Turf News

The fireworks provided by Pleasant Acres stallions on July 4 paled in comparison to the encore performance the next day by a Handsome Mike colt at Gulfstream Park.

South Pass had debuted on June 8 under Ronald Ordonez and pretty much showed little interest, lounging around in mid-pack and finishing there – at odds of 25-1. That effort wasn’t lost on the wagering public, and when the 3-year-old went to the post for his second try, this one at 5 furlongs with new rider Jeffrey Sanchez, the tote board read 50-1.

Sanchez employed a different tactic, sending South Pass right out for the lead, and the colt fought off several challenges along the way. That included turning away even-money favorite Drill Down Dude down the lane and going on to win by 1 1/4 lengths. The maiden victory, accomplished in :58.88, was worth $10,400 to owner/breeder Just For Fun Stable, plus a breeder’s award, at the same time rewarding the betting faithful to the tune of $115.20, and giving Handsome Mike his 14th winner of 2019.

Runners by Treasure Beach and Handsome Mike joined in the July 4th celebration with impressive performances, the former getting his first 2-year-old winner of 2019, and the latter getting his 13th winner in his second crop.

Venerate, a gelding making his first career start racing five furlongs at Gulfstream Park, left from the rail with Luca Panici and sat fourth through the first quarter, which went in :21.81. Panici moved him up on the inside on the turn, then sent him between two rivals and Venerate responded with a strong run through the stretch to score by two lengths in :58.04. The gelding bred by Adam and Suzette Parker and Leverett and Linda Miller earned a check for $26,400 and is Treasure Beach’s 24th winner.

At Evangeline Downs, Handsome Girl’s victory was accomplished much like Venerate’s, only at a distance of 7 1/2 furlongs on the grass. The 3-year-old filly bred by Ponder Hill trailed the field in seventh place down the backstretch, quickly closed a five-length gap on the turn, came between horses at the top of the stretch and blew by the leaders passing the eighth pole to win going away. She paid $6.60 and collected a check for $6,900.

Another Treasure Beach runner got to appear front and center yesterday on Gulfstream Park’s simulcast of the races from San Isidro in Argentina, and what a performance she turned in – at a price of 26-1.

Silver Beach is a 4-year-old roan filly owned by Dona Pepa and trained by Miguel Alfaro, who had to endure a 17-race wait until the final race on the card. The wait was well worth it. With Emanuel Cabrera aboard from post 11 in the race at 1,300 meters, Silver Beach was slammed leaving the gate by the filly to her left and wound up last in a field of 16. She remained there until the final turn, some 15 lengths behind the leaders, when Cabrera revved her up between horses and Silver Beach began to roll.

Splitting horses down the interminably long stretch, she quickly made up chunks of ground, but an eighth of a mile out it still appeared that she had no chance to even finish in the top three. However, she never gave up and closed the last five lengths like a jet, getting up to win by a long neck.

When the result became official, the tote board lit up all the way to Buenos Aires, with Silver Beach paying $55.80, $24.80 and $20.40. With long shot Arilou second and paying $45 and $29.20, the $2 exacta came back $1,182. No one tabbed the first three in the 50-cent trifecta, and an 11-6-all paid $1,256.

Gulfstream Park’s handicappers are not getting rich wagering on Beau Trace. After breaking his maiden by 2 1/4 lengths at odds of 1/5 on June 2, the 3-year-old Beau Choix colt came right back to start the second half of the 2019 season by making it two straight, this time at 2/5.

Tyler Gaffalione was aboard Beau Trace, who stalked the pace in third down the backstretch in the one-mile test. Gaffalione sent him after the lead heading for the turn, and entering the stretch it appeared as though he didn’t have enough to catch Lawyer Drill. But Beau Trace dug in and gamely out-fought the pacesetter to the wire to win by a neck.

The colt bred by Oliver B. Brooks Jr. is 2-1-1-3 in nine starts and the $13,500 winner’s check brought his earnings to $51,930.

While other horses in the field had difficulties leaving the gate in the seventh race at Tampa Bay Downs yesterday, Rhombus experienced no such problems, and the son of Treasure Beach broke second in the six-furlong maiden race. In a matter of seconds, however, Wesley Henry shot him through on the inside to take the lead before the first quarter, and the 4-year-old gelding never looked back.

Rhombus quickly opened up by daylight, was never threatened thereafter, and made it to the wire 3 1/2 lengths in front of 3/5 favorite Red Carats. While becoming Treasure Beach’s 23rd winner this year, he paid $17.80, and earned a check for $7,250 plus a breeder’s award for Debora Corral Morgan.

Treasure Beach also had a Gr. I winner winner in Argentina over the weekend when La Renoleta won the Gran Premio Estrellas Distaff at Hipodromo Argentino De Palermo. The victory for the 3-year-old filly was worth $28,200.

La Renoleta’s score was the latest in a string of recent successes for the stallion in Argentina. Glorious Moment, a former Gr. III winner, finished second in the Gr. I Gran Premio 25 de Mayo at San Isidro; French Beach was second in the Gr. II Particula at San Isidro; Capo Beach, a 2-year-old colt, was third in the Manuel Anasgasti at San Isidro; Galileana broke her maiden at Hipodromo Argentina De Palermo, and Don Etanol won at San Isidro.

W W Handsome scored perhaps the most impressive victory by Handsome Mike’s runners this year when he ran away and hid while breaking his maiden in a one-mile race in the slop at Gulfstream Park yesterday.

The 3-year-old gelding bred by Joe and Helen Barbazon in partnership with Lansdowne, stalked pacesetter Jack City on the inside down the backstretch until Samy Camacho asked him on the turn and W W Handsome exploded into the lead in the matter of a few strides. He widened the margin so quickly that track announcer Pete Aiello called it five or six lengths, but the Racing Form chart says it was nine at the wire.

W W Handsome paid $11.20 in becoming Handsome Mike’s 12th winner of 2019, earning $9,000 for the effort.

Beach Dreaming made it two straight victories and three of her last five with a come-from-behind score on the Gulfstream Park grass yesterday.

With Leonel Reyes riding, the 4-year-old Kentucky-bred daughter of Treasure Beach sat a close-up trip behind the leaders down the backstretch, moved three wide on the turn, and proved to be much the best in the lane, winning by 2 1/4 lengths. The victory was worth $11,400 and raised Beach Dreaming’s career total to $51,670 on a record of 3-2-1 in nine starts.

The day before, Treasure Beach fans lost a rare chance to see one of the stallion’s Argentine runners compete when DRFBETs/Xpress Bet switched the simulcast of the day’s races from San Isidro to another South American track. They missed watching the 3-year-old colt Don Etanol winning the ninth race.

J’s Handsome Fana pulled the old ‘last-to-first’ trick with Ronnie Allen Jr. at Presque Isle Downs and Handsome Mike came away with his 11th winner this year.

Racing one mile and 70 yards, Allen settled the 3-year-old filly in seventh place for more than half a mile in the seven-horse field, and didn’t go after the leaders until making a four-wide move on the turn. J’s Handsome Fana remained wide heading down the lane, took the lead in mid-stretch and held off the closers to score by a neck. It was her first victory of 2019 and second of her career.

Since shipping to Belterra Park for her first try over the track on May 11, Nymue’s Treasure has become a noticeably different horse. In the short span of 44 days, the 4-year-old daughter of Treasure Beach has run up a record of 3-1-1 in five starts.

Her latest score came yesterday in a starter allowance at one mile and 70 yards and made it three straight for the filly bred by Ed Seltzer, Beverly Anderson and Joe and Helen Barbazon. With Sonny Leon aboard again, Nymue’s Treasure sat third down the backstretch, moved three wide on the turn, and took the lead heading into the lane. Midway down the stretch, she gave it up to My Dark Secret and appeared to be destined for second. But Leon never gave up on her and the filly responded gamely to re-take the lead, going on to win by one-half length.

Nymue’s Treasure paid a generous $8.40 and earned a check for $8,340. As a 4-year-old, she hasn’t finished worse than fourth, posting a record of 3-3-2-1 in nine starts.

Treasure Beach’s runners have continued to excel recently south of the border – in three countries. Capo Beach, a 2-year-old colt, finished third in the Manuel Anasagasti Stakes at San Isidro in Argentina; Indian Maharaja, a 3-year-old colt, won an allowance race at Hipodromo De Monterrico in Peru, and Idola Portena, a 3-year-old filly, won an allowance race at Maronas in Uruguay.

Handsome Mike added two more winners to his ledger over the weekend, Do What It Takes breaking her maiden at Monmouth Park and Saint Michael making it two victories in a row at Penn National.

Do What It Takes, a 3-year-old filly bred in New York by Joe and Helen Barbazon, was a $10,000 OBS April purchase last year. After finishing second in her previous start, she went off at even money in this six-furlong race.

She was bumped leaving the gate, then was rushed up by Reylu Gutierrez to take the lead going to the first quarter. Around the turn, Gutierrez gave up the lead to Breath of Dawn and Do What It Takes dropped back to second. But the rider never gave up, angling his filly out to mid-track for the stretch run, and she came again, going on to score by 2 1/4 lengths and becoming Handsome Mike’s 10th winner this year.

Saint Michael, bred by Jeannine Strauss McGinn, was consigned by Pleasant Acres to the OBS Winter Sale in 2017 and was purchased for $9,500 by long-time Ocala breeder Frank Bertolino, owner of Monarch Stables. After the colt broke his maiden, Bertolino lost him in a claim for $20,000.

In his new silks, Saint Michael won his last by six lengths, then made it two straight in Pennsylvania with a hard-fought victory by half a length, clocked in a quick 1:10.82 for the six furlongs. In winning for the third time in nine starts, he earned his highest ‘E’ rating on Equibase, an 86.