Chip Honcho threatened to defeat Kentucky Derby (G1) favorite Paladin in the Feb. 14 Risen Star Stakes (G2) at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, leading that rival for much of the 1 1/8-mile race before yielding over the final sixteenth of a mile.
He doesn't have to fend off that rival again March 21 in the Louisiana Derby (G2) at Fair Grounds—Paladin is awaiting the April 4 Blue Grass Stakes (G1) at Keeneland—but Chip Honcho does have to deal with one of Paladin's stablemates, debut winner Emerging Market, plus six other 3-year-olds in the $1 million race. At 1 3/16 miles, the Louisiana Derby is a sixteenth farther than the Risen Star Stakes and the longest domestic prep race for the 1 1/4-mile Kentucky Derby (G1) May 2 at Churchill Downs.
The Louisiana Derby and Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3), also March 21, are the first races on the 2025-26 Road to the Kentucky Derby to offer 200 qualifying points toward Run for the Roses, distributed on a 100-50-25-15-10 scale to their top five finishers. Based on historical trends, at least the first two finishers typically have enough points to secure entrance into the Derby, the first leg of the Triple Crown. Churchill Downs uses qualifying points as a preference system when the race overfills beyond its capacity field size of 20 horses.
Chip Honcho, already with 39 points by virtue of his stakes performances throughout the winter, is well-positioned to make the Derby starting gate if he picks up any points Saturday. The son of Connect is 2-2-0 in five starts with earnings of $260,475 for owners Leland Ackerley Racing, James Sherwood, Jode Shupe, and John Cilia.
Whether he has the stamina to handle longer distances remains in question. In December, he won the 1 1/16-mile Gun Runner Stakes that unfolded with slow final splits before fading to fourth in the 1 1/16-mile Lecomte Stakes (G3) and weakening to second late in the Risen Star. The latter race, his first since shedding blinkers, represented a career-best effort. Though Paladin wore him down, third-place Golden Tempo and fourth-place Universe—both back in the Louisiana Derby—never came close to challenging the top two finishers.
Video: Fasig-Tipton Risen Star S. (G2)
Luis Saez will likely again try to dictate the pace on Chip Honcho, who is trained by Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen, a five-time Louisiana Derby winner.
Trainer Chad Brown starts Emerging Market, whose lone start at Tampa Bay Downs Feb. 7 resulted in a quick two-turn victory. The son of Candy Ride outkicked favored Powershift, another first-time starter, by three-quarters of a length. Powershift returned with a sixth as one of the favorites in the Tampa Bay Derby (G3).
Flavien Prat returns in the saddle aboard Klaravich Stables' Emerging Market.
Besides Chip Honcho, other 3-year-olds with stakes wins or placings in the Louisiana Derby include Sunland Derby winner Pavlovian, the multiple graded placed Universe, and Lecomte Stakes winner Golden Tempo, who adds blinkers.
Blacksmith, Spirit of Royal, Autobahn, and Easterly complete the field. Trainers Bob Baffert and Dallas Stewart start Blacksmith and Spirit of Royal, respectively, while Brad Cox trains both Autobahn and Easterly.
The latter two runners come off maiden victories for owners WinStar Farm, CHC, and First Go Racing—who already have the Todd Pletcher-trained Class President, winner of the March 1 Rebel Stakes (G2) at Oaklawn Park, on the Kentucky Derby trail.
Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, Saturday, March 21, 2026, Race 12Entries: Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby (G2)
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 Pavlovian (CA) Edwin A. Maldonado 122 Doug F. O'Neill - 2 Autobahn (KY) Marcelino Pedroza, Jr. 122 Brad H. Cox - 3 Chip Honcho (KY) Luis Saez 122 Steven M. Asmussen - 4 Universe (KY) Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr. 122 Kenneth G. McPeek - 5 Golden Tempo (KY) Jose L. Ortiz 122 Cherie DeVaux - 6 Spirit of Royal (KY) Francisco Arrieta 122 Dallas Stewart - 7 Blacksmith (KY) Florent Geroux 122 Bob Baffert - 8 Easterly (KY) Edgard J. Zayas 122 Brad H. Cox - 9 Emerging Market (KY) Flavien Prat 122 Chad C. Brown -
