HOT SPRINGS — ‘Grace’ to arrive Tuesday
Reigning Horse of the Year Havre de Grace is scheduled to arrive today at Oaklawn Park after working 5 furlongs in 1:02.40 on Sunday morning at Fair Grounds in New Orleans.
Owner Rick Porter said Havre de Grace will make her next start in the $500,000 Grade I Apple Blossom Handicap on April 13 or the $300,000 Grade II La Troienne Stakes on May 4 at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky.
Havre de Grace, the defending Apple Blossom champion, will go into trainer Steve Hobby’s barn at Oaklawn.
Cindy Jones, the wife and assistant of Larry Jones, Havre de Grace’s trainer, will arrive Tuesday to oversee the 5-year-old mare’s training.
Porter said on his racing website, rockportharbor.com, that Larry Jones decided to work Havre de Grace on Sunday because it will allow her to breeze again this weekend.
Porter said Jones also wants to train Havre de Grace on dirt instead of Polytrack at Keeneland in Lexington, Ky., where the trainer will be based much of this month.
Porter said his preference is to run in the Apple Blossom - if he and Jones deem the weights are favorable.
“He feels that Churchill and Oaklawn have similar surfaces, so if we pass on the Apple Blossom because of weight issues, she will be training over a similar track,” Porter said.
Weights for the 1 1-16-mile Apple Blossom are scheduled to be released Saturday.
Havre de Grace has been based this year at Fair Grounds and began her 2012 campaign with a 4 1-2-length victory in the $150,000 New Orleans Ladies on March 17.
Devil’s due
Favored Devil and a Half held off defending champion The Mallard Man by a length to win Sunday’s $60,000 Arkansas’ Breeders’ Stakes for state-bred horses at 1 1/16 miles.
Ridden by Carlos Marquez Jr., Devil and a Half covered the distance over a fast track in 1:45.59.
Devil and a Half, the 7-5 favorite, was coming off a second-level allowance victory in open company March 11.
Devil and a Half paid $4.80, $2.80 and $2.40. The Mallard Man paid $4.40 and $3. Doin Big Bidness, 1 1/2 lengths farther back in third, paid $4.20.
Devil and a Half, a 5-year old gelding by Storm and a Half out of Rainbows Are Due, increased his earnings to $149,710 following his fifth victory in 16 lifetime starts.
Devil and a Half’s 3-year old full brother, We Are Due, won Sunday’s second race under Marquez.
Both horses race for their breeders, Betty and Leon Millsap of Hot Springs, and trainer Steve Hobby of Hot Springs.
Storm and a Half, Arkansas’ top stallion, is owned by the Millsaps and stands at McDowell Farm in Sparkman.
“Winning for the Millsaps was great,” Hobby said.
“They’re great people, local people, and I was really glad to get them in the infield one time this season.”
Devil and a Half ran second to The Mallard Man in last year’s first Arkansas Breeders’ Stakes.
First one
Tactical Officer, one of the horses the late Bob Holthus had in training for owner Dave Clark at the time of his death late last year, broke her maiden in Sunday’s ninth race to give Clark his first victory in 10 starts at the meeting.
Holthus, Oaklawn’s all time leading trainer, died of heart failure Nov. 22 in Louisville, Ky. He was 77.
Eight horses trained by Holthus at the time of his death, including seven for Clark, were subsequently transferred to Holthus’ long time assistant, Sal Guerrero.
The horses were moved in late December to trainer Randy Morse, who saddled Tactical Officer on Sunday.
A 3-year-old daughter of Officer, Tactical Officer was a $325,000 Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company March 2-year-old in training purchase.
Nehro news
Nehro, runner up in last year’s Kentucky and Arkansas derbies, is scheduled to make his next start in the $400,000 Grade II Oaklawn Handicap on April 14.
Nehro was scratched from Sunday’s $400,000 Grade II New Orleans Handicap at Fair Grounds in New Orleans after experiencing muscle soreness Saturday morning.
Owner Ahmed Zayat said in a statement Sunday that Nehro “hopefully” would be shipped to Oaklawn today and work Wednesday.
Nehro, who is trained by Steve Asmussen, broke his maiden last February at Oaklawn.
Back on track
Junebugred, winner of the $100,000 Smarty Jones Stakes on Jan. 16, is scheduled to be sent this week to Fair Hill Training Center in Maryland, where the colt will begin preparing for a return to racing.
Owned by Alex and JoAnn Lieblong of Conway, Junebugred underwent successful surgery to remove a bone chip from a knee shortly after dead-heating for sixth in the first division of the $250,000 Grade III Southwest Stakes on Feb. 20.
Stablemate Launch Commander, stakes placed at 2 last year before undergoing knee surgery, will also be sent to Fair Hill to prepare for his 3-year-old debut.
Lieblong said both colts, trained by Steve Hobby of Hot Springs, are being pointed toward a summer return.
Hobby will be based at Delaware Park after the Oaklawn meeting ends April 14.
Day 49 glance
ATTENDANCE 8,770 ON-TRACK HANDLE $503,368.80 OFF-TRACK HANDLE $1,689,149.51 TOTAL HANDLE $2,192,518.31 SATURDAY’S INSTANT RACING HANDLE $476,440.55 CLASSIX CARRYOVER None THURSDAY’S TIMES First post for the nine races is 1:30 p.m. Gates open at 11 a.m.
PRICES Admission ($2) parking in Oaklawn lots ($2) reserved seats ($2.50 weekdays) programs ($2).
Daily Racing Form on track ($5, small) and ($6 weekdays). NOTE Forms are 50 cents more off track. Tip sheets ($2-$5) WAGERING MENU
Win, place, show, exacta, trifecta (all)
Superfecta (races 4, 6 and 9)
Daily double (races 1-2, 8-9)
CLASSIX (races 3-8)
Pick-3 (begins with races 4, 5 and 7)
Pick-4 (begins with race 6) TELEVISION TVG (live full card), HRTV (races 5-9)
THURSDAY’S SIMULCASTING SCHEDULE Gulfstream Park (11:35 a.m.), Aqueduct (noon), Pimlico (12:10 p.m.), Golden Gate Fields (2:45 p.m.), Santa Anita (3 p.m.), Charles Town (6:15 p.m.), Southland (7:05 p.m.)
Sports, Pages 16 on 04/02/2012