My top 3 renewals of the Fair Grounds Oaks

1.)  Tiffany Lass (1986):   Laz Barrera wasn’t playing games when he shipped Tiffany Lass to the FG barn of his brother Angel following her debut win at Hollywood.  The road to Kentucky was going through New Orleans.  After making short work of the overmatched locals in three starts, the budding champion lined up against a highly regarded  invader from each coast in the FG Oaks.   Patricia J.K. arrived from New York with a stopover win in the Bonnie Miss over Family Style.  The Mig took the call.   Coming from the SoCal barn of D. Wayne Lukas was Life at the Top, fresh off a win over Twilight Ridge in the Las Virgenes.  Life at the Top was finished by the top of the stretch, and the real running began as Patricia J.K. and Tiffany Lass surged past her.  The pair battled down the lane with Tiffany Lass, on the inside, prevailing in the end.  If not the best race that I’ve ever seen at FG, it is in my top five.  Tiffany Lass would go on to edge Life at the Top in the Kentucky Oaks.

2.)  Blushing K.D. (1997):  The well-bred Tomisue’s Delight looked primed to follow in her mother’s footsteps and tear through the FG 3yo filly division on her way to Grade 1 glory.  Standing in her way was Blushing K.D., a product of the FG 2yos-in-training sale.  Tomisue’s Delight would never catch her rival, at FG or in the Kentucky Oaks.  Blushing K.D. simply toyed with her and the rest of the field in a stakes-record performance.  In a gross racing injustice, Blushing K.D. was denied the Eclipse for Champion 3yo Filly.

3.) Take Charge Lady (2002):  Take Charge Lady won for fun in the FG Oaks, earning a gaudy 107 Beyer in the process.   That Beyer is the third highest Beyer ever for a FG 3yo route stakes, placing her behind Badge of Silver’s 108 in the Risen Star and her own 109 in the Silverbulletday.*  Take Charge Lady would have taken the Louisiana Derby had her connections opted to run her in that spot instead of the FG Oaks.  She was that good.

* It bears mentioning that Blushing K.D. received a 106 Beyer for her daylight win in the Fair Grounds Sales Derby.