Glorious weather in southern Ontario has returning horsepeople at Woodbine in sparkly spirits. Sunny days and sunny ways my friend.
The Tapeta track will open for training either on Friday the 18th or Friday the 25th of March – the season begins April 9
RIKER UNVEILED
Canada’s probable 2-year-old champion (to be announced April 8), RIKER, will show us his 3-year-old physique and form today in the TAMPA BAY DERBY – G3, his first start for new majority owner Gary Barber.
Barber bought 75% of the Include fellow from Carlo and Lou Tucci. Nick Gonzalez trained Riker last year and Mark Casse now trains.
Riker has had a few workouts to get ready and he may have to work out different tactics should the other possible front runners zoom to the lead early in the 1 1/16 mile race. The race does set up nicely for DESTIN, the Sam F. Davis winner and Chad Brown’s interesting Flatter colt, ECONOMIC MODEL is also one to consider.
The loaded TAMPA card includes the Challenge Stakes as race 3 and in that small field is last year’s Prince of Wales winner, Ontario bred BREAKING LUCKY (Lookin at Lucky) who has trained well at Palm Beach Downs for Reade Baker. The colt likes dirt but is a new 4-year-old meeting some crusty tough ones such as NECK N NECK.
A top three finish would be good for the Gunpowder colt.
The Florida Oaks marks the return of one of last year’s top Canadian 2-year-old fillies, GAMBLE’S GHOST, the Ivan Dalos, Sovereign Award nominated gal by Ghostzapper. She is 6 to 1 in a good field of fillies on the grass and certainly has a chance to hit the top three.
TEPIN is in the Hillsborough Stakes and should make easy work of that field as she heads towards Keeneland and a date with the boys.
Saturday, Tampa Bay Downs, post time: 5:24 p.m. EST
LAMBHOLM SOUTH TAMPA BAY DERBY-GII, $350,000, 3yo, 1 1/16m
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER ML
1 Morning Fire Friesan Fire Centeno Nations 15-1
2 Rafting Tapit Prado Motion 6-1
3 Outwork Uncle Mo Velazquez Pletcher 12-1
4 Economic Model Flatter Ortiz Jr Brown 5-1
5 Star Hill Elusive Quality Leparoux Arnold II 15-1
6 Riker Include Geroux Casse 8-1
7 Destin Giant’s Causeway Castellano Pletcher 9-2
8 Brody’s Cause Giant’s Causeway Lanerie Romans 5-2
9 Tale of S’avall Tale of Ekati Bravo Tagg 12-1
10 Awesome Banner Awesome of Course Gallardo Gold 8-1
Saturday, Tampa Bay Downs, post time: 3:54 p.m. EST
FLORIDA OAKS-GIII, $200,000, 3yo, f, 1 1/16mT
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER ML
1 Enjoy Yourself (GB) Sir Percy (GB) Gallardo Terranova 6-1
2 Conquest Bebop K Scat Daddy Geroux Casse 8-1
3 Bonita Bluegrass Cat Cruz Stewart 20-1
4 Ava’s Kitten Kitten’s Joy Ortiz Jr Brown 7-2
5 Missalaney Badge of Silver Bravo Hinsley 30-1
6 Family Meeting Sky Mesa Pedroza Proctor 3-1
7 Spinamiss (Ire) Lilbourne Lad (Ire) Castellano Pletcher 6-1
8 Miss Otis Tale of the Cat Lanerie Kenneally 20-1
9 Silver Magnolia K Kitten’s Joy De La Cruz Blair 12-1
10 Gamble’s Ghost Ghostzapper Velazquez Carroll 6-1
11 Cinder K Warrior’s Reward Lebron Arnold II 30-1
12 Valueable Charmer Value Plus Allen Jr Bennett 30-1
13 Baciami Piccola (GB) Equiano (Fr) Leparoux Lynch 20-1
14 Princess Princess Discreet Cat Centeno Colebrook 10-1
TAMPA BAY DERBY PREVIEW – BRODY’S CAUSE
Shortly after last fall’s Sentient Jet Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Keeneland, trainer Dale Romans laid out a road map to get his talented 3-year-old, Brody’s Cause, into the starting gate at Churchill Downs on the first Saturday in May.
The colt’s first major step toward Thoroughbred immortality takes place Saturday in the 36th edition of the Grade II, $350,000 Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby. Brody’s Cause is the presumptive favorite in a 10-horse field for the mile-and-a-sixteenth main-track contest, which offers 50-20-10-5 points to the first four finishers as part of the Kentucky Derby Championship Series of 3-year-old prep races.
The Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby is the highlight of a lucrative Festival Day 36 Presented by Lambholm South card that includes the Grade II, $200,000 Hillsborough Stakes, for older fillies and mares at a mile-and-an-eighth on the turf; the Grade III, $200,000 Florida Oaks, for 3-year-old fillies at a mile-and-a-sixteenth on the turf; and the $100,000 Challenger Stakes for older horses at a mile-and-a-sixteenth on the main track.
Romans, who won the 2011 Preakness with Shackleford and was voted an Eclipse Award as Outstanding Trainer in 2012, shipped Brody’s Cause to Tampa Bay Downs from Gulfstream Park last week to acclimate him to the sand-based surface. Brody’s Cause breezed four furlongs here Sunday in 48 2/5 seconds, the sixth-fastest of 72 works at the distance.
Romans said Brody’s Cause has not missed a beat in his training since returning to the track after his third-place finish in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile on Oct. 31. If all start, the favorite will break from the No. 8 post.
The Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby is the 11th race on a 12-race program scheduled to begin at 12:23 p.m. The first 7,500 fans through the turnstiles will receive a cooler bag with the distinctive Tampa Bay Downs logo, with paid admission.
“He’s been training very good all year for his 3-year-old debut,” said Romans, who trains Brody’s Cause for Albaugh Family Stable. “He’s doing everything right.”
While the Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby field is comprised of potential superstars, a genuine one will start in the Hillsborough. The 5-year-old mare Tepin, which won the Grade III Lambholm South Endeavour Stakes here four weeks ago after a 2015 campaign that saw her win the Breeders’ Cup Mile against males and earn an Eclipse Award, is likely to be an overwhelming favorite against nine foes.
Tepin, which is trained by Mark Casse and will be ridden by Julien Leparoux, drew the No. 6 post position and will carry co-high weight (along with Ball Dancing) of 122 pounds. The Hillsborough is the 10th race.
A full field of 14 sophomore fillies will compete in the Florida Oaks, slated as the eighth race. Likely top contenders include Ava’s Kitten, from the barn of trainer Chad Brown; Grade III winner Family Meeting, trained by Tom Proctor; Spinamiss, a Pletcher charge; and Gamble’s Ghost, a Grade III winner trained by Josie Carroll.
Seven older horses will contest the Challenger, which is the third race. The most accomplished is Neck ‘n Neck, a consistent graded-stakes performer with career earnings of more than $1-million. Ian Wilkes is the trainer.
In the Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby, Brody’s Cause will shoulder an impost of 122 pounds, spotting his foes between 4-to-6 pounds. Victory Saturday is the desired result, of course; Romans said the next planned step for the son of Giant’s Causeway-Sweet Breanna is the Grade I Toyota Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland on April 9, followed by the Run for the Roses.
It is the same route traveled by 2007 Tampa Bay Derby winner Street Sense, which won the Oldsmar showcase and finished second in the Blue Grass before his historic Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands triumph.
“We decided to go this route because of the timing (between races), and we’ve been staying the course,” Romans said. “He was very good his whole 2-year-old year, winning the Grade I (Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland) and closing so well in the Breeders’ Cup.
“Tampa Bay Downs is a good racetrack, and we shipped him a little early because it’s a little different than the places he’s been training and I thought it would be good for him to get some miles over it before he runs. Hopefully he will come running Saturday, get past all of them and have a nice gallop-out, to Kentucky,” Romans said.
Brody’s Cause’s regular jockey, Corey Lanerie, will be in for the assignment.
Top challengers appear to include the 1-2 finishers in the Grade III, $250,000 Sam F. Davis Stakes here on Feb. 13, Destin and Rafting. Destin, which will be ridden by Javier Castellano, is one of two Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby entrants from the barn of trainer Todd Pletcher, who won last year’s Tampa Bay Derby with Carpe Diem. The other is Outwork.
Like Brody’s Cause and Carpe Diem, Destin was sired by Giant’s Causeway.
“He’s trained very consistently,” Pletcher noted in a text message about Destin, which breezed four furlongs Saturday in 48.99 seconds at Palm Beach Downs in Delray Beach. “I feel like he should continue to improve with more experience.
**TAMPA BAY DERBY PICKS 1- ECONOMIC MODEL 2 – DESTIN 3 – RAFTING
POOCH’S PICK – KELLY sniffed out a good one today. Her ‘sis’ Truly had a rough time with her pick last weekend so Kelly is ready to save the day..
FAMILY MEETING – 8th race TAMPA BAY DOWNS, Florida Oaks!
Bow wow!
IN CALIFORNIA – LOOKING FOR MOR
MOR SPIRIT will be heavily favoured to continue his trek to the Kentucky Derby in the San Felipe. The field is small and not all that interesting but EXAGGERATOR has lovely form from his 2-year-old season and good numbers. He may just have a bit more natural speed that the clunkier Mor Spirit.
Saturday, Santa Anita Park, post time: 6:00 p.m. EST
SAN FELIPE S.-GII, $400,000, 3yo, 1 1/16m
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER ML
1 Uncle Lino K Uncle Mo Perez Sherlock 8-1
2 Danzing Candy Twirling Candy Smith Sise Jr 7-2
3 Mor Spirit Eskendereya Stevens Baffert 2-1
4 Cupid K Tapit SCR SCR
5 I Will Score Roman Ruler Bejarano Hollendorfer 8-1
6 Smokey Image Southern Image Espinoza Gaines 7-2
7 Exaggerator K Curlin Desormeaux Desormeaux 5-2
CALIFORNIA CHROME cuts through the fog in Dubai in final World Cup prep
