Turf News

Like As De Trebol before him, Learn has gained his first U. S. winner, a filly who scored in her second start at Gulfstream Park after beginning her career overseas. Learn Story made two starts in the Dominican Republic last year, winning a maiden race, then finishing third in an allowance test back on July 28.

After a layoff of five months, the 3-year-old filly showed up at Gulfstream on Jan. 1 and finished sixth after an eventful trip in which she was in contention before having to take up sharply through the stretch run. Yesterday, Learn Story had the services of talented Jose Ortiz, and she needed every bit of his expertise to prevail in the six-furlong race.

Despite being bumped at the break, Ortiz broke his filly on the lead and immediately began a battle inside Sky Run which continued all the way into the stretch. Learn Story began to open a little daylight, but Sky Run rallied and the two went nose to nose all the way to the finish, with Learn Story’s nose hitting the wire first, and she rewarded her backers with a payoff of $12.60. The victory was worth $12,600 and Learn Story is now 2-0-1 in four starts.

Ambassador Jim became Treasure Beach’s leading money-winner via a powerful performance in a $51,000 allowance race on the grass at Gulfstream Park yesterday. Paco Lopez broke the colt in mid-pack and settled him in fifth place on the rail down the backstretch of the 1 1/16th-mile test. Unable to find racing room on the turn, Lopez was content to wait until the top of the stretch, where he barreled through the middle of the field and won with speed to spare, reporting home by nearly two lengths for his third victory.

The $31,300 winner’s check for owner/breeder Patricia Generazio increased Ambassador Jim’s earnings to $160,662 and moved Treasure Beach into 10th place on Florida’s leading sire list for 2019. The son of Galileo has surpassed the $2 million mark in career progeny earnings.

Treasure Beach’s great success in Argentina also continues unabated. He gained two more winners on the same day last week, with the colt Milone and the filly Tapones de Punta both breaking their maiden at San Isidro.

As De Trebol is set to begin his first season at stud at Pleasant Acres, but the son of record-setting sire Tapit previously had six foals in the Dominican Republic. One of those foals has reached the races, a just-turned 3-year-old filly named Best Trebol, who won both her starts – a maiden race and an allowance – in July of last year at Quinto Centenario.

Best Trebol has since shipped to South Florida and has made it 3-for-3 with a sharp six-furlong performance at Gulfstream Park. Miguel Vasquez was aboard the filly for her U. S. debut, and the bettors sent her off at odds of 5-1. Despite being bumped at the break, Best Trebol sat in a contending position down the backstretch, went four wide on the turn, and proved to be much the best down the stretch, drawing off to score by 2 1/2 lengths.

Best Trebol paid $12.20 as fourth choice in a field of eight, earned a check for $12,600, and was claimed out of the race by Ron Paoluccio Racing and trainer Anthony Quartarolo.

When Gulfstream Park imports races from Argentina to be simulcast after the close of its own program on Sundays, bettors get a few chances to add to (or subtract from) their bankrolls. Followers of Treasure Beach sometimes get to see talented South American runners by the son of Galileo compete at San Isidro, where they enjoyed great success in 2018. Yesterday was one of those days.

The 13th race was for 4-year-old colts and fillies at a mile and a quarter on the grass, but no fillies showed up in the field of 10. Three sons of Treasure Beach did – Igual Estoy (7/2), who drew the No. 5 post, Emiterio (5-1) from No. 6, and Hidden Beach (5-1) from No. 9.

Igual Estoy took the lead at the outset and led by three to four lengths throughout, still enjoying three lengths on the final turn, with Emiterio sitting comfortably in third. When they hit the top of the stretch, jockey Cristian Velazquez slipped Emiterio through to take the lead on the inside and they continued on to win by a length for a payoff of $12.80, $4.20 and $4.40. Hidden Beach made a strong late run from way back under Eduardo Ortega Pavon and missed by a nose of making it a Treasure Beach exacta, paying $4.60 to show. Igual Estoy tired to be sixth.

Here Comes Jackie spent her first five starts running on the grass with a variety of jockeys aboard, and the best she accomplished was one second and one third. Yesterday at Gulfstream Park, two significant changes made the 3-year-old filly look like a different horse.

Michael Dini, owner and trainer of the daughter of Handsome Mike, made one change by putting Javier Castellano in the irons. The second change can be credited to Mother Nature, when rain caused a switch from the turf to the main track. The result was undeniable.

Castellano shot Here Comes Jackie to the lead in the $43,000 maiden special, then eased her back into third place, about four lengths behind the pacesetters. He remained there down the backstretch, moved her up coming to the turn, and swung her three wide approaching the stretch. From there, the filly bred by Joe and Helen Barbazon sprinted away from the field, and she was nearly three lengths in front at the end of seven furlongs. Here Comes Jackie is Handsome Mike’s second winner of 2019, collected a check of $25,800, and raised her earnings to $53,200.

Just five days after the Handsome Mike filly My Little Rosy blew up the Tampa Bay Downs tote board with a payoff of $84.40, a daughter of Treasure Beach thrilled the long shot players again yesterday, missing the epic payoff by a mere $1.

In her career debut, Raymundo’s Secret broke her maiden for JC Thoroughbreds and Joe Barbazon and paid $83.40 after a dazzling run on the turf with Carlos Lozada aboard. The 3-year-old filly broke well with the little-known rider and tracked pacesetter Take the Over for half a mile, the two opening up about a 12-length margin over the field. Raymundo’s Secret then went after her 3-1 rival coming to the final turn, swept past, and opened up by daylight in the stretch. She coasted home by what the Daily Racing Form said was six lengths, but it appeared to be more to the naked eye. The time for the mile was a solid 1:36.73.

Raymundo’s Secret, bred by Ed Seltzer, Beverly Anderson, and Joe and Helen Barbazon, became Treasure Beach’s third winner of 2019 and earned a check for $9,020. She helped boost her sire’s take for the first half of the month to $70,141, and Treasure Beach is less than $27,000 away from reaching $2 million in career progeny earnings. 

All it took for trainer Kenneth Westlye to change the fortunes of My Little Rosy – and the fortunes of her backers at the mutuel windows – was to change the surface she competes on. After five failed attempts at breaking her maiden on dirt tracks, the 3-year-old filly by Handsome Mike turned it all around yesterday on the lush turf course at Tampa Bay Downs. And the tote board exploded with her win price – $84.40.

Odilon Martinez, who had been aboard the filly in three of her five starts, shot My Little Rosy out of the gate and she took an easy lead in the 1 1/16th-mile test, posting quick early fractions of :22.74 and :47:67. She remained comfortably in front for the rest of the trip, finally holding on by one-half length in 1:44.80. Her first victory was worth $7,860 to owner Jose Ramirez plus a breeder’s award for Ponder Hill Inc. My Little Rosy became the first winner of 2019 for second-crop sire Handsome Mike.

Treasure Beach made it two winners in two days when Celtic Treasure proved to be way too much to handle in a mile and one-sixteenth race at Laurel Park yesterday. The 3-year-old gelding bred by Irish Eyes Stable jumped right to the lead under Victor Carrasco and never looked back. He put up quick early fractions of :23.28 and 46.96 and was never really threatened en route to a 6 1/4-length score in 1:43.94.

Off at 3/5 and paying $3.40, Celtic Treasure earned a check for $18,810 and raised Treasure Beach’s earnings in just five days to $53,272.

Sand Drift wasted little time getting Treasure Beach his first winner of 2019, coming from out of the clouds in a one-mile race over the Gulfstream Park grass yesterday to break her maiden in style. In just her second start, at odds of 21-1, the filly owned and bred by former FTBOA president Leverett Miller and his wife, Linda, was off slowly under Luca Panici, and was listed on the Daily Racing Form chart as being 12 1/2 lengths behind the leaders at the half. It looked like more to the naked eye.

Panici swung her five wide on the final turn and Sand Drift put it in overdrive, with announcer Pete Aiello bellowing, “Sand Drift is really rolling now.” She rolled past the pack as if the others were standing still and wound up with a 2 1/4-length victory and a check for $19,600 plus a breeders’ award for the Millers. In the first four days of the new year, Treasure Beach has already racked up $34,462 in progeny earnings.

A pair of solid winners at Tampa Bay Downs made for another super Saturday for Treasure Beach, as the stallion by Galileo reached two milestones. First, A Girls Bestfriend won the fourth race and became his sire’s 31st winner of 2018, then stakes-winner Decorated Ace captured the eighth race and vaulted Treasure Beach over the $1.3 million mark in progeny earnings with just two days left on the racing calendar.

A Girls Bestfriend was awarded victory in his second start after he set the pace for more than three-quarters in the mile and one-sixteenth grass race. While engaged in a tough stretch battle with Uncle Curly, his rival first came over and soundly bumped A Girls Bestfriend, then cut him off nearing the wire, and the gelding owned and bred by Endsley Farm lost all chance. The stewards studied the film for quite a while before disqualifying Uncle Curly, and A Girls Bestfriend earned $13,750 for the score.

Decorated Ace, winner of the Sorority at Monmouth Park earlier in the season, came from off the pace in the one-mile race on the turf and took the lead heading toward the wire. In a furious finish, she held on by a head to run her record to 2-1-1 in seven starts and her earnings to $79,250. The filly gave Joe and Helen Barbazon another breeders’ award, and the $13,750 winner’s check put Treasure Beach at $1,313,533 for the year, and more than $1.9 million for his first two crops.