Turf News

Handsome Mike added two more winners to his ledger yesterday, with Gran Greyfrost becoming No. 21 for the stallion this year in the afternoon at Gulfstream Park, and Handsome Lil J J making it 22 later in the evening at Charles Town Racing and Slots.

In a one-mile race that was originally slated for the grass, Gran Greyfrost battled for the lead throughout under Sammy Camacho, took the lead in the stretch and held on stubbornly to the wire to win by a neck. The 3-year-old stakes-placed colt earned $17,560 for his second victory, raising his total to $68,440, and garnered a breeder’s award for Joe and Helen Barbazon.

After a good beginning racing 4 1/2 furlongs in a $23,000 maiden special, Handsome Lil J J sat third with Reshawn Latchman until the turn, moved wide for the drive and was up in time to win by a neck despite nearly running out of ground down the short Charles Town stretch. The 3-year-old colt bred by Waldorf Farm paid a generous $33.20, and earned $13,740. Handsome Mike’s 22 winners are just one behind the leader among Florida’s second-crop sires.

Just four days ago, Hunters Dream scored his second career victory, a 10-length stunner at Finger Lakes. The 3-year-old gelding is by Treasure Beach out of the Wildcat Heir mare Karen’s Wildcat, and was bred by Gilbert and Marilyn Campbell at their Stonehedge Farm in Williston. Hunters Dream broke his maiden racing for the Campbells last year, but now campaigns in the barn of James Acquilino.

At Laurel Park yesterday, River Hawk, the 2-year-old full brother to Hunters Dream, made his debut for the Campbells and gave the Treasure Beach-Karen’s Wildcat mating two sharp winners in the four-day span.

Trevor McCarthy was aboard River Hawk, who sat right on the flank of 7/5 Side Car down the backstretch and into the turn, then out-gamed the favorite to the wire to prevail by one length. The gelding earned a check for $15,390 while becoming Treasure Beach’s 33rd winner of 2019. He was clocked in an excellent 1:03.61 for the 5 1/2 furlongs on the turf.

A winner in a $5,000 claiming race is rarely worthy of making the news, but Hunters Dream’s score at Finger Lakes yesterday was without doubt one of the worthy ones.

First, the 3-year-old gelding by Treasure Beach earned a check for $5,640 and that lifted his sire’s career progeny earnings over the $3 million mark – $3,001,191 to be exact. Second, in becoming Treasure Beach’s 32nd winner of 2019, if it had come at Del Mar, he would have been eligible for Trevor Denman’s famous call, “They would need to sprout wings to catch Hunters Dream.”

With Luis Perez aboard in the race at one mile and 70 yards, Hunters Dream shot to the lead from the No. 5 post, opened up by daylight down the backstretch, and left little doubt as to the outcome. The gelding bred by Stonehedge Farm was coasting by 13 lengths in mid-stretch, and cruised to the wire in hand, 10 lengths in front. It was his second career victory, first of this year, and definitely noteworthy.

If Thoroughbred Daily News hasn’t put Raymundo’s Secret on its ‘TDN Rising Star’ list, they are no doubt missing the boat after the 3-year-old filly by Treasure Beach out of the Greatness mare Paulette Caveat made it 2-for-2 yesterday with another eye-catching performance on the grass.

Raymundo’s Secret was bred at Pleasant Acres by the familiar partnership of Ed Seltzer, Beverly Anderson and Joe and Helen Barbazon, and didn’t make her career debut until Jan. 16 at Tampa Bay Downs. At odds of 40-1, racing one mile on the turf in the names of Joe Barbazon and JC Racing, the filly sat a perfect trip in second place and coasted home by six lengths, clocked in 1:36.73 and paying $83.40, $43 and $18.60.

As is usual after many such debut performances, the “phone rang off the hook,” and the filly wound up in the barn of Sierra Racing and Sterling Stables. After a layoff of more than six months, Raymundo’s Secret made her return at Del Mar yesterday in a $37,053 starter allowance with talented Flavien Prat aboard, again at one mile on the grass.

It turned out to be an exact replica of her first try, with Raymundo’s Secret sitting second until the turn, moving to the leader for a brief battle, then cruising to the wire five lengths in front amid announcer Trevor Denman’s call of “Flavien Prat and Raymundo’s Secret win as far as they like.”

There were two major differences from her first score – (1) she paid $2.80, and (2) she was clocked in 1:34.28, about 13 lengths faster than her debut.

The filly’s dam, Paulette Caveat, has one other runner – Trolobus – a 5-year-old horse who campaigns in Puerto Rico and has compiled a record of 5-10-2 in 35 starts. There’s also a Poseidon’s Warrior yearling on the farm and she’s in foal again to Treasure Beach, who has moved up to fifth place among active stallions on Florida’s general sire list.

All it took for Wine At the Beach to break his maiden was for the Lanexa Stable to endure a few changes. (1) Shipping from South Florida to Parx Racing in Pennsylvania; (2) being entered in a race featuring amateur “gentleman” riders only; (3) having to wait an extra two days to run after his original race was cancelled due to bad weather; (4) carrying a staggering 132 pounds in deference to the amateur jockeys; and (5) his gentleman rider shooting to the front from the No. 10 post in the “about” one mile and 70-yard race on the turf.

All of the above contributed to the 3-year-old colt by Treasure Beach notching his first victory in his ninth try. After Wine At the Beach beat everyone to the rail around the first turn, gentleman Jason Richardson nursed him along on the lead looking like Mike Smith, and the colt bred by Christine Jones never looked back, getting to the wire one length in front.

Wine At the Beach paid a generous $33.20 and earned a check for $21,000, which lifted Treasure Beach’s career total to within $38,314 of the $3 million mark.

LATEST NEWS FROM ARGENTINA: Two Treasure Beach 3-year-old colts finished 1-2 in the Gr. II Chacabuco Stakes at Hipodromo Argentino De Palermo. The winner, Glorious Moment, collected $15,600, and runner-up Emiterio earned $4,680. French Beach, a 3-year-old filly, finished second in the Gr. II Ignacio e Ignacio F. Correa Stakes at the same track, earning $4,602, and Ultra Campeon, a 2-year-old colt, broke his maiden at San Isidro.

After a series of winners by Handsome Mike that almost blew up several tote boards, the son of Scat Daddy toned it down yesterday with a pair of more down-to-earth payoffs. At Gulfstream Park, Marynmike became her sire’s 18th winner of 2019 and paid $12, while Naughty Me romped at Presque Isle later in the evening and became No. 19, paying $8.

Victor Lebron plotted the perfect trip for Marynmike, who entered the starting gate in the $40,000 maiden claimer at odds of 12-1. Less than two minutes later, the 3-year-old filly was coasting to the finish with the board reading 5-1. Lebron settled Marynmike into fifth on the rail early, and the duo never left the inside all the way to the wire. She scored by 2 1/4 lengths over even-money favorite Fled the Scene. The victory was worth $21,400 to owner/breeder Cedar Gate Farm.

In Pennsylvania, stakes-placed Naughty Me went wire-to-wire under Antonio Gallardo in a $33,000 allowance optional claimer at six furlongs, winning by 4 1/4 lengths under wraps. The 3-year-old filly bred by Beth Bayer recorded her third victory in nine career starts, and the $19,800 check raised her total to $85,400. She was clocked in a speedy 1:09.72.

Handsome Mike has had 12 runners visit the winner’s circle in the last five weeks.

Treasure Beach boosted his number of winners to 30 yesterday via a pair of maiden scores, one in Florida and another in Louisiana.

Whiskey Moment picked up his first victory for Just For Fun Stable with a wire-to-wire effort at “about” seven furlongs over the Gulfstream Park turf course with Leonel Reyes. The 4-year-old colt went four wide into the first turn, crossed over to the rail on the backstretch, then led the rest of the way despite being pressured throughout and held on by a nose in a driving finish. He earned $11,600 after posting an Equibase rating of 80, his best ever.

Whatafind had a much easier time of it racing six furlongs at Evangeline Downs in the evening. The 3-year-old Louisiana-bred gelding was off seventh in a field of eight, moved to the two path on the turn, then appropriately emulated Linda Ronstadt’s lyrics in Blue Bayou, blowing by the field in the bayou stretch to win by 4 1/4 lengths. Third choice in the race at 7/2, the $8,500 Louisiana yearling earned $6,600.

Sand Drift used the old ‘last to first’ move to win the 10th race at Gulfstream Park yesterday and send Treasure Beach over $1 million in progeny earnings for 2019.

Leverett and Linda Miller’s 3-year-old filly had been experiencing horrible racing luck after breaking her maiden at one mile on the turf back on Jan. 4. For five races since, Sand Drift’s Daily Racing Form notes were filled with comments such as ‘bumped,’ ‘steadied,’ ‘hit gate,’ ‘in traffic,’ etc. But none of those came into play in yesterday’s one-mile race on the grass.

Off last as usual from the No. 9 post with Luca Panici, Sand Drift languished about 10 lengths off the leaders down the backstretch. Panici let her roll on the turn and she looped the field by uncorking a run that prompted announcer Pete Aiello to practically yell, “From last – Sand Drift is in high gear.” From there it was no contest as the filly put an end to her unlucky streak and won by 1 3/4 lengths, paying $11.20 and earning the $14,700 that lifted Treasure Beach’s total to $1,005,300.

The list of movies that have the word ‘remember’ in their titles is virtually endless, but the one that best describes Joe and Helen Barbazon’s Sunday accomplishments is the 1953 flick “A Day to Remember.” In the short span of one hour, the Barbazons celebrated the victory of Decorated Ace at Saratoga, followed up by a mind-boggling maiden-breaking debut by Sir Seamus at Gulfstream Park.

At 3:29, Decorated Ace, bred by the Barbazons, broke quickly from the No. 7 post in a one-mile, $40,000 claiming race on the turf, and 1:36.71 later had carried Jose Lezcano to victory by a neck. The 3-year-old daughter of Treasure Beach, winner of the Sorority Stakes at Monmouth Park last year, shadowed 17-1 shot Tempers Way down the length of the backstretch, went after her on the turn and into the stretch, then out-gamed the pacesetter to the wire to pick up her third career victory. Decorated Ace paid $20.40 and earned a check for $35,750, raising her career total to $119,250. She became winner No. 28 for Treasure Beach this year, as the stallion closed within less than $22,000 of reaching $1 million for the second year in a row.

At 4:28, Sir Seamus, who was 80-1 on the tote board for his debut at one mile on the grass, completed the impressive Barbazon double under talented Cristian Torres. From the No. 12 post, the 3-year-old Handsome Mike gelding shot out of the gate, beat five others inside him to the lead around the first turn, and continued on to defeat 6/5 favorite Hard Count in a head-bob at the wire after a heart-pounding stretch battle. The $13,000 OBS June 2-year-old earned (1) a check of $21,400 for owner/trainer Dennis Manning, (2) a juicy breeder’s award for the Barbazons, (3) decimated the tote board to the tune of $164.60, $44.60 and $20.20, and (4) became winner No.17 for Handsome Mike this year.

Sixty-six years after the movie, it was definitely ‘a day to remember.’

For the first six starts of her career, Renzo A. Bontempo’s Spiced Rum Punch raced once a month in South Florida for trainer Marcus Vitali with one second-place finish to show for her efforts. The 4-year-old daughter of Treasure Beach then went to the sidelines for more than six months, returning at Gulfstream Park yesterday for a race at “about” 7 1/2 furlongs on the turf, and now in the barn of Kathy Mongeon.

Whatever transpired during the vacation worked wonders, because Spiced Rum Punch looked like a new horse under Cristian Torres, sprinting to the finish line two lengths in front. She broke first, but Torres took her back to fifth, about five lengths off the pace heading down the backstretch. When he let her loose coming to the turn, Spiced Rum Punch inhaled the leaders while three wide en route to her maiden-breaking victory, worth $11,600 to her owner.

Treasure Beach now has 27 winners in 2019 and is $80,000 away from his second straight million-dollar season.