Sunday Preview: Jewel of a Cat Heads Stakes Field at Gulfstream

HorseracingFLA Staff Report

After taking on the boys, and beating them, the 5-year-old mare Jewel of Cat will return to the races this afternoon in a stakes restricted to distaff runners.

Jewel of a Cat, trained by Carlo Vaccarezza, is the probable favorite in the $75,000 Windley Key Stakes at Gulfstream Park. It is five furlongs on turf for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up.

Carlo Vaccarezza

The Windley Key is today’s third race with scheduled post of 1:35 p.m.

Gulfstream has a ten-race card with first post of 12:35 p.m. Six races are scheduled for turf, on a day when there is little prospect of rain.

In her most recent race, on Nov. 7, Jewel of a Cat defeated the 4-year-old filly Katie’s Kiss by three lengths in the $100,000 Millions Turf Sprint Preview. They were the only females among nine runners in the five-furlong turf stakes at Calder, the site of he Gulfstream Park West meet.

Paco Lopez rode Jewel of a Cat in the Nov. 7 race and has the mount today. He rode Jewel of a Cat in her only other Gulfstream start, a win in the five-furlong Ladies Turf Sprint this past Feb. 21.

Jewel of a Cat, owned by J and J Stables, has post seven and is the 3-1 morning line favorite among eight entrants.

She generally races on or near the lead, as does Silver Sashay the 7-2 second choice in the morning line,

Silver Sashay has a four-race win streak, all at five furlongs at Gulfstream. Three were on turf, and one was taken off turf due to rain.

However, the 5-yea-old Silver Sashay is less stakes-tested than Jewel of a Cat and has post three–inside of Jewel of a Cat.

Alfred McIntosh trains Silver Sashay, and Edgard Zayas has the mount.

Tesalina (Wesley Ward/Jose Valdivia Jr.) and Aquinnah (Javier Castellano/Jane Cibelli) could pose late-running threats.

* Tampa Bay Downs has ten races today, with first post at 12:28 p.m. Four races are scheduled for turf.


Sunday Preview: Jewel of a Cat Heads Stakes Field at Gulfstream