Fair Grounds Barn Notes: Friday, December 22, 2017

By Ryan Martin —-

• Believe In Royalty, Kowboy Karma Possible For Lecomte
• Promise of Spring Gets Class Boost In Tiffany Lass
• Imma Bling Spins Back in 10 Days

BELIEVE IN ROYALTY, KOWBOY KARMA POSSIBLE FOR LECOMTE

Trainer Larry Jones is looking ahead with promising 2-year-olds Believe In Royalty and Kowboy Karma and stated that both horses are possible entrants for the Grade III $200,000 Lecomte at the Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots on Jan.13.

“That’s our intention,” Jones said “They’re both looking that way. That’s our game plan.”

Owned by Brereton Jones, the regally bred Believe In Royalty is by leading sire Tapit out of 2012 Kentucky Oaks winner Believe You Can who also was owned and trained by the same connections. A two-time winner over the Laurel Park main track, he recently finished sixth in the Remington Springboard Mile on Dec. 17.

Michael Pressley, Larry and Cindy Jones’ Kowboy Karma was second as the favorite in the James Lewis III Stakes at Laurel Park on Nov. 11 last time out. He also was fourth in the Gr. I Champagne at Belmont Park behind Firenze Fire as well as eventual Gr. I Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner Good Magic and Enticed, winner of the Gr. II Kentucky Jockey Club at Churchill Downs on Nov. 25 Kowboy Karma’s first two starts were a pair of victories at Delaware Park, which include a stakes in the Strike Your Colors Stakes on Aug. 10.

The Lecomte awards the Top 4 finishers qualifying points on a 10-5-2-1 scale. So far, the only other known probable for the mile and 70 yard event is Principe Guilherme, an emphatic 10-length allowance winner over the Fair Grounds main track on Saturday, Dec. 16.

PROMISE OF SPRING GETS CLASS BOOST IN TIFFANY LASS

Best of Times Racing LLC’s Promise of Spring appears to be in top form going into her stakes debut in the $50,000 Tiffany Lass Stakes at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, which is run for fillies and mares at a distance of one mile and 70 yards over the main track.

The daughter of Drosselmeyer will attempt her third straight win in the Tiffany Lass. She broke her maiden on her sixth attempt in the slop at Indiana Grand Race Course on Oct. 10 before a wire-to-wire allowance win at Churchill Downs on Nov. 19, which was her last start. Promise of Spring will break on the outside from the 11-hole.

“Tough race,” trainer Steve Margolis said. “There weren’t a lot of options out there and she’ll have to step it up a little bit, but she’s coming in off her best race We aren’t thrilled with the post and I think that I’m worried about that more than anything but sometimes you just have to run.”

Margolis believes that the turnaround in the 3-year-old filly’s performance is due to her stretching out in distance.

“We started her off at five furlongs but she’s gotten a lot better as she’s run longer,” Margolis said. “We’ll have to step into some deep waters but the horse is doing well. She’s gotten five weeks which is good. We’ll just have to see what happens.”

Robby Albarado, who guided Promise of Spring to her last victory, will return to the saddle for Tuesday’s race.

IMMA BLING SPINS BACK IN 10 DAYS

Flurry Racing Stables LLC’s Imma Bling, winner of last Saturday’s Bonapaw Stakes, will make a quick return to the Stall-Wilson Turf Course in the eighth race on Tuesday Dec. 26, a 5½ furlong allowance optional claiming event, which will be his 12th start this year.

The 4-year-old gelding was claimed by current trainer Karl Broberg for $25,000 from Genaro Garcia after a runner-up effort over the Churchill Downs main track on Nov. 24. This was not the first time that Broberg attempted to acquire the Texas-bred, however. Back in September, he tried to claim him at Indiana Grand but was out shook at the claim box.

“We actually thought we were overpaying for him (at Churchill),” Broberg said. “We were out shook at Indiana for $16,000, but the owner liked what the horse showed on the grass, it’s hard to get horses in that price range so it looked like he was worth the gamble with his consistency.”

Imma Bling is up for a $40,000 tag for Tuesday’s race, where he will be ridden by jockey Joe Bravo.

“We took him for $25,000 and were already out on the horse,” Broberg said. “It’s a very realistic spot for him and it seems to make sense once you‘re playing with house. I wasn’t thrilled with the rail draw but that’s how it goes.”