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Fair Grounds Releases 2020-21 Stakes Schedule

Fifty-one stakes worth a combined $7.055 million will be offered during Fair Grounds’s upcoming 76-day 2020-21 Thoroughbred racing season, which is set to begin Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, Nov. 26, the track announced Monday.

“We are proud to once again continue our growth and support of the Thoroughbred racing industry with our purse allocations and this diverse and dynamic stakes schedule” said Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots president Doug Shipley. “We look forward to our 149th racing season and the continuation of bringing many of the best horsemen and jockeys from around the world to enjoy the high caliber racing at Fair Grounds in New Orleans.”

The Louisiana Derby Day card Mar. 20 will feature eight stakes worth a total of $2.425 million, including the 108th running of the $1-million GII Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby for 3-year-olds. The third and final local prep on the Road to the GI Kentucky Derby, the race is worth 100-40-20-10 points to the top four finishers. Run at 1 1/16 miles, the 53rd running of the $400,000 GII Twinspires.com Fair Grounds Oaks for 3-year-old fillies offers the same number of points en route to the GI Longines Kentucky Oaks.

The other preps at the New Orleans oval for the Derby will take place Jan. 16 with the GIII Lecomte S. and Feb. 13 with the GII Risen Star S. Louisiana Champions Day will be held Dec. 14, featuring 10 stakes restricted to Louisiana-breds. The purse for the opening day Thanksgiving Classic for older male sprinters has been increased $25,000 to $125,000.

The 2020-2021 Fair Grounds racing season runs through Sunday, Mar. 28. Regular post time will be 1 p.m. CT. The exceptions are Louisiana Derby Preview Day (Feb. 13 at noon CT) and Louisiana Derby Day (Mar. 20 at 11 a.m. CT).

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Arthur B. Hancock III Selected As 2020 Honor Guest By Thoroughbred Club Of America

Arthur B. Hancock III has been selected by the Board of Directors of the Thoroughbred Club of America as the 2020 Honor Guest, Club President Katherine LaMonica announced Tuesday. Mr. Hancock will be honored by the Club at its 89th Testimonial Dinner.

“The Thoroughbred Club of America is excited to name Arthur B. Hancock III as our 2020 Honor Guest”, said LaMonica. “Arthur represents the Thoroughbred industry in its most sincere form, hailing from a family rooted strongly in tradition, while forging his own unique legacy of horsemanship and leadership in our sport.”

Arthur B. Hancock III is the owner of Stone Farm in Paris, Kentucky. He has made his mark breeding, racing, and selling Thoroughbreds, as well as putting his personal stamp on the development of Stone Farm and its ongoing success. A fourth-generation horseman, Hancock grew up on historic Claiborne Farm. As a young man, he worked a year at the racetrack for Hall of Fame Trainer Eddie Neloy and returned to Claiborne to work as the assistant broodmare and yearling manager under the tutelage of his father. In 1970, Hancock leased 100 acres and launched Stone Farm. Today, the farm comprises 2,200 acres and has been in operation for fifty years.

As a market breeder, Hancock bred, raised and sold Belmont Stakes and Preakness winner Risen Star and Kentucky Derby winner Fusaichi Pegasus. For farm clients, Hancock raised and sold two Horse of the Year honorees, Sunday Silence (1989) and Bricks and Mortar (2019). As an owner, Hancock campaigned Sunday Silence, Gato Del Sol, Goodbye Halo, Menifee, Strodes Creek, Harlan and a cast of others to win the Kentucky Derby twice, the Kentucky Oaks, the Preakness Stakes, the Breeders' Cup Classic and other notable Grade 1 races. In Europe, Stone Farm-raised standouts have included Classic colt Hawaiian Sound, Champion Filly Rainbow View, and Champion Juvenile Colt Air Force Blue. Stone Farm has produced nearly 180 stakes winners, including the winners of more than 75 graded stakes. In addition, Stone Farm was home to two-time Leading Sire Halo, who was the sire of Champion Sunday Silence, himself a pivotal international stallion.

In his capacity as an industry leader, Hancock has served on the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, as a director of Keeneland Association and Fasig-Tipton Company, and as a member of The Jockey Club. Especially visible has been Hancock's leadership in fostering integrity in racing. He is a cofounder and outspoken supporter of the Water Hay Oats Alliance (WHOA), a growing force dedicated to eliminating performance-enhancing drugs in racing. He is an active supporter of Thoroughbred aftercare, and living by example, he relocated homebred Kentucky Derby winner Gato Del Sol back to Stone Farm from Germany at the conclusion of his stallion career.

Hancock is a graduate of Vanderbilt University, where he was co-captain of the swim team and won the Southeastern Conference in the 100-yard free style. In addition, Hancock is an accomplished songwriter and musician. He has produced several collections of original music, and performers the caliber of Willie Nelson and Ray Price have covered his songs.

Hancock and wife Staci have been married for 43 years and have raised six children. They currently have two grandchildren.

The Thoroughbred Club Testimonial Dinner was inaugurated in 1932, the year the Club was founded, to recognize distinguished contributions of leadership as well as success in the Thoroughbred industry. The first recipient was Col. E. R. Bradley, and other winners include William Woodward Sr., three generations of the Hancock family of Claiborne Farm, plus Ted Bassett, Shug McGaughey, Alice Chandler, Chris McCarron, and The Honorable Brereton C. Jones. To learn more about The Thoroughbred Club of America, visit us online at www.thethoroughbredclub.com. Due to the Coronavirus, the date for the 89th Testimonial Dinner has yet to be determined.

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Major Fed Team Decides To Skip Ellis Park Derby, Train Up To Kentucky Derby

Major Fed, runner-up in the Indiana Derby on July 8, had been under consideration for Sunday's Ellis Park Derby at the Henderson, Ky. track. Instead, Travis Foley, assistant and son to trainer Greg Foley, told the Daily Racing Form that the 3-year-old son of Ghostzapper will head straight to the Kentucky Derby on Sept. 5.

Based at Churchill Downs, Major Fed worked a half-mile beneath the Twin Spires in :50.20 on Aug. 1.

“We're happy with where we are with him and comfortable with the points situation,” the younger Foley told drf.com. “Everything's good and we didn't feel like we needed the race in between.”

Major Fed also owns a second-place finish in the G2 Risen Star Stakes, and a fourth from the G2 Louisiana Derby, leaving him with a total of 38 points toward the Kentucky Derby. He currently sits 16th on the points leaderboard.

Mr. Big News’ Experience Should Play A Big Role In Saturday’s Blue Grass Stakes

After Mr. Big News finished fifth in the Fair Grounds' G2 Risen Star Stakes in February, trainer Bret Calhoun was excited about the 3-year-old colt's prospects heading down the Road to the Kentucky Derby. Unfortunately, a large number of entries meant that Mr. Big News was excluded from the Louisiana Derby in March.

“I felt like he had a big chance that day, but we got excluded,” Calhoun said on an NTRA conference call on Tuesday afternoon.

Calhoun shifted gears and entered the Chester Thomas-owned colt in the listed Oaklawn Stakes on April 11. Mr. Big News was sent off at odds of nearly 47-1 in the $200,000 contest, but Calhoun had a lot of confidence in his charge.

“I think Gabe Saez gave him the kind of trip he had been looking for (in the Oaklawn Stakes),” Calhoun said. “He wants to be more of a free-running horse and use his stride. He gained a lot of experience in his earlier races, being down on the inside and taking the kickback, and I think that prepared him for that race. The pace scenario set up for him that day, and he was able to get home a winner.”

Mr. Big News charged from near dead-last to win the Oaklawn by a half-length, earning a spot in the starting gate for the Arkansas Derby, rescheduled for the first Saturday in May. Calhoun elected to skip that race, as well as the opportunity to earn Kentucky Derby points when he shifted his home base to Churchill Downs, in the Matt Winn Stakes in late May.

“I thought it was a little quick back from Arkansas, and he was being a little finicky eating for four or five days,” Calhoun explained. “I decided that the (Kentucky) Derby wasn't until September, so it would be best to have him at 100 percent.”

Initially, the plan had been to target the Indiana Derby on Wednesday night, since Triple Crown contender Maxfield was said to be pointing to the Blue Grass at Keeneland. When Maxfield defected, Calhoun decided to stay closer to home and enter the rescheduled Blue Grass Stakes on July 11.

“A lot of people may not believe in him because the Oaklawn win came in the mud,” Calhoun said. “His physical and mental maturity have improved a lot… I'm excited like the rest of the horsemen are to be back racing at Keeneland.”

Though Saez was handed a 30-day suspension by stewards in Indiana, he has been granted an exemption to ride Mr. Big News in the Blue Grass this Saturday.

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