Turf News

Neogem inserted a minor tweak into one of American race track announcers’ favorite stretch calls yesterday: the one that goes “from last to first.” In an 11-horse, $40,000 maiden optional claimer at Gulfstream Park, the 3-year-old filly by Neolithic went “from next-to-last to first” under Leonel Reyes.

Neogem gave the favorite players a scare when she walked out of the gate in the one-mile race on the turf. The filly owned and bred by Just For Fun Stables was still 10th after they crawled the first quarter in :25.08, but Reyes sent her 8-wide on the turn and she inhaled most of the field as they turned into the stretch, then ran over the leaders in the last 100 yards to win by nearly two lengths.

Neogem paid $4.40 and became winner No. 9 for Neolithic this year while collecting a check for $24,400, raising her total to $50,670 on a record of 1-3-0 in five starts.

The eighth race at Gulfstream Park yesterday was an all-Joe Orseno affair from start to finish. The veteran trainer’s Beauty of the Sea went wire-to-wire in the $40,000 maiden optional claimer at five furlongs over the turf course, and stablemate Dan’s Candi Gold was second for the entire trip.

Beauty of the Sea is a 3-year-old filly by Bucchero and became the stallion’s 13th winner of 2023 in just her third start. Edgar Perez was aboard the filly bred by Shade Tree Thoroughbreds who won by a length and earned a check for $24,400, upping her total to $33,160. She was clocked in :57.08 and paid $7.

In his excellent freshman season last year, Bucchero wound up with 14 winners, $$638,575 in progeny earnings, and in 24th place on Florida’s leading sire list. Only four months into 2023, it’s evident the son of Kantharos is going to dwarf his first-year statistics.

Bucchero already has 12 winners to his credit this season, and with Ms. Bucchero’s second straight victory at Parx Racing yesterday, in a $48,458 allowance optional claimer, his progeny earnings jumped to $508,771, putting him sixth on the Florida list.

Carol Cedeno was aboard the 3-year-old filly, who went head-and-head for the lead in the two path in a quarter of :22.53. She edged away from the pack in the run to the half, and the filly bred by Pamela Edel widened her lead to 3 1/4 lengths at the wire, clocked in 1:14.18 for the six furlongs. She paid $5, boosted her record to 2-1-0 in three starts, and the winner’s check of $25,200 shot her earnings up to $52,360.

To add to Bucchero’s good start to season No. 2 is the fact that he has 88 registered 2-year-old foals.

At the age of 59, Jose Ferrer enjoyed a memorable weekend at Tampa Bay Downs, winning on his last five mounts – four of them on Sunday – including a perfect maiden-breaking trip in a $25,000 claimer with Big Bucksalot, a 3-year-old Neolithic gelding.

Big Bucksalot was away sixth in mid-track down the backstretch in the race at six furlongs, and Ferrer didn’t waste any time going after the leaders before the field reached the turn. The gelding bred by Julie Jackson looped the field while three wide heading into the stretch, reached the lead at the eighth pole, and drew off to score by 4 1/4 lengths without opposition.

Big Bucksalot is Neolithic’s fourth winner of 2023; he was clocked in 1:12.23 and paid $10.20, while earning a check for $9,980. He won in his fourth start and helped Ferrer take over second place in the Tampa jockeys’ standings heading into the final week of racing.

No Never No More’s first winner of 2023 is Jomama Sassy, a 3-year-old filly bred in Minnesota by owner Eric Berg who broke her maiden in her sixth start.

Scott Bethke was aboard for the 4-furlong test at Fonner Park, and Jomama Sassy only had to face three rivals. She went out for the lead, battled on the front end for a quarter, then edged away and won by a length, clocked in :48.20. She paid $21.60 and earned a meager check for $2,940.

After his seventh career victory, which came at Parx Racing on April 27 of 2021, Town Jak went just short of two years before getting No. 8. That victory finally came yesterday at Finger Lakes with Jeremias Flores turning in a flawless ride aboard the 7-year-old Gone Astray gelding.

Town Jak broke third and remained there in hailing distance of the two pacesetters until the turn, when he picked it up, went three wide, and outgamed them to the finish by a hard-earned half a length. He paid $7.40 after getting 4 1/2 furlongs in :52.63.

Town Jak, a $17,000 OBS Winter Mixed Sale yearling bred by Jaime Ramirez, became winner No. 15 for Gone Astray this year, and raised his record to 8-9-8 in 50 starts. The winner’s check of $7,560 increased his total to $186,398.

Taking a winner’s circle photo is all the more satisfying when the breeder and the trainer are co-owners of the horse who has just broken his maiden in his career debut, accomplished via a sterling performance.

That was the case in the first race at Tampa Bay Downs yesterday after the victory of the 3-year-old Vidiano, a son of Neolithic who was bred by SCF Inc., trained by Dennis Manning, and co-owned by Manning and Belinda Kitos, owner of Ocala’s Southern Cross Farm with her husband, retired doctor Robert Kitos.

Vidiano had six moderate listed works at Oakridge Training Center, none that would make anyone sit up and take notice. But the gelding went off at just 6-1, so somebody knew something. With Sam Marin in the irons, Vidiano broke well from the No. 2 post in the race at six furlongs, shadowed the top four through a quick quarter in :22.29, then mysteriously dropped back by about 10 lengths going to the half.

Marin got him rolling on the turn and the gelding ate up ground in mid-track, then inhaled the leaders in the stretch as announcer Jason Beem chimed in with “Vidiano has all the momentum.” He wound up 2 1/4 lengths in front at the wire in a clocking of 1:10.53, receiving an excellent 82 ‘E’ speed figure in the process. Vidiano paid $15.20 and the partners collected $11,950.

After finishing second in her career debut last May in a race over the all-weather track at Golden Gate Fields, Yvonne’s Miss spent the next 10 months on the shelf, making her return at Lone Star Park with a new trainer in a race at 5 1/2 furlongs over the main track.

The layoff didn’t deter the betting faithful, and the 3-year-old California-bred daughter of Bucchero went off at odds of 3/10 in her first race back with Stewart Elliott. She had seven works listed, all over the all-weather track at Turfway, the best of which was the latest, a five-furlong trial in 1:00.60.

Yvonne’s Miss broke in the air and was off fourth and last in the short field, but the veteran Elliott sent her up on the outside on the turn and she proved to be a ton the best, drawing off late by 2 /4 lengths. She paid $2.60, collected a check for $9,600, and gave red-hot Bucchero his 12th winner of 2023.

Paying close attention to the first group of Bucchero’s foals who reached the race track last year, it quickly became apparent that they could run early, and weren’t in need of three or four starts to show their best form. Infamous Nono added his name to the precocious list yesterday in his debut at Tampa Bay Downs.

With veteran Jose Ferrer aboard, the 3-year-old gelding was slow to begin in the 5 1/2-furlong, $32,000 maiden special, and was well back in the pack four or five wide heading down the backstretch. As the field approached the turn, Ferrer turned on the jets and Infamous Nono made a monster 8-wide run, catching the leaders as they began the stretch battle, and closing with a burst to get up at the wire by a neck over 8/5 favorite Rainbow’s Pride.

Bucchero’s 11th winner of 2023 rewarded the stallion’s faithful to the tune of $14.60 after getting the 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:04.77 and earning a check for $19,760. He was bred by the partnership of Pamela Edel, Lee and Elaine Vinson and Irish Eyes Stable and is trained by John Vinson.

Ailsa Morrison spent more than four months on the sidelines after suffering a knee injury, but she was in top form yesterday aboard Gone Nuts in a five-furlong race over the Tapeta course at Gulfstream Park.

Aboard her fourth mount since making her return, Morrison scored with the 4-year-old Gone Astray gelding to raise his record to 2-0-2 in seven starts, while getting his sire winner No. 13 of 2023.

Gone Nuts was off fourth early, racing four wide down the backstretch. Morrison sent him up four wide on the turn and the gelding bred by long-time Ocala breeder Jim Cavanaugh responded with a strong run to the wire, winning by a little more than a length in :57.57. He paid $7.20 and earned a check for $13,500, increasing his total to $63,110.