Bernie Dickman

Besides the first letter of their names, there were many similarities between the victories of Latch the Hatch and Lido Beach heading into the weekend at Gulfstream Park.

Both are by Curlin’s Honor, both are 3-year-olds, both won at 5 1/2 furlongs with very similar clockings, both came out of the OBS October sale, both paid $4.80 and both were bred by men with John in their name.

Latch the Hatch, a gelding bred by John B. Penn, went wire-to-wire under Edwin Gonzalez in a $57,000 allowance optional claimer over the main track, clocked in 1:04.57. He put up fractions of :22.50, :45.27 and :57.81 en route to a 4 1/4-length score and picked up a check for $33,600, increasing his lifetime earnings to $$133,790 on a record of 3-2-1 in eight starts. His Equibase ‘E’ speed figure of 92 is his best.

Lido Beach, a filly bred by David John Osterhoit, raced in mid-pack with Cipriano Gil, made a 5-wide rally turning into the stretch and was up by a neck in 1:05.03. It was her first victory in three starts and was worth $22,500.

Lennilu didn’t lose any of her luster traveling across the sea despite losing her unbeaten status, finishing third in Royal Ascot’s Group II Queen Mary Stakes with its purse of 110,000 euros.

Luis Saez made the trip to UK with the 2-year-old Leinster filly bred by Joe and Helen Barbazon, and she finished less than two lengths behind winner True Love, and half a length behind runner-up Flowerhead. She beat 22 others (not a typo) in the process in the cavalry charge at five furlongs.

Third was worth $21,674 to Lennilu’s eight owners and increased her earnings for three races to $103,289. A $23,000 OBS Winter yearling, she had previously won a maiden special, followed by a victory in the Royal Palm Juvenile Stakes at Gulfstream Park.

Honor That Dude was off to a slow start as a 2-year-old, but he’s making up for it at three in Louisiana. The Curlin’s Honor gelding could only muster up a second and a third in seven 2024 races, but this season, after a mammoth winning race at Evangeline Downs, he’s 3-1-0 in his last seven.

C. J. McMahon was aboard for Honor That Dude’s latest, which went at seven furlongs over the main track. The $10,000 OBS October yearling bred by Maverick Stables battled through the first quarter, took over by himself at the half, then sprinted away from the field and won by an eye-popping 12 3/4 lengths. His clocking of 1:24.01 was just two seconds off the track record.

The Louisiana-bred gelding paid $2.40 and earned a check of $7,800 for owner/trainer Justin Jeansonne, boosting his total to $46,550, with $37,250 coming this year.

Way up north at Parx Racing, the Curlin’s Honor 3-year-old filly J J’s Honor went wire-to-wire to break her maiden under Eliseo Ruiz in her ninth start, also at seven furlongs. A $37,000 OBS 2023 Winter Mixed purchase bred by Sharon J. and Thomas R. Equi, J J’s Honor won by five lengths in 1:26.73 and collected $11,400.

Neolithic picked up two more winners, Poiema at Gulfstream Park and Mr Ramirez at Evangeline Downs, and he now has 29 from 60 starters this year, a 48.3 percentage.

POIEMA – The 6-year-old mare bred by Cheryl and James Maguire has turned out to be a major bargain. She was a $14,000 OBS June 2-year-old, and the winner’s share of her first victory of 2025 – $23,600 – boosted her career total to $300,913, third highest of all Neolithic runners.

Eddie Perez was in the irons for the $40,000 starter allowance at six furlongs, and he put Poiema on the lead early. She held her rivals at bay via fractions of :22.61, :45.18, and :57.53 before crossing the finish line 1 1/4 lengths in front in 1:10.67, and paying $5.20. She’s now 6-7-4 in 32 starts.

MR RAMIREZ – The 4-year-old colt is another bred by the ultra-successful partnership of Joe and Helen Barbazon, Ed Seltzer and Beverly Anderson. Jose Rodriguez had him close to the early pace down the backstretch before making a strong late run to win by two lengths. Coming off second and third-place finishes, he went off at 7/5 and paid $4.80, clocked in 1:25.44 for the seven furlongs, while earning a check for $6,600. His 75 Equibase ‘E’ speed figure is best of his 11-race career.

The two victories pushed Neolithic over $1.3 million in 2025 progeny earnings.

Neolithic’s 27th winner of 2025 is Loana, a 5-year-old mare bred in Pennsylvania by Mary K. Haire. With Elvin Gonzalez aboard in a race at one mile and 70 yards at Prairie Meadows, the $65,000 Timonium yearling sat comfortably in the two path early, following a slow pace up front.

After a crawling half mile in :51.08, Loana went up for the lead on the turn, cruised by the leader in the stretch and drew off to win by 3 1/4 lengths, clocked in 1:44.93. She paid $3.40 and earned a check for $10,980, increasing her lifetime total to $126,974. In 23 starts, she’s compiled a record of 4-3-5.

Neolithic runners have made 1,321 starts, and they have finished first, second or third in 44.7 percent of those races.

The $100,000 Jersey Derby scheduled for one mile on the turf at Monmouth Park turned out to be a boon for three owners after heavy rain caused a switch to the main track and five other owners opted to scratch.

One of the three remaining was Quizler, a 3-year-old colt by Curlin’s Honor bred by SFC (Belinda Kitos) who took the lead at the break with Isaac Castillo, held it for three-quarters of a mile, then tired late over the sloppy track and finished third. A $15,000 OBS June graduate, Quizler earned a check for $10,000, raising his total to $89,020, with $74,940 coming this year. His record is 2-3-2 in nine starts.

Just Trust Me is the first runner for Bodexpress to rack up five victories, winning No. 5 in the $24,800 Fancy as Overnight Stakes at Assiniboia Downs in Manitoba.

It was the third in a row for the 3-year old bred in California by Richard Barton Enterprises, after the colt shipped to Canada from Turf Paradise. Antonio Whitehall was aboard Just Trust Me, who proved to be a ton the best in the five-furlong race, winning by five lengths in 1:00.76. He boosted his record to 5-4-1 in 14 starts, and his earnings to $118,391, and he’s one of four runners by Bodexpress to pass the $100,000 mark.

He paid the unbelievable prices of $2.10, $2.10, $2.10 across the board.

After four uneventful tries at Oaklawn Park, Ranch Rebel shipped to Prairie Meadows and was successful in her first outing there. The 3-year-old filly became Gunnevera’s eighth winner of 2025 with a smart wire-to-wire performance under Ken Tohill.

At odds of 6-1, Ranch Rebel put up fractions of :22.70, :46.21 and :58.92, and drew off with authority in the lane to score by 4 1/4 widening lengths with a clocking of 1:12.72 for the six furlongs. The filly bred by Watershed Bloodstock paid $14.40 and earned a check for $7,200.

Dancing N Dixie didn’t receive any publicity when she sold for $35,000 at the 2023 OBS June Sale, but she’s more than made up for it two years later. The 4-year-old filly by Neolithic is her sire’s leading money-winner, and she added to her bank account with a sharp second-place finish in the $75,000 Powder Break Stakes at Gulfstream Park.

With Miguel Vasquez aboard, Dancing N Dixie was seventh early in the field of 10 racing one mile over the turf course. When Vasquez got her in gear, the filly bred by the late former NFL player Freddie Hyatt made her patented strong late run, but she ran out of ground and fell just short of Lets Go Koko by half a length in a clocking of 1:33.51. Dancing N Dixie earned a runner-up check of $14,250 for the partnership of Gary Barber, Jackie Ventura and LEMB Stables, raising her career total to $404,800.

Stonecold Reaction contributed $11,400 to Neolithic’s earnings ($1,230,790) with a head victory in a 5 1/2-length test that was switched from the grass to the main track at Monmouth Park. With Paco Lopez in the saddle, the 3-year-old colt stalked the pace until the turn, rallied between horses in the stretch and was up at the wire in 1:06.05. It was Stonecold’s first victory in four starts and was worth $7.80 at the windows. The $18,000 OBS December purchase became Neolithic’s 26th winner of 2025, third most of all Florida sires.

Blue Casanova broke his maiden at Gulfstream Park on Sunday in his sixth start, a $56,000 maiden special, giving Neolithic his 25th winner of 2025; last season he had 50 when the year ended. Neolithic’s runners have made 205 starts thus far this year and they have accounted for 93 in-the-money finishes, 37 of them victories.

Richard Bracho was in the irons aboard Blue Casanova, who started from the No. 6 post in the race at 1 1/8 miles over the Tapeta surface. The 3-year-old colt was off fourth about three lengths off the lead heading down the backstretch, and Bracho moved him up on the rail right behind the two leaders coming to the turn. He swung the colt off the inside at the top of the stretch, split two rivals and proved best by one length in the run to the wire, clocked in 1:51.89.

Blue Casanova paid $7.00 and earned a check of $33,000 for owner/breeder Rolling Meadows Farm.