Louisiana

Louisiana Derby 2025 Odds, Field And Picks On The Road To The Kentucky Derby

Published

8 months ago

March 22, 2025

Louisiana Derby 2025 Odds, Field And Picks On The Road To The Kentucky Derby

Louisiana Derby coverage from the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Alexander … More Barkoff)

The races start getting bigger on the Road to the Kentucky Derby starting with Saturday’s $1 million Louisiana Derby. The 10 entries in the Grade 2 race at 1 3/16 miles headlines a big 12-race card with eight stakes races at the Fair Grounds in New Orleans. The Louisiana Derby is a Championship Series race that will award 100-50-25-15-10 qualifying points to the top five finishers with the winner and runner-up securing a spot in the starting gate May 3 for the $5 million Kentucky Derby if not otherwise qualified.

The 112th running of the Louisiana Derby is Race 12 at 6:42 p.m. ET. Race 11 is the $400,000 Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) for 3-year-old fillies with the same qualifying points awarded towards the May 2 Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs.

Louisiana Derby Field, Odds And Picks

The Louisiana Derby is worth watching, as 44 starters in both the Risen Star and Louisiana Derby have run in the Kentucky Derby since 2013. The 2nd, 3rd and 4th place finishers from this year’s Risen Star Stakes are running in the Louisiana Derby – Chunk of Gold (8/1), Built (4/1) and Vassimo (12/1). They will try to beat the race favorite John Hancock (7/2), who is 2-for-2 and makes his first start outside of Florida.

Horse Racing Nation’s Super Screener likes win contenders Built, John Hancock and Caldera (5/1), who has moved forward in each of his three races and finished a close 2nd in the Sunland Derby last month for legendary trainer D. Wayne Lukas. Caldera lost by a nose to Kentucky Derby contender Getaway Car.

But as you watch and wager on the races, know that only two winners of the Louisiana Derby have gone on to win the Kentucky Derby: Black Gold in 1924, and Grindstone in 1996. The 1988 Louisiana Derby winner, Risen Star, went on to become a “Dual Classic Winner” by winning the Preakness and Belmont Stakes. Howerver, 4th place Louisiana Derby finisher Country House won the controversial 2019 Kentucky Derby at longshot odds of 65/1.

Another major prep race Saturday offering 100 Derby points to the winner is the $777,000 Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) at Turfway Park in Florence, Kentucky. Horse Racing Nation top win contenders include #6 Baby Max (7/2) and #12 He’s Not Joking (20/1), also a top longshot.

How To Watch And Wager On The Louisiana Derby

Along with wagering on the biggest races at FanDuel Racing, horse racing fans can tune into FanDuelTV for live on-site coverage of the two major Derby preps at Fair Grounds and Turfway Park. CNBC’s Road to the Kentucky Derby coverage also has live coverage of the two big races from 6-7 p.m. ET on Sat., March 22 while also streaming on Peacock.

Both races are part of the “Bayou Bluegrass 5,” with an estimated $1 million guaranteed all-graded stakes Pick 5. It starts with Race 8 for older horses at the Fair Grounds in the $500,000 New Orleans Classic featuring Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Sierra Leone, the heavy 7/5 ace favorite.

Fair Grounds Oaks Picks

If you would like to see the Kentucky Oaks favorite run one final time, then tune into the Fair Grounds Oaks Saturday. Both Horse Racing Nation and FanDuel Racing project Good Cheer (6/5) to win her sixth straight race to start her career. Good Cheer “clearly possesses the highest Super Screener Energy Reserve Index Score in this field,” according to Horse Racing Nation.

More horse racing, live betting and handicapping including the National Horseplayers Championship which was last weekend in Las Vegas. Now horse players are prepping for the biggest races on the Road to the Kentucky Derby with the Run for the Roses less than six weeks away.

You can bet on it.

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Louisiana

Louisiana’s Dr. Ralph Abraham named CDC Principal Deputy Director

Published

5 hours ago

November 25, 2025

Press Room

Louisiana’s Dr. Ralph Abraham named CDC Principal Deputy Director

BATON ROUGE, La. (KALB) – Louisiana’s top health official is stepping down from his post to take on a new role at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Dr. Ralph Abraham, Louisiana’s Surgeon General, will serve as the agency’s principal deputy director.

Dr. Ralph Abraham(KALB)

A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services confirmed the appointment to NBC News, though it hadn’t been made public as of Tuesday, Nov. 25.

Earlier this year, Abraham directed Louisiana’s Health Department to cease promoting mass vaccination, advising patients to consult their doctors about vaccinations instead.

This internal memo, dated February 13, coincided with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s swearing-in as HHS Secretary.

Meanwhile, the CDC has been without a permanent director since August, when Kennedy removed Dr. Susan Monarez.

FILE - Dr. Susan Monarez — FILE – Dr. Susan Monarez(J. Scott Applewhite | AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, file)

Governor Jeff Landry has not yet announced a successor to Dr. Abraham.

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Louisiana State Police urge safe driving during Thanksgiving travel

Published

23 hours ago

November 25, 2025

Press Room

Louisiana State Police urge safe driving during Thanksgiving travel

MONROE, La. (KNOE) – Louisiana State Police is reminding families traveling for Thanksgiving to make driving safety a priority.

LSP said holidays are for fellowship and gratitude, not tragedies on the roadways.

State Police ask drivers whose holiday festivities involve alcohol or any substance that can alter their driving ability to make transportation plans beforehand. They recommend planning a different ride, or using a designated driver and public transportation options to prevent impaired driving.

LSP urges all drivers to wear seatbelts, saying it can make the difference between life and death. They also encouraged everyone to buckle up before the vehicle moves.

Anyone who sees reckless driving or hazardous road conditions should call LSP (*577) and report to any State Police headquarters.

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Louisiana actor Monti Sharp looks back at 1990s ‘Guiding Light’ role

Published

2 days ago

November 24, 2025

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More than 30 years after his Emmy-winning turn on “Guiding Light,” Monroe native Monti Sharp still remembers the moment that changed his life − when a small-town actor heard his name called on national television.

“And the winner is − Monti Sharp from Guiding Light.” The words, spoken by “The Young and the Restless” actress Kimberlin Brown at the 1993 Daytime Emmys at New York City’s Marriott Marquis Hotel, are still embedded in Sharp’s memory.

“Something shot through me and my body jerked,” he said. It took his “Guiding Light” co-star Amelia Marshall − his onscreen sister − to give him a little push toward the stage.

“It was a very surreal moment,” Sharp said. “It was just all kind of a real enchanting time. Huge surprise to me.”

From Ouachita Parish to daytime TV

Sharp, the youngest of five children born to an attorney and educator, described himself as a “ferocious reader” who spent weekends at the Ouachita Parish Library devouring books. It was there, he said, that he discovered Richard Corson’s “Stage Makeup” − the book that first opened the door to the world of theater and set him on his artistic path.

“I was just fascinated by that book and I checked it out and I kept it for quite a while until they came out a subsequent edition − third, fourth and fifth edition,” Sharp said. “I used to send away for catalogs where I could order things like nose putty and all these different things. I just wanted to try them out. I think that opened my mind up to the reality of theater.”

He spent several years on the road performing in regional theater before landing the role of David Grant on “Guiding Light.” He said he a casting director saw him in a production at The Public Theater in New York City and left a note in his mailbox alerting him about an audition she thought he should pursue.

“I think my manager or my agent at the time reached out and they scheduled the audition ,” he said. “That was a whole new audition process to me. Totally different from auditioning for theater. So I went into it with a kind of − looking back − naive view of it. I thought ‘I’m used to audition for plays. Ok’ but that process lasted a long time and eventually got to the point where we did a screen test. I showed up to the studio to do a screen with Nia Long and that was kind of interesting because I didn’t have the role but I knew I was this close. I think there was maybe two other guys there. I think Flex Alexander [and] I forget the other gentleman’s name. So I did it. I just had fun and we just really got along very well and then I went home and I just kind of forgot it because I was doing plays and other stuff.”

Sharp said his agent called and asked him to come by the office, delivering the news in person that he had won the role. Hearing he’d gotten the part was “exhilarating,” Sharp said.

Sharing the screen with Nia Long and more about Sharp’s turn in Guiding Light

Sharp’s first major storyline on “Guiding Light” centered on a forbidden romance between his character and Kat Speakes, portrayed by Long. The relationship put his character at odds with Kat’s father, Hampton Speakes, who was dating David’s sister, Gilly Grant. The storyline ultimately cemented his Emmy win.

“My character was introduced on the show as sort of this mysterious guy who no one really knew if he was a good guy or a bad guy,” he said. “Kat and I ran away together and we spent the summer on the run, trying to be in love and escape her father [and] the community who thought I was bad. That was a pretty exciting entrance. They really milked that entrance of my character and played into the mystery and all that and I think that’s what really captured people put me in the position to be nominated certainly.”

Sharp believes audiences connected with his earnest portrayal of David Grant because he approached the role with the discipline shaped by his theater background. Sharp said he was determined to do more than simply show up, tape his scenes and collect a paycheck. He wanted the work to matter, he said, and approached the role with a genuine effort to find artistic and theatrical meaning in it.

His portrayal helped cement his character’s fanbase and earned him the 1993 Soap Opera Digest Award for Outstanding Male Newcomer in addition to his Emmy. He was also named one of TV Guide’s ‘Soaps’ Sexiest Stars’ and went on to receive additional Emmy and Soap Opera Digest Award nominations.

Coming from the theater, Sharp said he and like-minded co-stars “were like magnets,” pushing one another to elevate the material beyond soap-opera conventions.

“It’s a very, very fast and very demanding workflow,” Sharp said. “Very different from any other type of work, certainly episodic television where you might be doing one script that whole week as opposed to one script per day.”

What Monti Sharp noticed about the treatment of Black daytime actors in the 90s

Sharp said the soap world of the early 1990s didn’t feature many Black actors as central characters, and issues surrounding race sometimes surfaced behind the scenes.

“There were some wild things that happened that needed to be dealt with,” he said. He approached those situations “not combative, but pretty cocksure,” a stance he believes challenged the show’s writers and producers to respond in kind.

Sharp said he began noticing that Black daytime actors weren’t getting the same visibility as white actors. Walking past newsstands, he said, he would see Black magazines featuring Black talent, but white publications almost never featured them on the cover unless they were part of a group, which he said was rare.

“There was a lot of segregation in the coverage and in the presentation of the product to the public,” Sharp said. “I recall we were doing these − because I was popular at the time − we were doing these public appearances. Go Maine for a couple of hours and sign some autographs with other people from the show and I went on one of these things at some point with a popular character from another show and we just started talking about what a gig this was and he said something like ‘Can you believe for like two hours we’re getting x amount of dollars’. I was like ‘You’re getting ‘X’ amount’. He was like ‘How much you’re getting?’ I said ‘I’m getting ‘Y’ amount’.”

Sharp said that when he questioned the pay gap, he was bluntly told that Black talent did not earn the same as white actors − even with his rising popularity and recent award wins. He recalled being told he should feel “fortunate” to be invited to fan events and was asked whether he wanted to continue, a response he described as a “gut punch.” Sharp said it was one of the first moments that ‘soured’ his relationship with the industry.

Despite his award wins, Sharp’s character’s storylines and screen began to shrink. When he said he raised questions, he was told a major story was coming − one that never materialized. He recalled speaking with one of the show’s writers who later confided that they had been fired after pushing for more material for Sharp and the actress who played his onscreen sister.

Beyond Guiding Light

Sharp’s post-“Guiding Light” career spanned daytime, film, and primetime television. He took on roles in “As the World Turns” and “General Hospital,” appeared in the film “Dead Presidents,” and made guest spots on shows ranging from “ER” and “Modern Family” to “NCIS: Los Angeles,” “How to Get Away with Murder,” and most recently “9-1-1.”

Sharp said these days, between television and film auditions, he has shifted more of his creative energy towards visual art − a passion that long sat in the background of his acting career but moved to the forefront during the pandemic.

He returned to Monroe in February 2024 to exhibit his work at the Northeast Louisiana African American Heritage Museum.

For updates on his artwork, he encourages visitors to join his mailing list at sharpartstudio.com.

Follow Ian Robinson on Twitter @_irobinson and on Facebook at https://bit.ly/3vln0w1.

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