The Kinnon LaRose era is about to begin at Oaklawn. The Tom Amoss era is about to end at Oaklawn.

LaRose is scheduled to make his training debut Thursday when he saddles My Noble Knight in the second race, a $50,000 starter allowance for older horses at 1 1/8 miles.

A former collegiate basketball player, LaRose, 28, spent the past several years as an assistant under highly successful trainer Tom Amoss, who announced March 16 that he was retiring and handing the stable’s keys to LaRose.

“It’s all excitement,” LaRose said Wednesday afternoon. “Just super grateful for the opportunity and trust that Tom and all his clients have in me, clients that have been with him for a long time. For them to have the faith in both Tom and myself, super happy and grateful for the opportunity.”

Amoss, 64, said he will work with LaRose in an advisory role to make the transition as smooth as possible.

“I think a year from now, he’ll probably take the training wheels off,” Amoss said Tuesday afternoon. “We have an arrangement where I’ll be here for the next year working with him and then it’s totally his decision after that. But he doesn’t strike me as the kind of person that’s going to need my help.”

Amoss is the 15^th-winningest trainer in North American history with 4,278 victories, according to Equibase, racing’s official data gathering organization. Amoss started his first horse and won his first race in 1987.

Amoss annually winters at Fair Grounds (his home track) and with its 2025-2026 meet ending March 22, he said the timing was ideal to have horses begin to run in LaRose’s name at Oaklawn. LaRose is scheduled to be in Hot Springs Thursday.

“I think we kind of tried to time it as it relates to the end of the Fair Grounds meet, in the way of billing, transitioning from one trainer’s bills to another,” Amoss said. “The end of March made sense.”

LaRose has eight horses entered over the next three racing days at Oaklawn, although Amoss said Revel Toast will be scratched from Thursday’s third race. LaRose has several live shots, including program favorites Carbone in Friday’s eighth race and Yellow Brick in Saturday’s fifth race.

My Noble Knight (4-1 on the morning line) represented Amoss’ 100^th career Oaklawn winner last April.

“God, I would love to see him win one of those,” Amoss said.

LaRose also entered Oscar’s Hope in the Lafayette Stakes Friday at Keeneland. Amoss notched his 16^th career Oaklawn stakes victory when Oscar’s Hope captured the $150,000 Ozark for 3-year-old sprinters Feb. 16.

Amoss has a 15-20 horse string this season at Oaklawn, where he has two stakes victories and seven victories overall. Amoss said he plans to start at least one more horse during the final eight racing days – Oaklawn closes May 2 – to be eligible for a participation bonus Oaklawn and the Arkansas Horsemen’s Benevolent & Protective Association offer to trainers.

Amoss’ last two starters (Bernin Tune and Authentic Beauty) were March 26 at Oaklawn.

“I will make a random start there, so it’s not like I’m coming out of retirement,” Amoss said. “Part of Oaklawn’s deal is that you have to run a horse in the last three weeks of the meet to eligible for the trainer bonus, so I’ll be doing that. My last start will be with you guys.”

Amoss said with incoming 2-year-olds, LaRose will eventually oversee approximately 60 horses in upcoming months.

Nitrogen Works Toward Apple Blossom

Champion Nitrogen completed major preparations for the April 11 $1.25 million Apple Blossom Handicap (G1) with a five-furlong work over a fast track Wednesday morning under exercise rider Autumn Lavertu.

Nitrogen was timed in 1:01 following splits of :25.20 for her opening quarter-mile and :37.60 for three furlongs. She galloped out six furlongs in 1:13.60.

Trained by dual Hall of Famer Mark Casse, Nitrogen looks to rebound from a third-place finish in the $400,000 Azeri Stakes (G2) March 7, which was Oaklawn’s final major prep for the Apple Blossom.

Stablemate Nerazurri, a two-time stakes winner at the meeting, also worked Wednesday morning in advance of the Apple Blossom, covering five furlongs in 1:01.20 under Cristian Torres.

“It was perfect,” said assistant trainer Caden Arthur, who oversees Casse’s Oaklawn division. “Puts us 10 days out before the Apple Blossom. Both of them looked great. Very happy with them. Nitrogen had a little stronger work last week, so we didn’t ask too much from her this week. Both of them did it very easy, in hand. I think Nitrogen, she likes this fast track. Hopefully, we can get that again rather than the sealed (sloppy) she ran on last time. Hopefully, we get the old Nitrogen back and it kind of looks like it the way she’s been working.”

Nitrogen opened her 2026 campaign with a 2 ¾-length victory over Nerazurri in the $250,000 Bayakoa Stakes (G3) Feb. 7.

Entries will be accepted and post positions drawn Saturday for the 1 1/16-mile Apple Blossom, which is a “Win and You’re In” for the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1) Oct. 31 at Keeneland.

Nitrogen was the country’s champion 3-year-old filly of 2025, concluding her campaign with a runner-up finish in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff.

The Apple Blossom closed March 28 with 20 nominations.