East Avenue, Immersive Top Early Louisiana Derby Nominations

By Kevin Kilroy —-

East Avenue, Immersive Top Early Louisiana Derby Nominations

Nominees also eligible for the Lecomte and Risen Star

New Orleans, La (Jan. 5, 2025) – Early nominations for the 112th running of the $1 million Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby (G2) at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots closed on Jan. 1 with 73. Top among the list of 3-year-olds are eight colts who have already won a Kentucky Derby prep race, led by East Avenue, as well as the cream of the filly crop in Immersive. All nominees are eligible for the $250,000 Lecomte (G3) on Jan. 18, the $500,000 Risen Star (G2) on Feb. 15, and the Louisiana Derby on March 22.

Run at 1 3/16 miles, the Louisiana Derby is worth 100-50-25-15-10 points to the top five finishers. It is the fourth and final local prep on the Road to the $5 million Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) to be run at Churchill Downs on Saturday, May 3.

Godolphin’s Breeders Futurity (G1) winner East Avenue leads the list of early bird nominations. Trained by Brendan Walsh, the Medaglia d’Oro colt put in his first local workout on Friday, Jan 3 with the Risen Star (G2) as his targeted next start.

With four colts and two fillies nominated, Godolphin’s list also includes First Resort, who scored in the Kentucky Jockey Club (G1), the Remsen (G2) winner Poster–both colts are trained by Eoin Harty; Sovereignty, who took the Street Sense (G3) for Bill Mott; and two fillies trained by Brad Cox in Immersive and Good Cheer.

Leading all trainers with 15, the most accomplished of Cox’s nominees are the three fillies he put forward. Having won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) and the Darley Alcibiades (G1), Immersive stands atop the Kentucky Oaks Leaderboard with 40 points. Her undefeated stablemates, Good Cheer and Shadwell’s Muhimma sport Oaks prep wins in the Golden Rod (G2) ad Demoiselle (G2), respectively.

Cox’s top colts include CHC Inc., Siena Farm, and WinStar Farm’s Patch Adams and Juddmonte’s Disco Time. Both won impressively on Churchill’s “Stars of Tomorrow II” card. Cox saddled last year’s Louisiana Derby winner, Catching Freedom.

Kenny McPeek nominated 14 for the Louisiana Derby, led by Baccari Racing Stable, Dream Walkin Farms, MJM Racing and Rocket Ship Racing’s Render Judgment, who has earned 4 points towards the Derby with his third in the Gun Runner and fifth in the Kentucky Jockey Club (G2).

The entire list of Louisiana Derby nominees, along with past performances, can be found on Equibase: https://www.equibase.com/premium/eqbHorsemenAreaSNHW.cfm?trk=FG.

Final nominations for the Louisiana Derby close on Saturday, March 8, 2025 by subscription of $1,000. $5,000 to enter, $5,000 additional to start. Supplemental nominations of $20,000 will be accepted at time of entry which shall include all fees.

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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 15 off-track betting parlors throughout Southeast Louisiana. The 153rd Thoroughbred Racing Season–highlighted by the 112th running of the Louisiana Derby–will run from Nov. 22, 2024 through March 23, 2025. More information is available online at www.fgno.com.