Louisville Handicap Field Takes Shape

McGee says Majestic Harbor exited his April 25 triumph in a Churchill Downs allowance optional claiming event in good order and is “probable” for the Lou ’Cap. However, the $400,000 Brooklyn Invitational (GII) at 1 ½ miles on dirt on the Belmont Stakes undercard also is under consideration. “We may run in the Brooklyn; we still haven’t decided on that yet,” McGee said. “He’s doing real well right now. He’s run twice on turf. The first time he ran third at Del Mar and the other time was against Finnegan’s Wake who came back and won the Woodford Reserve, so I think that may have flattered his grass form a little bit. It’s kind of an unknown I guess you could say. I don’t know that he likes the grass any more than he likes the dirt, but it doesn’t necessarily work against him either.” Charles E. Fipke’s Golden Soul, second to Orb two years ago in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (GI), has racked up a pair of allowance wins on the Matt Winn Turf Course. In two starts this year, 5-year-old Golden Soul has not finished in the money. His last start came in the Feb. 21 Fair Grounds Handicap (GIII) where he ran ninth beaten 7 ½ lengths. Trainer Dallas Stewart, who saddled Tale of Verve to an upset second-place finish in Saturday’s Preakness, won three consecutive editions of the Louisville Handicap from 2004-06 with Silverfoot, who is only the second horse to win three consecutive runnings of this race. Chorwon scored three straight Louisville Handicaps from 1997-99. Stonestreet Stables’ Keen Pauline pulled a 15-1 wire-to-wire upset in Friday’s Black Eyed Susan (GII) at Pimlico, and Romans said the race unfolded according to plan.