Turf News

Blissful Change became the 30th winner for Treasure Beach this year, and his first 2-year-old winner, with an eye-opening performance yesterday in a $36,000 maiden special at Indiana Grand.

The filly bred by Joe and Helen Barbazon, Ed Seltzer and Beverly Anderson was making just her second start after selling for $25,000 at the OBS March sale. Originally scheduled for one mile on the grass, the race was switched to the main track at a mile and 70 yards. Blissful Change broke on top with DeShawn Parker but she quickly dropped back to second and was content to push the leader down the backstretch.

Parker sent her up to take the lead turning for home, and she rebuffed a minor challenge from 7/5 favorite Pharoah’s Gold before drawing off with authority down the lane, winning by 9 1/4 widening lengths.

Blissful Change was clocked in 1:44.1, paid $6.20, and put $18,600 in the bank, which boosted Treasure Beach’s earnings to $839,343 as he continues his climb up the Florida general sire list; he’s now just $20,000 behind Big Drama for sixth place.

By the margins of a nose, a neck and 1 1/4 lengths, Aug. 8, 2020 will always be remembered at Pleasant Acres Stallions as the day Handsome Mike missed having his greatest day as a sire.

Here’s the timeline:

1st race, Gulfstream Park: Circle 8 Ranch’s 2-year-old filly Yafa makes her second career start in a $65,000 maiden special at one mile on the grass. She steps in the gate with Ronnie Allen Jr. at odds of 21-1, but drops to 13-1 soon after the race begins. She sits a good trip along the inside and makes a monster run down the lane only to miss by a neck. Yafa pays $13.40 to place and $7.80 to show and earns a check for $11,600.

2nd race, Delaware Park: La Flamenca sits second all the way under Robbie Albarado Jr. and finishes there by 1 1/4 lengths. The 3-year-old filly collects a check for $3,200 and is now 2-3-3 in 16 starts with earnings of $44,390.

6th race, Delaware Park: John’s Promise goes wire-to-wire at 5 1/2 furlongs with Raul Mena, putting up early fractions of :22.16 and :46.34. The 4-year-old gelding gets his second career victory, pays $9.40 and earns $9,000.

7th race, Gulfstream: Sir Seamus shoots out of the gate from the No. 9 post in an allowance optional claimer at a flat mile on the turf with Samy Camacho in the irons. The 4-year-old gelding bred by Joe and Helen Barbazon is four lengths in front at the quarter and the half, and by two turning for home. He outgames two fast-closing rivals to win by a nose, even though announcer Pete Aiello calls Til the End as the winner. Sir Seamus has won three in a row and four of his last five, and the $13,000 check for his fifth career victory boosts his total to $104,840.

9th race, Gulfstream: In a field of seven in the $100,000 Martha Washington Stakes at one mile on the turf, Blue Mistress is the longest price on the board at 18-1 even though she finished third in the Portofino Bay Stakes in her previous start. The other six fillies are all 6-1 or lower. Marcos Meneses fires her out of the gate and the 3-year-old filly bred by the Barbazons and trained by nephew Lester Barbazon III is eight lengths in front at the quarter. The field predictably cuts into her margin, but she’s still in front by a length as they begin the run down the stretch. She holds on gamely, but is nailed by Lucky Polly on the last jump. It takes about two minutes for the placing judges to decide the winner, and the photo shows Blue Mistress lost by an inch of becoming her sire’s first stakes-winner.

Blue Mistress collects $19,600 for second, and the five finishes are worth $72,100 to Handsome Mike’s progeny earnings, which jump to $751,154. He moves from 11th to ninth on Florida’s sire list, right behind Treasure Beach and The Big Beast.

Sydney’s Treasure started just three times as a 2-year-old last year, and her best effort was a third in her final start on Oct. 2. She then spent more than 10 months on the sidelines, making her return yesterday in a one-mile turf race at Arlington Park.

Sharp handicappers who picked up on her 47-flat breeze for four furlongs at Arlington bet her down to 5/2, and they were rewarded with a maiden-breaking victory and a $7 payoff.

Jareth Loveberry sent Sydney’s Treasure out quickly and she settled in third on the rail around the first turn. After stalking the pace two lengths off the leaders down the backstretch, Loveberry slipped her through on the inside coming to the final turn and the Indiana-bred daughter of Treasure Beach was in front as they hit the stretch. She held off Wildwood Maggie by 1 1/4 lengths and earned a check of $7,500 for Richard Ravin, her co-breeder, and Patricia’s Hope LLC.

Sydney’s Treasure is Treasure Beach’s 29th winner this year and her payday increased his progeny earnings to $801,361.

More Than Striking left the big time – Saratoga – and headed a little further north yesterday for the softer competition at Finger Lakes, resulting in the second career victory for the 4-year-old Handsome Mike gelding.

With Luis Perez in the saddle, More Than Striking broke third in the 5 1/2-furlong race, but rushed up to take the lead as they passed the quarter in a quick :22.48. He led the rest of the way, and had it all to himself from the top of the stretch to the wire, scoring by 4 1/2 lengths and paying $5.10 as the second choice.

More Than Striking became the 27th winner for Handsome Mike this season, earning a check for $6,000.

Decorated Ace looked like her old self yesterday, winning an allowance optional claimer on the grass at Lone Star Park and putting Treasure Beach in position to pass the $800,000 mark in progeny earnings for 2020.

In making it to the winner’s circle for the first time this year, the 4-year-old filly became Treasure Beach’s 28th winner and earned a check for $25,368, boosting her total to $178,481 and her sire’s to $793,686. Decorated Ace, bred by Joe and Helen Barbazon, now sports a record of 4-3-3 in 19 tries.

Lane Luzzi hustled Decorated Ace away in fifth place along the rail in the 7 1/2-furlong turf race, and she remained there with a bead on the leaders down the backstretch. On the turn for home, Luzzi took her between horses and at the top of the stretch, there were no less than six with a legitimate chance to win. In deep stretch, however, it was just Decorated Ace and Love on Tides and the Treasure Beach filly proved best, winning by one-half length and paying $16.

In her last start on July 20, Carletta led every step of the way but the last, and missed breaking her maiden by a head. At Louisiana Downs yesterday, the 4-year-old Handsome Mike filly made sure there would be no repeat of that result.

With Emanuel Nieves aboard, 1/2 Carletta shot to the lead at the break in the 5 1/2-furlong race and opened up by two lengths after a quarter, four after three-eighths, and six in the stretch before extending it to 11 at the wire without working up a sweat. She became winner No. 26 for Handsome Mike this year and the victory was worth $5,100 to owner/breeder Carl Helmandollar.

It only took a switch from the all-weather track to the turf course at Golden Gate Fields for Galileta to break her maiden yesterday in her third try as a 3-year-old.

The filly by Amira’s Prince had posted two mediocre performances on the all-weather before she turned it around with David Lopez taking her wire-to-wire in a $27,350 maiden special at five furlongs on the grass.

Galileta broke on top from the rail and encountered just one brief challenge on the backstretch from a 40-1 shot. She was never threatened the rest of the way after putting up blazing fractions of :21.40 and :45.03, and sailed to the wire four lengths in front. In mid-stretch, when she led by five, announcer Matt Dinerman bellowed, “Nobody is catching Galileta – she surely loved the turf being by that turf router Amira’s Prince.”

The filly bred by Charles and Maritza Weston became her sire’s 10th winner this year from 17 starters for a percentage of 59, best among the top 25 Florida stallions. The victory was worth $15,600, and her final clocking of :57.06 was less than two seconds off the 14-year-old course record.

Treasure Beach’s July surge made it out to Del Mar yesterday, where lightly-raced Cajun Treasure won at a mile on the grass carrying 125 pounds, hopefully free of the physical problems he no doubt has suffered from since he was purchased for $250,000 at the 2017 OBS April sale.

After his purchase, Cajun Treasure didn’t race at two, and only went to the post three times as a 3-year-old. After a break of seven months, he came back to race five times at four in 2019, winning once, then was off for 10 months before returning for two off-the-board preps at Santa Anita this season.

The now 5-year-old gelding didn’t look anything like a horse with problems yesterday. Umberto Rispoli took him out quickly from the No. 1 post and he settled in fourth along the rail down the backstretch. Rispoli urged him forward heading to the turn and when they reached the top of the stretch, the field was so bunched up that any of seven were in position to win it. But Cajun Treasure proved to be the best of the lot, prevailing by one-half length over Honos Man, both of whom went off at 3-1.

Cajun Treasure completed the mile in a solid 1:34.97, becoming winner No. 27 for Treasure Beach this year. He earned a check for $13,800, raising his career total to $82,462, and Treasure Beach moved up a notch to seventh place on Florida’s leading sire list with earnings of $755,978.

After winning her final two races at Tampa Bay Downs, then adding No. 3 following a trip to Delaware Park, Sugar Fix went further north and made it four in a row yesterday with a stylish victory at Saratoga, the premier racetrack in North America.

The 3-year-old Treasure Beach filly is in the midst of a rare streak after she was able to muster up just one second-place finish in her first four starts. Since breaking her maiden at Tampa on Jan. 22, Sugar Fix has rolled up a record of 6-2-0 in eight tries and her earnings have increased to $110,868.

The filly bred by Ballybrit Stable ran in her breeder’s colors for her first nine starts before she was claimed away for a bargain $20,000 at Tampa on May 2. Yesterday, after a wire-to-wire beauty on the grass at the Spa under Jose Ortiz, which she won by 2 3/4 lengths and collected $34,100, Sugar Fix was taken again, this time for $40,000 by trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. on behalf of the Mad Dog Racing Stable.

Treasure Beach has had five U. S. winners in the last seven days and with progeny earnings of $741,678, he’s less than $4,000 short of seventh place on Florida’s sire list. In addition, the Argentinian-bred 3-year-old filly, Moya Beach, broke her maiden at Hipodromo De Monterrico in Peru.

Somebody with a bulging wallet must really like runners by Handsome Mike. Two weeks ago, at Delaware Park, La Flamenca was 5-1 on the tote board going to the gate and when she crossed the finish line in front her odds had plummeted to 5/2.

At Evangeline Downs last night it was more of the same. The 4-year-old Handsome Mike filly Keep America Great was seeking her first victory in her fourth start in a five-furlong main track race that was originally scheduled for the turf. Diego Saenz hustled her out of the gate and she took the lead going to the first quarter, which she passed in :22.92. She then opened a daylight lead, and midway on the turn, as Keep America Great continued to draw off from the field, her odds suddenly dropped to 2-1.

With Saenz hand-riding the entire length of the stretch, Keep America Great won by 5 3/4 lengths, paid $6.60, and became Handsome Mike’s 25th winner this year. The $12,600 first prize moved her sire up one spot into 11th place on Florida’s general sire list.