Tampa Bay Saturday Preview

Tampa Bay Downs has a 10-race card Saturday with the first scheduled post at 12:25 pm.

The first race is 1 1/16 miles on the dirt, and is for four-year olds and upward.  The purse is $12,700 and the claiming price is $6,250.

That race has a Super Hi-5 carryover of $6,494. It is a $1 minimum bet that requires picking the first five finishers in correct order.

The 2-1 morning line favorite is W W Concerto.  He has early speed, as do contenders Tinitus and Candy Waltz. Another win threat is Father Dennis, who likely will be gaining in the stretch.

  

The featured eighth race is a $22,500 conditional allowance for four–year-olds and upward going one mile on the turf.  There is an overflow of 11 colts and geldings entered, and a maximum of ten can start. Scheduled post time is 3:55 p.m.

The 9-5 morning-line favorite is Cite, a four-year old colt trained by William Holt and to be ridden by Daniel Centeno.  Other top contenders are Tether to Reality and Hardly Home.

Cite, a son of Blame, has not hit the board in his last four starts. But he has the highest Brisnet Prime Power rating and is dropping in class, after racing at tracks in Kentucky and at Gulfstream Park.

Hardly Home, another class dropper, has raced mostly in Maryland and is being shipped in from his Gulfstream Park training site for trainer Shug McGaughey.  Angel Cruz has the mount on the four-year-old gelded son of Hard Spun.

Tether to Reality is the wild card in the mix. Although he is five, the gelding is making just his second career start. 

He won his debut just over a month ago, on Jan. 6 at six furlongs on dirt at Tampa Bay. He took the lead after a half mile and won in the impressive time of 1:10.81. 

Trainer Joan Scott has given Victor Lebron the return mount on Tether to Reality, a son of Harlan’s Holiday. 

The sixth race, with a scheduled post of 2:55 p.m., is for fillies and mares four-years old and upward traveling one mile on the turf. It has an $18,700 purse and a claiming price of $16,000. 

Horses to keep an eye on include Electro Peg, D Wild Kiss, Goddess of Kip and Zouzou. 

We will be on site for Saturday’s racing. So as always please stay updated through our blog and out website for coverage throughout the day, and this weekend.

* Tampa Bay Downs will return to its stakes schedule next Saturday Feb. 11.

One of the day’s four stakes is the $250,000 Sam F. Davis (Grade 3) at 1 1/16 miles on dirt for 3-year-olds and up. It has been confirmed that McCraken, one of the top contenders for this year’s Kentucky Derby will run in the Sam F. Davis.

--Monique Welch