Bayou Banker took them gate to wire in an off the turf maiden race on Friday at Churchill Downs. Trained by Dallas Stewart, the Louisiana-bred Super Saver colt took a really nice step forward from his two races at Saratoga this summer.

Jockey Miguel Mena said, “He was a pro, I really like this horse and I wanna ride him back. We’re gonna have a lot of fun with him especially with him being Louisiana-bred.”

Bayou Banker took them gate to wire in an off the turf maiden race on Friday at Churchill Downs. Trained by Dallas Stewart, the Louisiana-bred Super Saver colt took a really nice step forward from his two races at Saratoga this summer.

Jockey Miguel Mena said, “He was a pro, I really like this horse and I wanna ride him back. We’re gonna have a lot of fun with him especially with him being Louisiana-bred.”

“The colt really stepped up his game in the mornings after shipping back to Kentucky at the end of the summer,” said WPT EVP Jeff Lifson. “He’s a late May foal who took a couple races to put all the pieces together. It’s hard to be ultra confident when a horse has run so-so in his two prior races, but we had a pretty good feeling he’d run well at his home court since the light bulb had gone on in the mornings.”

“He’s so light on his feet and easy on himself,” added Stewart. “He’s come a long way since he first came into the barn and we’re gonna take our time and develop him the right way.”

Bayou Banker is heading to his home state of Louisiana toward the end of the month and will likely start next at the Fair Grounds.