FAIR GROUNDS: BUGGIN OUT WINS MAGIC CITY CLASSIC FOR FIFTH STRAIGHT YEAR

By Ryan Martin —-

12-7-2018 Bugging Out, with Corey Lanerie aboard, won the Magic City Classic for the fifth time at the Fair Grounds in New Orleans, LA. Hodges Photography / Amanda Hodges Weir

NEW ORLEANS (December 7, 2018) – For five years in a row, Dennis Murphy’s Buggin Out ($3.60, $2.40 and $2.20) scored a victory in the $50,000 Magic City Classic, a one mile event on the Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots for Alabama-breds.

Guided to victory by jockey Corey Lanerie and trained by Ronnie Ward, the 7-year-old son of Indy was wide on the first turn and was placed toward the back of the pack while pacesetter Noisy Ripples set opening fractions of 25.53 and 50.28. At the top of the stretch, Buggin Out was third toward the rail but Lanerie took him to the outside of horses during the final eighth of a mile. He managed to get up just in the nick of time to catch Menewa ($3.20 and $2.80) and win his fifth consecutive Magic City Classic by a neck in a time of 1:42.82. Long shot Two Mikes N Doc G ($10.60) completed the trifecta.

“Corey was telling me that he was just a class horse,” Ward said. “He won it on class. When we were in the paddock I was telling Corey how hard it is for a horse to win something five times. He said ‘It’s horse racing, nothing is impossible’. It all turned out great for us.”

Bred in Alabama by his owner, Buggin Out has found the winner’s circle a total of eight times in 26 starts, with five of those taking place in the Magic City Classic Stakes. Friday afternoon’s victory added $27,500 to his lifetime earnings which now stand at $218,250.

So will Buggin Out be back next year for a sixth straight Magic City Classic?

“That’s what we plan on doing!” Ward said.

Completing the order of finish were Babalight, Out Late, Branchwater, Indy’s Code, Noisy Ripples, and Gotta A.P.B.

Buggin Out is out of the Schembechler broodmare Let’s Zoom, who also is bred in the state of Alabama.

About Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots
Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots (“Fair Grounds”), the nation’s third-oldest racetrack, has been in operation since 1872. Located in New Orleans, LA, Fair Grounds is owned by Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ: CHDN). Fair Grounds also operates 14 OTBs (12 with video poker facilities) throughout southeast Louisiana. Live racing at Fair Grounds returns in the fall with the 147th Thoroughbred Racing Season – highlighted by the 106th running of the Louisiana Derby in March of 2019. More information can be found online at www.fairgroundsracecourse.com.