Louisiana Derby coverage from the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Alexander … More Barkoff)
Copyright 2011 AP. All rights reserved.
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.
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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 – Chunkof 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 atFanDuel 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.
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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 pastor Tony Spell must stay 50 yards from his neighbor’s home unless he’s checking the mail after a protection order was issued against him – as shocking bodycam appears to show him using a homophobic slur to describe his alleged assault victim, just two days after he was arrested.
Spell, 48, is banned from speaking with the neighbor either online and in person, according to the order issued Friday, which has since been reported by The Advocate.
“Mr Spell may walk over and check his mailbox; other than checking his mailbox, he is to be 50 yards away from the protected person’s property,” a note on the order says.
Pastor Tony Spell allegedly assaulted his neighbor’s son after he threatened to kill and rape his wife. WBRZ
Spell, the pastor of Baton Rouge’s Life Tabernacle Church, will appear in court in September after being charged with second degree battery over last month’s assault that unfolded opposite the church.
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He claimed Scott Sherwin’s son had threatened to rape and kill his wife before delivering 35 blows.
But two days after the brawl Scott Sherwin reported Spell for allegedly mowing his lawn at 4 a.m., WBRZ reported.
“He’s doing this to intimidate my victim son,” Sherwin claimed in bodycam video seen by The Post.
“Do you cut your grass at 4 in the morning?” he asked the responding officer.
“You gotta get him to stop man,” the furious dad said.
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Sherwin claimed his family was unable to sleep – alleging Spell was carrying out “psychological warfare.”
An enraged Sherwin then swore at his neighbor, allegedly flipping him off, according to the bodycam.
Tony Spell kneeling and holding a goat. Tony Spell / Facebook
“I was asleep when this started at four in the morning,” Sherwin stressed, aggressively pointing at his phone.
The cop then went over to Spell, who was sitting on his lawnmower, before asking for his name.
“Everybody in the world knows my name,” Spell brazenly replied to the cop.
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Spell, who faces up to eight years in prison if convicted, then labeled Sherwin’s son a “f—-t” and seemed to take pride in the now-viral beatdown.
“He’s just sore because I beat the crap out of his f—-t boy,” he said.
“And he’s next if he comes over here and harasses these boys,” Spell said, speaking while a group of teens gathered nearby.
He has been embroiled in a rivalry with his neighbor. Tony Spell
Spell then started his lawnmower up and told the boys “get to work,” essentially ordering them to clear off.
Spell strongly defended his actions after being released from jail over the assault.
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“Number one, I’m a husband, number two, I’m a father, and number three, I’m a pastor who shepherds his flock,” he said. “I will not allow a man to murder my children when I’m gone,” he told reporters.
He revealed what Sherwin’s son allegedly said, which prompted the beatdown.
“He said, ‘Tony, I’m going to rape your wife, I’m going to rape all your grandchildren, and the next time you go out of town, I’m going to kill them,’” Spell said.
He addressed the altercation to his congregation and compared it to “domestic terrorism.” He also cited a Bible passage from Mark 16:18, WAFB reported.
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“In my name, they shall lay hands on the sick. And they shall recover,” he said.
“So today, I fulfilled the scripture. I laid hands on the sick. I don’t know how much recovery they’re going to have, but I laid hands on the sick.”
Spell has been in a longstanding feud with Sherwin; the pastor filed a lawsuit during the pandemic in 2020 over surveillance cameras that were installed.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Spell was ticketed for holding in-person church services, defying Louisiana’s social distancing restrictions.
Spell claimed the cameras were installed to monitor him.
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In April 2020, Spell was accused of attacking a protester outside his church. Police alleged that Spell backed his church bus in the direction of the protester, who was identified as Trey Bennett, according to news station WAFB-TV.
He was arrested for aggravated assault but never formally charged.
A new study from researchers at LSU’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center, FMOL Health | Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, and the Metamor Institute found that metabolic and bariatric surgery can be delivered safely and effectively for adolescents and young adults living with severe obesity, leading to significant weight loss and improvements in obesity-related health conditions.
Published in Obesity Surgery, the study examined outcomes from 76 patients ages 10 to 25 who underwent bariatric surgery through a Louisiana-based program at the Metamor Institute between January 2020 and March 2025. Researchers evaluated safety outcomes as well as longer-term health improvements associated with surgical obesity treatment.
The study found that patients achieved an average total body weight loss of 29%-32% maintained over one to five years. Among patients with available follow-up data, 94% experienced remission of type 2 diabetes, 67% showed improvement in hypertension and dyslipidemia and 64% experienced improvement in gastroesophageal reflux disease. Surgical complications remained low, with only 5% of patients experiencing complications within 30 days of surgery.
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Researchers noted that these outcomes were likely supported by a comprehensive, multidisciplinary care model that included experienced surgeons, nutritional guidance, behavioral support and coordinated medical follow-up. The study population represented a broad cross-section of Louisiana patients, with nearly 75% covered by Medicaid, highlighting the importance of ensuring access to effective obesity treatment options across socioeconomic backgrounds.
The findings support current American Academy of Pediatrics recommendations that adolescents age 13 and older with severe obesity and related health risks be evaluated for metabolic and bariatric surgery as part of comprehensive, evidence-based obesity care.
Meta Platforms Inc. has committed to spending an additional $40 billion on its sprawling data center campus in Louisiana, pushing its total expected investment beyond $250 billion for the site as it continues to grow its artificial intelligence computing footprint.
