Outside post no problem for Vicar’s in Trouble
New Orleans. LA (SportsNetwork.com) – Post positions were drawn Monday for Saturday’s $400,000 Risen Star Stakes at Fair Grounds Race Course. A total of 16 3-year-olds were entered for the 1 1/16-mile stakes with a limit of 14 able to start.
The original field had Lecomte Stakes winner Vicar’s in Trouble drawing the far outside post 14. However, with the early scratch of Bond Holder from the field, Vicar’s in Trouble will draw in one spot, if that should make a difference.
“I’d much rather have that (post 14) than the one-hole,” said Joe Sharp, assistant trainer for Mike Maker, on Wednesday morning. “The outside post shouldn’t bother him. He’s not a horse that has ever had any issues in the gate. We’ve never had any gate problems with him.”
Owned by Ken and Sarah Ramsey, Vicar’s in Trouble won the Lecomte by just under seven lengths after racing second through the first half-mile under regular jockey Rosie Napravnik.
“If (Vicar) can make the lead from out there with enough room to get over more toward the inside that will be fine,” Sharp continued, “but if he can’t he really doesn’t need the lead. He’s been behind horses in the morning and it doesn’t bother him. He’s not going to come off the bridle. It’s not going to hurt his feelings if he doesn’t have the lead. That’s why we like to work him in company. He seems to get a little more out of it. He doesn’t need the lead right away, but I would think he’ll get it soon enough. He’s not a ‘waiting- around’ kind of guy.”
Joining Vicar from the Lecomte are the second- and third-place horses Albano and Gold Hawk.
“I can’t say I was surprised when he ran as well as he did in the Lecomte,” Sharp said, “but I was very impressed. Obviously, there were some very nice horses in there against him. You had to have a lot of respect for Steve’s horse (Steve Asmussen-trained Gold Hawk) and Larry’s horse (Larry Jones- trained Albano), so I was impressed that our horse could do as well as he did against them.”
Along with the $240,000 first-place check, winning the Risen Star offers 50 points toward a start in the Kentucky Derby on May 3 at Churchill Downs.
Categorized in: Horses