by Jeff Apel

Grade 2-placed multiple stakes winner Golden Yank will switch back to turf for the $100,000 Colonel E. R. Bradley Handicap (G3) on Saturday at Fair Grounds.

Four-year-old Golden Yank closed out his previous campaign with back-to-back stakes victories on the main track for trainer Gary Thomas and owner-breeder Millard R. Seldin Revocable Trust. After winning the Oklahoma Derby on October 19 at Remington Park, the Yankee Gentleman gelding posted a 6 3/4-length romp in the Zia Park Derby in his previous start on December 6.

While racing exclusively against three-year-olds last year, Golden Yank compiled $423,784 in purse earnings and posted two wins and two runner-up finishes from nine starts. The bay gelding made two starts last year on turf. He finished second in the 2008 USA Stakes at Lone Star Park and was the runner-up in the '08 Jefferson Cup Stakes (G2) at Churchill Downs.

Golden Yank will face nine horses in the Colonel E. R. Bradley Handicap, a 1 1/16-mile race for older horses. Multiple Grade 3 winner Embossed (Ire), 2008 Colonel E. R. Bradley Handicap winner French Beret, Grade 3 winners Wise River and Classic Campaign, graded stakes-placed stakes winners Prom Shoes and Red Rock Creek, and stakes winner Tend were also entered.

Red Rock Creek enters off a one-length victory against runner-up Prom Shoes in the Governor’s Cup Stakes on December 14 at Remington Park. Steve Asmussen owns and trains Red Rock Creek, the third-place finisher in the 2008 Dallas Turf Cup Handicap (G3) at Lone Star Park.

Embossed is winless in eight starts since capturing the 2007 Dallas Turf Cup Handicap. The Mark of Esteem (Ire) ridgling earned his first graded stakes victory in the 2006 Kentucky Turf Cup Stakes (G3) at Kentucky Downs.

Classic Campaign halted an eight-race winless stretch with a victory in the Buddy Diliberto Memorial Handicap in his previous start on November 28 at Fair Grounds. Bill Mott trains Classic Campaign for owner-breeder Kinsman Stable.

Tend enters off three consecutive wins for trainer Albert Stall Jr. The Dynaformer colt                                earned his first stakes victory in the Sam’s Town Stakes in his previous start on December 5 at Delta Downs.

Jeff Apel is a Thoroughbred Times assistant daily news editor

The field, in post-position order, with (sire), jockey, weight, and trainer:

1. Classic Campaign (Rahy), Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr., 119, William I. Mott;

2. French Beret (Broad Brush), James Graham, 118, Mark R. Frostad;

3. Acting Zippy (City Zip), Miguel Mena, 116, William Don Bennett;

4. Wise River (Belong to Me), Francisco C. Torres, 120, Clark Hanna;

5. Prom Shoes (Include), Robby Albarado, 116, William H. Fires;

6. Embossed [IRE] (Mark of Esteem [IRE]), Jesus Lopez Castanon, 116, Andrew McKeever;

7. Red Rock Creek (Numerous), Shaun Bridgmohan, 117, Steven M. Asmussen;

8. Tend (Dynaformer), Julien R. Leparoux, 115, Albert M. Stall, Jr.;

9. Windward Islands (Cozzene), Corey J. Lanerie, 119, Mark R. Frostad; and

10. Golden Yank (Yankee Gentleman), Jamie Theriot, 120, Gary A. Thomas.