Photo: CDI
Martin Racing Stable and Dan Morgan’s Jody Slew,
heroine of Fair Grounds’ $75,000 Tiffany Lass and Grade III Silverbulletday
stakes as the first two legs of the local sophomore fillies series, is now
considered “unlikely” to compete in the Grade II Fair Grounds Oaks as
the third leg of that triple on March 26.
“She got cast in her stall several days ago and bruised
herself up high on the inside of her rear end,” said trainer Bret Calhoun
on Saturday morning about Jody Slew. “She missed a few days of training which
I’m not too bothered about, and she was back on the track this morning, but I
don’t think she’s a hundred percent yet and I don’t want to run her here (in
the Oaks) if she’s not. We may just go ahead and wait for the (Keeneland’s
Grade I) Ashland
(April 3) and run her in there.”
No filly in New Orleans Thoroughbred racing history has
ever swept all three legs of Fair Grounds’ sophomore filly series, and Calhoun
has not completely ruled out Jody Slew from that possibility.
“It all depends on how much she improves over the next few
days,” said Calhoun. “I’ll talk to the owners and see how they feel. We may go
ahead and enter her (Sunday) and see how it all plays out early in the week.”
However, if the news about Jody Slew was somewhat
discouraging, there was also good news at the Calhoun barn concerning James and
Marilyn Helzer’s Euroears, who breezed a half-mile in 50 flat Friday
morning in preparation for the $105,000 Duncan F. Kenner Stakes March 27
as part of the Louisiana Derby Day undercard.
“He’s been training really, really good,” said Calhoun of
Euroears, who won the 2008 Duncan Kenner before being sidelined during last
year’s renewal. “In fact, I think he’s doing better right now than I’ve ever
seen him.”
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