GP Friday: Sister of Rachel Alexandra to Debut; Rainbow 6 Carryover is $415,368

The debut of the 2-year-old filly Gladys, a full  sister to 2009 Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra, and a Rainbow 6 carry that has grown to $415,638  loom as highlights for Friday at Gulfstream Park.

The Hallandale Beach, Fla., track will have ten races with first post of 12:00 p.m.

Conditions are listed as Fast  and Firm. The Weather Channel forecast is for the chance of rain to grow from 15 percent to 50 percent during racing hours.

The first race has a Super Hi-5 carryover of $5,304.

The Rainbow 6 is on races four to nine with the sequence scheduled to start at 1:50 p.m. 

We will have more details on the Rainbow 6 this afternoon on this blog.

Gladys, a daughter of Medaglia d’Oro is slated to break from the outside post position in a field of 10 2-year-old fillies assembled for a $65,000 six-furlong maiden special weight race carded as Race 6. Scheduled post is 2:50 p.m.

Gladys was named by owner/breeder Dede Mc Gehee, a graduate of the University of Florida’s College of Veterinary Medicine, in memory of her late maternal grandmother, Gladys Atkinson Houser.

Gladys is the eighth foal out of Lotta Kim, a daughter of Roar whose first foal was Rachel Alexandra, who was named 2009 Horse of the Year after winning five Grade 1 races in a row, including the Preakness, Haskell and Woodward against males and the Kentucky Oaks.

The Kentucky-bred Gladys, who is trained by Kelsey Danner, has been prepared for her debut with a series of 10 breezes at Palm Meadows, Gulfstream Park’s satellite training facility in Palm Beach County.

Angel Arroyo has the mount.

Medaglia d'Oro was a multiple graded stakes winner between 2002 and 2004. His wins included the 2004 Donn Handicap (Grade 1) at  1 1/8 miles on dirt at Gulfstream.

His stud fee for Gladys was $200,000 and it remains at that price

Medaglia d'Oro has sired approximately 25 Grade 1 winners.  Songbird, Plum Pretty, Violence and Msahwish are among them.

 

Queen Letizia is Our Pick in GP Finale

Thursday's ninth and last race at Gulfstream is a rematch of the second  through fifth place finishers in race with identical conditions three weeks ago at Gulfstream.

Scheduled post is 4:14 p.m.

Today's finale and the first race on Aug. 27 are both $12,500 maiden claimers at five furlongs on turf for fillies and mares 3-YO and up. Today's rematch, like the race three weeks ago, has twelve starters on a course listed as Firm.

The second through fifth place finishers (with today's program numbers in parentheses) were: Gravel Gertie (9), Queen Letizia (11), Flat Out Cool (5)  and Aunt Irene (1).

Flat Out Cool led until deep stretch, before being passed by More Diamonds.  That horse finished a length ahead of late-running Gravel Gertie with a time of 56.60 that produced  a weak Equibase Speed Figure of 60.

Queen Letizia and Aunt Irene also passed horses in the stretch. Second through fifth places were separated by 1 1/2 lengths.

We are going with the above four horses in an exacta box, along with three hedge bets. Queen Letizia is our pick to win. Cristian Torres has the return mount for trainer Victor Barboza Jr.

Two other fillies to consider are Our Little Devil (12) and Bend the Knee (10).

Our Little Devil is a daughter of Daredevil.  That horse also is the sire of Shedaresthedevil and Swiss Skydiver--the one-two finishers in the Kentucky Oaks (Grade 1) on Sept. 4.

Our Little Devil, trained by William Deaton, will probably contest Flat Out Cool for the lead. A key will be how fast Alberto Burgos, a seven-pound apprentice gets her into the first flight from the outside post.

Bend the Knee is shipping in from Evangeline in Louisiana, where she finished second at five furlongs on dirt. Trainer and co-owner Carl Deville has Edgard Zayas, the wins leader in the current Gulfstream meet, as rider.

Through three days of "Gettin' Out Alive" we have bet $75 with a return of $61.80.

Today's Bets

* $3 WPS    11

* $1 exacta box 1 5  9  11

$ 1 exacta box     5  9  11

*$1 exacta  part wheel

9 11  with    9 10 11  12

* $1 tri part wheel

9  11  with 9 11  with   1  5  10 12

--If post tine odds on Our Little Devil  are double digits we suggest putting some WPS money on her.

Gulfstrfeam Fast and Firm for Thursday

The dirt track  is  listed as Fast and the turf course is listed as Firm for Thursday's nine-race card at Gulfstream Park.

First post is 12:00 p.m.

As of 10:30  a.m., skies were clear at Gulfstream in Hallandale Beach, Fla. The Weather Channel forecast is for the chance of rain to range between 5 percent and 25 percent during racing hours.

The first, third, fifth, seventh  and ninth races are on the turf.

Today is the first day for turf racing at Gulfstream since Monday Sept. 7. From last Thursday through Sunday, rain led to the move of all scheduled-for-turf races to the dirt.

This link https://www.equibase.com/static/entry/RaceCardIndexGP091720USA-EQB.html  to the Equibase Web site has the Gulfstream entries for Thursday.

It has click-ons for the list of scratches and other changes and for handicapping material--some free and some at cost.

Thursday's carryover on the Rainbow 6 is $375,346.

The 20 cents per combination-only bet will be  on races four to nine, with the sequence scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m.

Gulfstream is guaranteeing that the Rainbow 6 pool will be at least $600,000 if there is just one ticket with all six winning horses. Such a ticket would  "take down" the jackpot and win the full carryover and 80 percent of the day's new Rainbow 6 bet (20 percent carryover).

Gulfstream has gone eight straight race days without a single-ticket winner. Thus, the carryover keeps growing.

On days with multiple winning Rainbow 6  tickets, Gulfstream takes out 20 percent of the day's Rainbow 6 bet and then divides 56 percent among tickets with six winners and adds 24 percent to the carryover.

Because of the  COVID-19 pandemic, Gulfstream continues to race without spectators.

Betting on Gulfstream races may be done on almost all major Advance Deposit Wagering (ADW) platforms and at many sports books, other race tracks and OTB offices that are open during the pandemic.

 

Gulfstream Heads Into Final Two Spring/Summer Weeks, with Zayas Ahead in Wins

HRFLA Staff Report

With eight race days left in Gulfstream Park's spring/summer meet, Edgard Zayas has a 131 to 120 lead over Miguel Vasquez in the competition for jockey wins.

Meanwhile, data from Equibase show that Saffie Joseph Jr. leads trainers in victories and Gilbert Campbell's Stonehedge LLC leads owners in victories.

Thursday will be the 100th day of Gulfstream's 107-day spring/summer meet, which began on April 4 and will end on Sunday Sept. 27.

The Thursday card will  be the start of four straight days of racing at the Hallandale Beach, Fla., track. First post will be 12:00 p.m. each day.

The Weather Channel forecast for Thursday is for just a 15 percent chance of rain during racing hours.

That indicates that the day's five scheduled-for-turf races will stay on that surface. 

Last Thursday through Sunday, Gulfstream moved all scheduled-for turf races to the dirt due to rain and other wet conditions.

Because of the  COVID-19 pandemic, Gulfstream continues to race without spectators.

Betting on Gulfstream races may be done on almost all major Advance Deposit Wagering (ADW) platforms and at many sports books, other race tracks and OTB offices that are open during the pandemic.

The only stakes races for the remainder of the meet will be on Saturday Sept. 26--with seven stakes listed on that race card.

The co-features are the final two legs in this year's Florida Sire Stakes (FSS) for 2-year-olds.

Those races are the In Reality for males and the My Dear Girl for fillies.  Both have $400,000 purses and are 1 1/16 miles on dirt.

Jockey Standings

Through Sunday, Emisael Jaramillo is third in jockey wins with 108.

The fourth through sixth places are held by: Cristian Torres at 54, Leonel Reyes  at 53 and Hector Berrios at 51.

Zayas and Jaramillo are each scheduled to ride in eight Thursday races. Vasquez is scheduled for five Thursday mounts.

In 2019, Gulfstream held separate spring and summer meets, each for three months.

Zayas finished first in wins at both meets. He had a combined total of 136, followed by Jaramillo with 109 and Vasquez with 104.

Trainer Standings

Joseph is in first place with 56 wins through Sunday.

Mike Maker is second with 43 victories. Others in the top five are: Antonio Sano, 39; Todd Pletcher 32; and Ralph Nicks 29.

Joseph led 2019's combined spring and summer  meets with 42 victories.  Sano finished second with 39.

Owner Standings

Stonehedge is in first place with 22 victories through Sunday.

Arindel and Frank Carl Calabrese are tied for second  with 18 wins.

Arindel, whose farm is in Ocala, is owned by Alan Cohen, a former managing partner of the Florida Panthers.

For Gulfstream's combined 2019 spring/summer meets, Mike Naploi was first in owner wins with 28 and Arindel was second with 27.

Napoli is a former Major League Baseball player, mostly at first base and catcher and as a DH.  He hit 267 career home runs while playing for the Texas Rangers, Cleveland Indians, Los Angeles Angels and Boston Red Sox.

Napoli-trained horses have raced only three times this spring/summer at Gulfstream--with no victories.  He is racing primarily at tracks in northeastern states.

Florida Sire Stakes

Breeze On By, owned by Stonehedge, won the first two races in this year's male division of the FSS.

Those stakes were the $100,000 Dr. Fager at six furlongs on dirt on Aug. 1 and the $200,000 Affirmed at seven furlongs on dirt on Aug. 29.

Breeze on By, unbeaten in three starts, is scheduled to run and seek a sweep in the In Reality. Nicks trains and Jaramillo is the regular rider of the gelded son of Cajun Breeze.

In the fillies division, Go Jo Jo Go won the $100,000 Desert Vixen at six furlongs on dirt on Aug. 1 and Princess Secret won the $200,000 Susan's Girl at seven furlongs on dirt on Aug. 29.

Both horses are expected back for the My Dear Girl.

Stonehedge owns Go Jo Jo Go, with Michael Yates as trainer and Reyes as the regular rider.

Daniel Pita is the owner and trainer of Princess Secret, with Vasquez as the regular rider.

The FSS's primary sponsor is the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' and Owners' Association, in conjunction with the Florida Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association.

The series is restricted to sons and daughters of Florida-registered stallions--with several requirements.

Owners of competing horses and owners of their sires must nominate them for the FSS and pay a series of fees that become part of the purses and of breeders and owners awards for FSS races.  

Gulfstream Park West

On Oct. 1, South Florida racing will move eight miles west to Calder in Miami Gardens for the annual 40-day Gulfstream Park West race meet.

This is the seventh and final year in which Gulfstream is scheduled to hold that two-month meet under a lease agreement. Gulfstream has racing at its Hallandale Beach track during the other ten months each year.

We will soon begin articles that will preview the GP West meet and look at the question of where Gulfstream might hold October-November racing in 2021 and future years.