Bron and Brow Better Positioned for the Palmisano; Ova Charged Faces Free Like a Girl in Wright

By Kevin Kilroy —-

1/7/2023 – Bron And Brow gets a head in front of Swot Analysis to win the inaugural running of the Gary P. Palmisano Memorial Stakes at Fair Grounds. Hodges Photography / Lou Hodges, Jr.

Bron and Brow Better Positioned for the Palmisano

New Orleans, La (Jan. 5, 2024) – The $100,000 Gary Palmisano Memorial at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots will be a rematch between the top three finishers in the Louisiana Champions Day Sprint. Though he finished second to Mangum in that affair, Gary Barber’s Bron and Brow gets Mike Diliberto’s blessing as the 8-5 morning line favorite, looking to add another Palmisano to his resume. The 6-furlong dirt sprint for older Louisiana-breds is scheduled as race 6 of 10 with a 3:15 p.m. post time (all times Central). The Palmisano is the first leg of the late Pick 5 which has a $25,902 carryover.

Though he hadn’t raced in five months, the Mark Casse-trainee Bron and Brow was able to overcome being marooned in post 14 to run second to Mangum in the Sprint on Dec. 9.

“We felt good going into that first race,” assistant trainer on the grounds, David Carroll said. “He had just come from the farm and was doing well. We hoped he would win but we definitely thought he would improve from the race fitness wise. He ran a really good race, but Mangum ran a helluva race, too.”

With four wins and three seconds in eight local races, the 2021 Louisiana Futurity winner has consistently run his race at Fair Grounds. Ahead of Saturday’s Palmisano, the 5-year-old by Gormley breezed a 47 and 4 half-mile in company with stablemate Strong Quality, a stakes-caliber Kentucky-bred.

“It was a very good workout,” Carroll said. “He did it the right way. He came out of it good. We haven’t done much with him all week. He’s on his toes, he’s bouncing.”

Drawing in post 3 with Rey Gutierrez back aboard, Bron and Brow will likely be able to save more ground than his most recent effort. Sharper with the recent race and two subsequent morning drills, the 2023 Palmisano-winner has only five foes to deal with this time.

“Mike J will probably show speed. Hopefully we’ll be laying just off him and maybe get first run,” Carroll said. “We’re very happy with (Bron and Brow), he looks great. We’re looking forward to the race and hopefully we can get lucky.”

Set-hut’s Mangum proved his talent and his heart when he fought off Who Took the Money through the final stages to win opening weekend’s Morreale Memorial. Cutting back from 1 mile 70 yards to 6 furlongs, he followed up that effort with a sizzling late kick to get the best of Bron and Brow, as well as Palmisano-foe Mike J.

Corey Lanerie piloted the 4-year-old in both wins, and will be back aboard to break Mangum from the rail.

Here is the complete field for the Gary Palmisano Memorial from the rail out (with jockey, trainer and morning line odds): 1. Mangum (Corey Lanerie, Jeff Delhomme, 5/2); 2. Langs Day (James Graham, Lee Thomas, 6/1); 3. Bron and Brow (Reylu Gutierrez, Mark Casse, 8/5); 4. Mike J (Aubrie Green, Lee Thomas, 7/2); 5. Autumns Strong Man (Brian Hernandez Jr., Gary Huzak, 10/1); 6. Not On Herb (Jareth Loveberry, David Terre, 8/1).

Ova Charged Made Favorite Over Free Like a Girl in the Wright Memorial

Two of the most accomplished and feared fillies in the state will battle in the $100,000 Bob F. Wright Memorial as Ova Charged takes on Free Like a Girl on Saturday. The 6-furlong dirt sprint for older Louisiana-bred fillies and mares is scheduled as race 8 of 10 with a 4:15 p.m. post time.

Exiting her third straight Louisiana Champions Day Ladies Sprint victory, Brittlyn Stable’s Ova Charged is tabbed as the 7-5 morning line favorite in the Wright. Not having raced for 8 months, Ova Charged was all heart to keep her nose in front of the next-out stakes-winner Basalt Street in the Ladies Sprint. Having mopped the floor over the past two years with any statebred filly who would face her, the 6-year-old Star Guitar mare trained by Shane Wilson faced the newly-minted millionaire Free Like a Girl in last year’s Ladies Sprint and beat her by nearly five lengths.

Gerald Bruno Jr., Chasey Deville Pomier, and Jerry Caroom’s Free Like a Girl has momentum coming into the Wright, as she enters to rack up her second consecutive win in this stake. Trained by Chasey Pomier, the 5-year-old mare won the Doris Hebert Memorial on opening day then stretched out to wire the field in the two-turn Louisiana Champions Day Distaff. Versatile and seasoned, Free Like a Girl will break just outside Ova Charged in post 3 with Vicente Del-Cid back in the irons.

Here is the complete field for the Bob F. Wright Memorial from the rail out (with jockey, trainer and morning line odds): 1. Beleout (Olaf Hernandez, Courtney Dandridge, 8/1); 2. Ova Charged (Jose Guerrero, Shane Wilson, 7/5); 3. Free Like a Girl (Vicente Del-Cid, Chasey Pomier, 9/5); 4. Kyle Beauty (Carlos Marquez, Jose Camejo, 20/1); 5. Noneya (Marcelino Pedroza Jr., Ronnie Ward, 6/1); 6. Spirited Beauty (Corey Lanerie, Shane Wilson, 6/1); 7. Lake Marie (Yoel Navas, Yovani Munoz, 20/1).

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About Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots

Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, one of the nation’s oldest racetracks, has been in operation since 1872. Located in New Orleans, LA, Fair Grounds, which is owned by Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ Global Select Market: CHDN), also operates a slot-machine gaming facility and 16 off-track betting parlors throughout Southeast Louisiana. The 152nd Thoroughbred Racing Season–highlighted by the 111th running of the Louisiana Derby–will run from Nov. 17, 2023 through March 24, 2024. More information is available online at www.fgno.com.