LOUISIANA JESS ROLLS HOME IN THE $70,000 D.S. ‘SHINE’ YOUNG FUTURITY ~ TDZSHININLUCKYSTAR WINS A THRILLER IN THE LOUISIANA STALLION STAKES

Louisiana Jess wins the colt and gelding division of the D.S. Shine Young Futurity

OPELOUSAS, LA –The Saturday night crowd at Evangeline Downs enjoyed the final Family Night of the season and were treated to a pair of stake races for Louisiana-bred colts and geldings.  Heavily favored Louisiana Jess did not disappoint with an easy win in the $70,000 D.S. ‘Shine’ Young Futurity, and Tdzshininluckystar outdueled El Dinero to capture the $100,000 Louisiana Stallion Stakes presented by Coteau Grove Farms.  The races were contested over a track rated fast for the evening.  

Louisiana Jess teamed up with Kentucky Derby and Oaks winning rider Brian Hernandez, Jr. to capture the $70,000 D.S. “Shine” Young Futurity for 2-year-olds.  The race was contested over the distance of 5-1/2 furlongs.

Louisiana Jess was away alertly and settled into stride nicely as Maybe Eye’ll Call and Big Rasee set the early tempo through an opening quarter-mile in 22.60.  As the field moved through the turn, Hernandez and Louisiana Jess moved boldly three-wide to challenge for the lead outside of Big Rasee and a tiring Maybe Eye’ll Call. 

At the top of the lane Louisiana Jess and Big Rasee edged clear, while Distinctly Golden, Hawija and Yorktown Panther tried to make up ground.  Inside the furlong pole, Louisiana Jess spurted free and was drawing away in the end to win by five lengths over 85-1 longshot Yorktown Panther rallying nicely for second.  It was another length back to Big Rasee in third.  The winner stopped the clock in a time of 1:05.67.

Trained by W. Bret Calhoun, Louisiana Jess stays undefeated from two starts.  The winning share of $42,000 increases his bankroll to $82,320.

Owned by Mansfield Racing (Landon Jordan), the bay colt was bred by the partnership of Clear Creek Stud LLC & Warren Harang.  He was sired by Vekoma and is out of the Tale of the Cat mare Miss Jazebel.

Sent to post as the 1/5 favorite, Louisiana Jess paid $2.40 to win, $2.10 to place and $2.10 to show.  Yorktown Panther returned $29 and $13.20, while Big Rasee paid $5.60.

Tdzshininluckystar and jockey Jorge Carreno fend off the challenge of El Dinero to capture the colt and gelding division of the Louisiana Stallion Stakes.

Tdzshininluckystar and jockey Jorge Carreno were able to fend off the challenge of El Dinero to capture a thriller in the $100,000 Louisiana Stallion Stakes presented by Coteau Grove Farms.  The race for 3-year-olds was contested over the distance of one mile.

Saint Gabriel was away sharply to take the early lead in the Stallion Stakes, while Tdzshininluckystar maneuvered through some early traffic to gain a contending position as the field moved to the backstretch.  The field remained closely bunched, with just four lengths front to back as the field went through fractions of 25.07 and 49.33 for the first half-mile.

As the leaders traversed the far turn, Tdzshininluckystar and Saint Gabriel started the sprint for home and separated from the pack, while El Dinero switched to the outside to commence his bid.  As six furlongs passed by in 1:14.21, Tdzshininluckystar was edging forward to the lead, Saint Gabriel was battling on the rail and El Dinero was finding his best stride in the center of the racetrack.

Tdzshininluckystar was all heart in the final yards as he would not let El Dinero get by and held on to win by a neck.  It was 2-1/2 lengths back to Saint Gabriel holding on well for third.  The winner stopped the clock in a time of 1:40.02.

Trained by Nason Eschete, Tdzshininluckystar wins his second stake race of the season after taking the Legends Cheval in June.  The win is his third from nine career starts.  With the $60,000 winning share, his career bankroll now stands at $176,000. 

Owned and bred by Tony Doughtie, Tdzshininluckystar is a dark bay or brown gelding sired by Star Guitar.  He is out of the El Corredor mare Tdz Mandycorrienda.

Tdzshininluckystar returned $7 to win as the second-choice in the wagering, $2.40 to place and $2.10 to show.  El Dinero paid $2.10, $2.10 and Saint Gabriel paid $2.80.