Turf News

After kicking off her career with a second and two thirds in her first three starts, Naughty Me now sports a two-race winning streak. The daughter of Handsome Mike bred by Beth Bayer turned in a powerful performance last night in a $44,000 allowance optional claiming race at Delta Downs.

Leaving from post position No. 5, Rohan Singh settled the filly into a comfortable fourth heading down the backstretch in the seven-furlong test. He moved her up on the outside after the half, and Naughty Me gobbled up the leaders, taking over at the top of the stretch. She coasted home by one length, collected a check for $22,200, and boosted her earnings to $55,100, best among Handsome Mike’s runners.

Handsome Mike is all alone in second place on the Florida freshman sire list after the maiden victory of J’s Handsome Fana at Tampa Bay Downs yesterday. The filly bred by Faraway Farm enjoyed a dream rail trip under Ronnie Allen Jr. in the race that came off the grass, scoring by 2 1/4 lengths and becoming winner No. 9 for her sire.

In her fourth try, J’s Handsome Fana lit up the tote board with a payoff of $33.20 and earned a check of $7,860 for owner Ralph E. Whitney. My Little Rosy, another daughter of Handsome Mike, missed getting third by half a length at odds of 91-1.

As the year 2018 has progressed, Treasure Beach has sired winners at such venues as Belmont Park, Gulfstream Park, Gulfstream West, Monmouth Park, Tampa Bay Downs, Finger Lakes and several tracks in Argentina. Yesterday, the son of Galileo added Turf Paradise to the list when Thirty Seconds Out broke his maiden racing six furlongs under veteran Scott Stevens.

The 2-year-old gelding owned and bred by Carl and Sherry Walker shot right to the lead and continued on to a wire-to-wire score, winning by three-quarters of a length in 1:11.71 and paying $4.40 as favorite (he had been second by a neck in his previous try). Thirty Seconds Out became winner No. 30 this year for Treasure Beach, whose progeny earnings are approaching $1.3 million. 

At San Isidro in Argentina, where runners by Treasure Beach have enjoyed great success this year, Mirta finished second in the Gr. I Copa de Plata-Roberto Vasquez Mansilla Internacional, earning a check for $14,472.  

Treasure Beach’s runners continue to excel on the grass and Tigerbeach added to the record in the first race at Gulfstream Park yesterday. With Luis Saez in the irons, the 3-year-old stakes-placed gelding posted a sharp wire-to-wire performance, never being threatened throughout the 7 1/2-furlong trip and scoring by 3 1/4 comfortable lengths.

Tigerbeach earned $14,700 for the victory and boosted his earnings to $83,527 on a record of 3-4-2 in 14 starts. The gelding bred by John C. Pereira has been worse than fourth just twice. 

It isn’t often that a first-time starter trained by Mark Casse and ridden by Paco Lopez goes to the post at odds of 53-1. But it happened yesterday with What a Beaut, a 2-year-old Beau Choix filly bred by Linda Evans who turned in one of the most awesome performances at Gulfstream Park in recent memory. 

Racing in a $60,000 maiden special at the distance of “about” 7 1/2 furlongs over the turf course, Lopez broke What a Beaut smartly from the No. 10 post and quickly had her settled in third on the rail. She moved up on the inside along the backstretch and went up to battle 3/2 favorite Hidden Facts as they turned into the lane. The stretch battle ended when What a Beaut edged away in the final yards to score by a neck. 

What made the victory more significant, other than the win price of $109, was that she finished in 1:27.92, just 28/100ths of a second off Bow Tie Affair’s course record of 1:27.64. What a Beaut became the fourth winner from eight starters for Beau Choix, and collected a check of $24,000 for owner Gary Barber. 

Trainer Kathleen O’Connell and jockey Daniel Centeno combined to give Treasure Beach his 29th winner of 2018 yesterday, Paradise Island scoring a comfortable victory over the lush turf course at Tampa Bay Downs. Centeno settled the 3-year-old in just behind the leaders, swung him three wide on the turn, and the gelding who had broken his maiden at Saratoga drew off to score by nearly two lengths. Paradise Island was clocked in 1:36.81 for the mile, paying $9.40 and earning a check of $8,150 plus a breeders’ award for Debora C. Morgan. He boosted his earnings to $61,530, while Treasure Beach’s progeny earnings for the year jumped to $1,229,943.

Handsome Mike is in second place by himself with eight winners on the Florida freshman sire list after the eye-catching wire-to-wire performance of Notcho Daddy at Tampa Bay Downs yesterday. The colt bred by Joe and Helen Barbazon was making his career debut at seven furlongs with Jose Ferrer and was sent off at odds of 3-1. 

Ferrer shot Notcho Daddy out of the gate from the No. 9 post and the colt did the rest, opening up by daylight coming to the turn, and increasing the margin to seven lengths in mid-stretch. He coasted home in 1:25.53 and collected a check for $8,690, plus another breeders’ award for the Barbazons. Handsome Mike is two winners from the Florida lead with 30 days remaining to narrow the gap.

Four was the optimum post position yesterday as Handsome Mike picked up two impressive maiden winners and lifted his total to seven, good for a tie for second among Florida’s freshman sires.

At Gulfstream West, Gran Greyfrost left from No. 4 and received the perfect stalking ride from Emisael Jaramillo, who settled the colt into mid-pack along the rail early in the mile race on the grass. Jaramillo slipped him through on the inside down the backstretch, went after the leader on the turn, and after a long, two-horse battle down the lane, the Handsome Mike colt proved best by a neck. Gran Greyfrost, who was sent off as the 9/5 favorite, collected a check of $23,650, plus a breeders’ award for Pleasant Acres’ owners Joe and Helen Barbazon. 

From her No. 4 post at Delta Downs, Naughty Me shot to the lead under Rohan Singh and led every step of the way in the 7 1/2-furlong maiden special. When challenged at the top of the stretch, she drew off with authority and won by nearly four lengths. The filly bred by Beth Bayer paid $7.40 as favorite and earned $21,000 for her strong performance. 

 Gulfstream West’s Millions Preview program resulted in a pair of Pleasant Acres’ stallions gaining stakes-placed runners yesterday, Decorated Ace finishing a fast-closing second in the $75,000 Juvenile Fillies Turf and Lucky Mike doing likewise in the $75,000 Juvenile Turf. 

Decorated Ace, who had broken her maiden while winning the Sorority at Monmouth Park in September, sat a comfortable tracking fourth down the backstretch in the one-mile Juvenile Fillies. Samy Camacho guided her between horses on the turn and she closed with a rush, falling one-half length short at the wire. The Treasure Beach filly bred by Joe and Helen Barbazon earned a check for $14,400, raising her bank account for her first season to $65,500. 

Lucky Mike became the first stakes-placed runner for freshman sire Handsome Mike, despite an erratic run through the stretch with Hector Berrios. The colt came into the Juvenile Turf with just one fourth-place finish under his belt and sat within hailing distance until the turn. Berrios moved off the rail heading into the stretch but Lucky Mike suddenly ducked back to the inside under a right-handed whip. He was making up ground with every stride when Berrios hit him several times with a left-handed whip. Lucky Mike veered out to the four or five path, fortunately with none of his rivals in his way. A strong late run moved him into second just before the wire, one length behind the winner, good for a check of $14,550.

There were eight races on the  Gulfstream West program yesterday – and a colt and two fillies by Treasure Beach won 37.5 percent of them. That included all three contested over the turf course.

It began in the fourth race, where Venezuelan Forever won her second in a row with Paco Lopez in the irons. The 3-year-old filly sat second for much of the 1 1/16th-mile trip, and when Paco urged her on the turn, she edged away in the stretch to win by 1 1/2 lengths. The Orlyana Farm-bred filly is 3-1-1 in 11 starts and the winner’s check of $11,600 raised her earnings to $53,580. 

Two races later, Paco was at it again at a flat mile with Ambassador Jim, who mirrored Venezuelan Forever’s stalking trip and put away the 3/5 favorite down the lane to score by 2 1/4 lengths. The 3-year-old colt collected a check of $25,200 for owner/breeder Patricia Generazio and his bank account soared to $128,112 on a record of 2-3-1 in 11 starts. 

Another two races later, it was Emisael Jaramillo who took the third leg of the Treasure Beach trilogy with Gia Lia Joe. The 3-year-old filly bred by Jorge Tabraue and Jorge Herrera had just broken her maiden – by 1 1/2 lengths – on Oct. 24, and made it two straight with a good rail trip and a 2 1/2-length victory worth $11,600. 

The trio of winners added $48,400 to Treasure Beach’s 2018 progeny earnings, which jumped to $1,134,634. A $2 win parlay on Venezuelan Forever ($6), Ambassador Jim ($11) and Gia Lia Joe ($15.20) brought back a tidy $250.80.