Sibling 3-Year-Old Turf Stakes Woodchopper, Pago Hop Set for Saturday at Fair Grounds

By Kevin Kilroy —-

Sibling 3-Year-Old Turf Stakes Woodchopper, Pago Hop Set for Saturday
at Fair Grounds

Stidham’s Potent Woodchopper Pair Led by Montador Cox Duo Headline Up-For-Grabs Pago Hop
NEW ORLEANS (Dec. 23, 2025) — Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots’ end-of-the-year
tradition continues on Saturday, Dec. 27 with the $100,000 Woodchopper and $100,000 Pago
Hop, a pair of sibling turf stakes for 3-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles.
With 11 races on the card, the Woodchopper comes first as Race 5, followed by the Pago Hop
as Race 9. First post is 12:45 p.m. CT.
A field of seven males signed on for the Woodchopper, including a pair trained by Mike Stidham,
led by the 2-1 morning line favorite Montador.
Possessing open-length victories at both Kentucky Downs and Churchill Downs, Godolphin’s
Montador was sent off as the 3-1 second choice in the Commonwealth Turf (G3) on Nov. 22 at
Churchill Downs. Menacing late, the Nyquist colt was overtaken by winner Giocoso in the final
stages and lost a photo for fourth. Aboard Montador for his maiden-breaking score, Brian
Hernandez Jr. returns to the irons.
Stablemate Juris Doctor, owned by Pin Oak Stud, has been bet down to favoritism in each of his
four starts, including last out when second to Funnyflame in a local allowance on opening day.
Listed at 3-1, Juris Doctor will make his first start with blinkers on.
Kentucky Derby alumnus Flying Mohawk will return to Fair Grounds in the Woodchopper.
Owned by Two Eight Racing, Berry Family Racing, and Kaleta Racing, the Whit Beckman
trainee won a local allowance last January before running second in the Jeff Rubey (G2), a
Derby prep at Turfway Park. Flying Mohawk’s principal owner is former World Series Champion
and MLB All-Star, Jayson Werth. The Karakontie colt will race with blinkers off after finishing
tenth in the Commonwealth.
Here is the complete field for the Woodchopper from the rail out with jockey, trainer and morning
line odds:
● Coco Cool (Ben Curtis, Mike Maker, 15-1)
● Faber (ON) (Paco Lopez, Gary Scherer, 8-1)
● Juris Doctor (Axel Concepcion, Stidham, 3-1)
● Joejoe Go (Jose Ortiz, Chris Davis, 3-1)
● Flying Mohawk (Jareth Loveberry, Beckman, 8-1)
● Montador (Hernandez Jr., Stidham, 2-1)
● Savion (Declan Cannon, Cherie DeVaux, 8-1)
The barns of Brad Cox, Kenny McPeek, and Bret Calhoun represent six of the nine fillies
entered in a wide-open Pago Hop with the morning line recognizing Cox-trained Bracelet and
Hear the Queen as the top pair.
After four starts on Tapeta at Turfway Park to start her career, including two fourth-place finishes
in Kentucky Oaks preps, Selective’s Bracelet returned in October on Keeneland’s turf, where
she captured a first-level allowance victory. In her only other turf start, Bracelet ran fourth to the
talented Lush Lips in the Mrs. Revere (G2) on closing weekend at Churchill Downs, followed by
Caviar Breakfast and Sea the Sky (IRE), both of whom are entered in the Pago Hop. Axel
Concepcion takes the call on the 3-1 morning-line favorite, who drew the outside post in the
nine-horse field.
Tabbed as the 4-1 second choice, Miacomet Farm and Michael Pietrangelo’s Hear the Queen
will be racing for her fourth victory from eight starts. Marcelino Pedroza Jr. will pilot the Audible
filly in her stakes debut.
Both of McPeek’s Pago Hop entries exit graded stakes. Shamrock Stables, MJM Racing, and
Kevin Pollard’s Unmerited Favor cuts back from the 1 3/8-miles Jockey Club Oaks (G3) where
she produced late to finish fifth behind division leaders Fionn and Laurelin. Gentry Farm’s
Caviar Breakfast had a two-race win streak snapped when a game fifth last out in the Mrs.
Revere.
Both owned by Kat Kirk and Wayne Sanders, the Calhoun-trained stablemates Multiplication
and Ninth Island will stretch back out to two turns, where each has had success.
Here is the complete field for the Pago Hop from the rail out with jockey, trainer and morning line
odds:
● Sea To Sky (Declan Cannon, Cherie DeVaux, 5-1)
● Hear the Queen (Pedroza Jr., Cox, 4-1)
● Cheetah Lady (Jareth Loveberry, Whit Beckman, 8-1)
● Lady of Sky (Mitchell Murrill, Daniel Simonovich, 20-1)
● Ninth Island (Isaac Castillo, Calhoun, 12-1)
● Unmerited Favor (Jose Ortiz, McPeek, 6-1
● Caviar Breakfast (Hernandez Jr., McPeek, 9-2)
● Multiplication (Ben Curtis, Bret Calhoun, 10-1)
● Bracelet (Concepcion, Cox, 3-1)
Dark on Christmas Day, live racing at Fair Grounds resumes on Friday, Dec. 26, with a 10-race
card and 12:45 p.m. CT first post.
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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 13 off-track betting parlors throughout Southeast
Louisiana. The 154th Thoroughbred Racing Season–highlighted by the 113th running of the
Louisiana Derby–will run from Nov. 20, 2025 through March 22, 2026. More information is available online at www.fgno.com.