Happy Ticket scores big in 2006 debut

Though Saturday evening's main feature of the Louisiana Premier Night stakes

was the $100,000 Louisiana Premier Night Championship S., the most anticipated

race of the evening was the $100,000

Louisiana Premier Night Distaff S. It was

in that one-mile test over Evangeline Downs' fast main track that Stewart M.

Madison's homebred HAPPY TICKET (Anet) made her five-year-old bow off a near

four-month break.

Sent off the prohibitive favorite at 1-20, Happy Ticket and jockey Robby

Albarado broke in and bothered her inside foes. Settled in fourth, the pair were

content to stalk just in behind in the top three. Tensas Star (Forty Won) had a

length up on Raspberry Wine (Change Takes Time) through :24 3/5 and :49 1/5

splits, but her rival got a head in front past six furlongs in 1:14 2/5. After

that, it was all Happy Ticket, as Albarado sent his mount outside of Raspberry

Wine around the turn to take over. Drawing off for the 5 1/2-length score, the

eventual winner stopped the teletimer in 1:38 3/5.

Happy Ticket didn't give much back in monetary terms, paying $2.10, $2.10 and

$2.10, but provided a thrill to her fellow Louisiana natives. Raspberry Wine

returned $4.60 and $2.40 at 18-1 and ended the $10.80 exacta, with Bittersweet

Bonnie (Excavate) another 7 1/2 lengths back in third at 46-1. Show was worth

$2.80 while completing the $106.40 trifecta. Catlaan (Shuailaan) was sent off the 13-1

second choice in the eight-horse field and rounded out the 8-4-3-6 superfecta

that gave back $436.20.

Bonita's Reinbeau (Sefapiano), Tensas Star, Her Badness (Bermuda Cedar) and

Karate Katie (Pulling Punches) followed the top four under the wire.

Happy Ticket, who suffered her first career defeat from 10 starts when second

in the Princess Rooney H. (G2) last season, ended her four-year-old campaign in

the Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1), where she posted her first off-the-board finish.

She came out of the Princess Rooney to take the Ballerina S. (G1) by 5 1/2

lengths and also ran just a half-length back in second in the Beldame S. (G1)

before her Breeders' Cup try. Trained by Andrew Leggio, the bay mare now owns a

14-11-2-0 career mark with $842,260 in lifetime earnings.

Leggio earned his third stakes win of the day when sending out Rancha Fresa

Inc.'s PRINCE T. (Royal Anthem) to take the

Championship by a neck over Badtotheboneandrew (On the Sauce). With Guy Smith aboard, the four-year-old came

out four wide around the final turn and had clear sailing to the wire. Before

reaching the line, though, Badtotheboneandrew came from the back to challenge

but couldn't quite get to the winner.

Prince T. finished 8 1/2 furlongs in 1:45 2/5 as the 9-2 third choice, paying

$11, $5.40 and $3.40 while keying the $39 exacta, $74.20 trifecta and $319.80

superfecta (8-10-2-7). Badtotheboneandrew returned $3 and $3 at 5-2 and was

followed another 4 1/4 lengths back by defending champion Nitro Chip (Finest

Hour), who paid $2.40 as the 6-5 favorite. Next came Meteor Impact (Belek), Mean

Butterbean (My Friend Max), Beautify Life (Scottsville), Spritely Walker

(Skywalker) and Zarb's Music Man (Zarbyev). Peetiethepieman (Wild Again) and

Krises Bells (Kissin Kris) were both withdrawn.

Prince T. captured the Gentilly H. last year and most recently ran second in

the Lagniappe Classic S. at Louisiana Downs. The dark bay colt moved his record

to 10-4-3-2, $239,360.

Leggio's other winner in the stakes came with 14-1 shot HUD'S PLAYMATE (B.

J.'s Mark). With Smith in the irons and sporting the colors of owner Glen C.

Warren, the bay sophomore posted a 1 1/2-length score in the $100,000

Louisiana

Premier Night Prince S., finishing the six-furlong event in 1:11 4/5. It was the

colt's first stakes victory, though he also shows a second in the Louisiana

Champions Day Juvenile S., and he increased his earnings to $106,899 to go along

with a 5-2-1-0 mark.

Larry Campagna's LEESA LEE (Leestown) captured the fillies division, the

$100,000

Louisiana Premier Night Starlet S., by 1 1/4 lengths for trainer

Patrick Mouton. Under Albarado, the bay miss ran three-quarters in 1:11 2/5

while improving her career line to 9-3-3-2, $161,651, for garnering her first

black-type victory.

In the $60,000

Louisiana Premier Night Sprint S., Wire 2 Wire Stables LLC's

BRANDON'S MARFA (Marfa) overtook pacesetter All Wired Up (Wire Me Collect) to

record a neck score in the six-furlong event. Getting a final time of 1:10 4/5,

the William Meaux trainee, with Carl Woodley in the saddle, now owns a 17-5-6-2,

$215,087, record.

Vickie Krantz's DESTINY CALLS (With Approval) took full advantage of Happy

Ticket's scratch in the $60,000

Louisiana Premier Night Matron S. to take the 5

1/2-furlong test by a half-length. With Smith recording yet another win, the

Albert Stall-trained six-year-old mare stopped the clock in 1:04 4/5 to push her

earnings to $634,619 and line to 23-14-4-2. The gray mare's connections opted

for this race despite her being the two-time defending champion of the Distaff.