for their continued support throughout the meet. The return of the fans after a difficult, prolonged stretch with the COVID-19 pandemic brought renewed energy to the racetrack, and we look forward to what should be a very special 2022-23 season.”

As the calendar turned over to 2022, Fair Grounds announced a 15% across the board purse increase and the meet reached its zenith on March 26, when the Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby (G2) highlighted a robust 12-race card that included eight stakes. Winchell Thoroughbreds’ Epicenter, who earlier in the meet won the inaugural Gun Runner Stakes and the Risen Star (G2) presented by Lamarque Ford, captured Fair Grounds’ signature event over Zozos and Pioneer of Medina, establishing a new track record for 1 3/16ths miles in the process. The Not This Time colt now storms into Louisville as one of the favorites for the 148th Run for the Roses for trainer Steve Asmussen, who hopes to add a first Kentucky Derby win to his amazing resume.

The co-featured TwinSires.com Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) marked the sophomore debut of 2021 Two-Year-Old Filly Champion Echo Zulu, and the Eclipse Award winner did not disappoint, scoring a gate-to-wire victory over a hard-charging Hidden Connection to remain undefeated from five starts for owners L and N Racing and Winchell Thoroughbreds and trainer Steve Asmussen. It was a banner Louisiana Derby Day for Asmussen and jockey Joel Rosario, who teamed up to win five races on the card.

On the Louisiana Derby Day undercard, Grandview Equine, Cheyenne Stable and LNJ Foxwoods’ Olympiad won the New Orleans Classic (G2) as the odds-on favorite under Junior Alvarado, nearly breaking the nine furlong track record in the process for trainer Bill Mott. Earlier in the meet, the son of Speightstown shaved .01 off the 1 1/16 mile track record when winning the Mineshaft (G3). In the Muniz Memorial Classic (G2) presented by Horse Racing Nation, Two Emmys took the field gate to wire for Wolfe Racing, owner/trainer Hugh Robertson and the meet’s leading rider James Graham.

Louisiana native Ron Faucheux won his second consecutive training title with 43 wins, ten more than four-time champion and Brad Cox (33), who was named the Eclipse Award winner for the second consecutive year in 2021. 11-time local titlist Tom Amoss, Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, Chris Hartman and Bret Calhoun tied for third with 29 wins apiece, and Jose Camejo, who trains for the meet’s leading owner Brittlyn Stables, was next with 27.

Faucheux won three stakes at the meet, including a repeat score with fan favorite Monte Man in the Louisiana Champions’ Day Sprint. The meet highlights for Cox were his upset win with Turnerloose in the Rachel Alexandra (G2) presented by Fasig-Tipton and a victory by Mandaloun in the Louisiana (G3), a race in which he defeated arch rival Midnight Bourbon in the process. Amoss bagged a pair of turf stakes for 3-year-olds, winning the Black Gold with Dowagiac Chief and the Lacombe Memorial with Kneesnhips. Calhoun won four stakes with four different horses – Lovely Ride (Pago Hop), Who Took the Money (Louisiana Champions’ Day Turf), Excess Magic (Woodchopper) and Winning Romance (Shantel Lanerie Memorial). Hartman scored the 1,500th win of his career on February 4 with Ekati’s Verve, and his turf sprint mare Elle Z won three stakes at the meet – the Menard Memorial, the Aime Memorial and the Mardi Gras. Camejo took down a pair of stakes with Ova Charged (Louisiana Champions Day Ladies Sprint and the Page Cortex) and added another with Behemah Star (Star Guitar).

With 72 wins, James Graham captured his fourth Fair Grounds riding title and third in a row. His top moment came when Call Me Midnight posted a 27-1 upset over eventual Risen Star and Louisiana Derby winner Epicenter in the Lecomte (G3) for trainer Keith Desormeaux. With a late surge, Mitchell Murrill, who won his 1,000th career race on February 6 aboard Yin Yang in what was his first ever mount for trainer Brad Cox, surged late for second with 62 wins. Colby Hernandez, who led the way most of the meet, wound up third with 60 scores. Brian Hernandez, Jr., who led all local riders in percentage with 22% and Reylu Gutierrez, in his first season at Fair Grounds, rounded out the top five with 53 and 51 wins respectively.

Adam Beschizza, who finished sixth in the standings, scored his 500th career win in North America on January 29 aboard the Joe Sharp-trained Holy Emperor. Graham and Marcelino Pedroza, Jr. were the only two riders to win as many as five races on a single card. Jack Gilligan and Gabriel Saez both returned from extended injury rehabs to score victories at the meet.

The owners’ race was dominated from start to finish by Evelyn Benoit’s Brittlyn Stable, who won 22 races at an amazing 33% clip, all with horses sired by her Clear Creek Farm’s stallion and Louisiana legend Star Guitar. It was the first local title for Brittlyn Stables, who nearly tripled their eight-win total from the 2020-21 meet. Allied Racing Stable of Chester Thomas finished second with 14 wins, and last year’s champ Godolphin checked in third with ten.

Following a break for the Christmas Holiday, Fair Grounds returned with a newly anointed “Road to the Derby Kickoff Day” card on December 26. The program offered six stakes and featured a pair of brand-new added money events for the late season 2-year-olds, each offering 10-4-2-1 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby and Oaks respectively – the Gun Runner (won by Epicenter) and the Untapable (won by North County).

On Saturday, February 12, Fair Grounds hosted the second annual “New Vocations Day at the Races”. Hosted on the simulcast show by retired jockey Rosie Napravnik, a four-time local champion, and Fair Grounds personality Joe Kristufek, the event raised over $5,000 and awareness for all aspects of racehorse aftercare. In addition to on-line donations, several jockeys, trainers and owners contributed a percentage of that day’s earnings to help support the Louisiana division of New Vocations.

Buoyed by a track record handle recorded on a spectacular 14-race “Louisiana Derby Preview Day” card on February 19, handle and betting support were strong from opening day to closing day, no doubt helped by the increased popularity of the traditional Pick Five, following the elimination of the Black Gold 5 “jackpot” wager last season.

“We would like to thank all the horsemen for their continued support which makes Fair Grounds one of the premier winter destinations,” Fair Grounds racing secretary Scott Jones said. “With daily purses expected to noticeably increase and a strong stakes schedule, we are looking extremely forward to the 2022-23 Thoroughbred racing season.”