Apart Solid Choice in Louisiana 'Cap

Adele Dilschneider’s Apart, hero of the Grade II Super Derby at Louisiana Downs in September and the Grade III Ack Ack Handicap at Churchill in November, looms a strong 8-5 choice in the morning line for Saturday’s $60,000 Louisiana Handicap, first leg of Fair Grounds three-race series for older horses that concludes with the Grade II New Orleans Handicap on Louisiana Derby Day March 26.

Garrett Gomez, Eclipse Award-winning jockey of 2009, will fly in from Southern California for the mount on the Al Stall Jr.-trained Apart, who is assigned 120 pounds in the 1 1/16-mile Louisiana ‘Cap.

Shouldering the top impost of 121 pounds in the Louisiana Handicap is Zayat Stables’ Z Humor, who will be ridden by jockey Shaun Bridgmohan and is conditioned by 2009 Eclipse Award-winning trainer Steve Asmussen.  Z Humor is the 7-2 second choice in the morning line, won the $125,000 Delta Mile at Delta Downs last November and most recently was runner-up in Fair Grounds’ $60,000 Tenacious Handicap Dec. 18.

Third choice at 9-2 in Saturday’s main track affair for older horses is Jim Tafel’s Country Flavor, 119, who won the Tenacious Handicap by a neck and also captured last spring’s Grade III Hanshin Cup at Arlington Park.  Jockey Shane Sellers, aboard for the win in the Tenacious, returns in the irons aboard the Greg Geier trainee.

Completing the Louisiana Handicap field is Louie Roussel III and Ronnie Lamarque’s Recapturetheglory, 118, Jamie Theriot up; Richard Rudolph and Michael Vranich’s Royal Express, 116, Kerwin Clark; Preston Stables’ Flat Out, 118, Corey Lanerie; and Bonnie Heath Farm et al.’s Mad Flatter, 117, James Graham.