Mattingly 2nd in Royal Palm Juvenile in career debut

Bucchero’s first stakes-placed runner of 2023 is the 2-year-old Mattingly, who finished a solid second at odds of 9-1 in the $100,000 Royal Palm Juvenile at Gulfstream Park on Saturday, less than two months after he was purchased for $70,000 at the OBS March sale.

Mattingly broke sharply from the No. 8 post with Edgar Perez in the five-furlong turf race, and pushed pace-setter No Nay Mets through fractions of :21.98 and :45.44, but he was not able to threaten the leader in the stretch. In a clocking of :57.50, No Nay Mets was 3 1/2 lengths best, but Mattingly easily held the runner-up spot and collected a check for $21,120.