John Oxley and My Meadowview Farm LLC's Ride a Comet made a triumph return to turf for the first time in more than two years to capture Saturday's $100,000 Tropical Turf (G3) at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.
The Tropical Turf headlined an 11-race program that also featured a mandatory payout of the 20-cent Rainbow 6 pool that had swelled to more than $1 million and generated $5.5 million in handle Saturday.
Mark Casse-trained Ride a Comet stamped himself as a turf star of the future when he captured the Del Mar Derby (G2) Sept. 2, 2018, but immediately went to the sidelines. The 5-year-old son of Candy Ride returned to action over Woodbine's synthetic surface with a two-length victory in an Oct. 16 optional claiming allowance before capturing the Nov. 21 Kennedy Road (G2).
“He came down well-prepared from Woodbine from our crew up there. The story behind this horse is just truly amazing. A lot of the credit goes to our team in Ocala and to the owners, especially, for having the patience with him,” Casse's assistant trainer Nick Tomlinson said. “He's rewarding us every time he goes out there.”
Ride a Comet ($6.20) saved ground while settling a few lengths behind pacesetter Frostmourne, who was pressed by defending champion Tusk past fractions of 24.09 and 47.78 seconds for the first mile of the mile event from 4-year-olds and up. Frostmourne continued to show the way under John Velazquez into the turn entering the homestretch while meeting a new challenge from Casa Creed who slipped off the rail under Junior Alvarado for the stretch run. Tyler Gaffalione guided Ride a Comet off the rail entering the stretch, making a three-wide drive that carried his mount to victory by a half-length over Casa Creed.
“He's push-button. He's all class. Mark was very excited about this race,” Gaffalione said. “When I got to the paddock, Nick said, 'This is a good one.' They knew what they had. I just rode him with a lot of confidence, and he got the job done.”
Casa Creed finished second, 2 ½ lengths ahead of Frostmourne. Ride a Comet ran a mile over a firm turf in 1:33.62.
“We were very confident in him. His last work was just unbelievable. It takes a really good horse to do what he does. He goes out there and shows it every morning,” Tomlinson said. “He's such a class act. Just to be around him every day is truly a blessing.”
Ride a Comet, who was a slight favorite over Casa Creed, has won eight of 13 career starts.
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