Trainer Ralph Nicks is scheduled to make yet another title defense in Saturday's $200,000 Affirmed at Gulfstream Park, seeking to continue his domination in the seven-furlong second leg of the tradition rich FTBOA Florida Sire Stakes series for 2-year-olds sired by accredited stallions standing in Florida.
The Affirmed will co-headline Gulfstream Park's 12-race FSS program with the $200,000 Susan's Girl, a seven-furlong stakes for 2-year-old fillies. The 12-race Saturday program has a first race post of 12:20 p.m. and includes five turf races and 122 entries.
Nicks, whose stable is based year-round at Gulfstream Park, is slated to saddle two horses for the 11-horse Affirmed field – Heiligbrodt Racing Stable and Spendthrift Farm's Cattin, an impressive debut winner July 31, and Jacks or Better Farm Inc.'s Awesome Crusader, a three-race maiden who rallied for second last time out at 74-1.
The 54-year-old trainer, who has saddled a total of nine winners in the Florida Sire Stakes series, overall, has visited the Affirmed winner's circle with Breeze On By (2020), Liam's Lucky Charm (2019), Garter and Tie (2018) and Soutache (2017) the past four years.
“I came to Florida when Gulfstream went to year-round racing. It's a program that you need to be active in,” Nicks said. “In six years, we've been fortunate – my crew and clients – to win nine of them now. It's been great. It's kind of surreal. Each additional one adds up for the crew and clientele. They send me horses to target this. The Racing Gods have allowed us [to excel]. We've been fortunate so far.”
Cattin overcame early trouble to win at first asking in a 5 ½-furlong $50,000 claiming race, drawing away by 3 ¾ lengths.
“He didn't make any mistakes that day. It ended up being kind of an easy race on him because he got in a little bit of trouble and didn't overdo it early,” Nicks said. “There should be a bit of gas left in the tank.”
The son of Neolithic has had a pair of easy half-mile breezes in preparation for his return in the Affirmed.
“He's worked well. He's happy. He's had a race, so it's not a fitness thing,” Nicks said. “Can he get the distance? I think he will with his brain. He has enough speed to be tactical if he needs to be.”
Awesome Crusader, who had finished a distant fourth in a $50,000 maiden claimer in his second career start, showed vast improvement to finish second at long, long odds, against maiden special weight company.
“He's getting better all along,” Nicks said. “I liked him the other day when he was second. I'm not a gambler but it would have been a big payday for anyone who was if they knew what I knew from the time before. He was sick. He was full of mucous and had a fever the next day, so that race was a throw-out.”
Awesome Crusader, who will seek to give Jacks or Better Farm is record-extending 20th FSS success in the Affirmed, closed steadily under Jesus Rios to finish three lengths behind King Cab, whom he will me again Saturday.
“He's still learning. Jesus had to be busy on him on the backside just to maintain some kind of distance of the race,” Nicks said. “He's a grinder. He keeps coming. Those type of horses get better as they go along. When we won the race with Garter and Tie, he was a maiden the same way. We were learning as we went.”
Luca Panici has the call on Cattin, while Cristian Torres will ride Awesome Crusader, who is a son of Greenpointcrusader.
The Nicks trainees will be making their respective FSS debuts Saturday while facing Stonehedge LLC's Cajun's Magic, the 7-5 favorite who won the the $100,000 Dr. Fager following a protracted stretch duel with Stonehedge LLC's Dean Delivers. The Michael Yates-trained stablemates finished a neck apart while finishing 10 lengths clear of the third-place finisher.
“It was pretty exciting. It was a great horse race. It's not often that you're in that position,” said Yates, who owned and trained Cajun Breeze during his racing career.
Cajun's Magic settled off the early pace before making a three-wide sweep into the stretch under Jesus Rios to engage Dean Delivers and jockey Miguel Vasquez in a spirited battle to the wire.
“I wanted them to ride their horses as the race developed. I didn't want them to worry about each other. I told them, 'Just ride your horse,'” Yates said.
Cajun's Magic, who finished second in his debut and broke his maiden by 4 ¾ lengths while being involved in the early pace, demonstrated versatility while winning the Dr. Fager from off the pace.
“I kind of expected that he would [show more versatility] because in his first race, he didn't break on top; he was in traffic and made a middle move. That was due to me not being overly aggressive with his gate works before his first start,” Yates said.
Jesus Rios has the return mount aboard Cajun's Magic.
Despite breaking slowly from the gate in Aug. 6 debut, David Melin, Leon Ellman and Laurie Plesa's King Cab (9-2) was in full control while outrunning Awesome Crusader and 10 other rivals. The son of Noble Bird, who was favored in his six-furlong debut off a series of strong breezes, was prepared for the seven furlongs of the Affirmed with a signature Eddie Plesa Jr. one-mile workout.
Samy Camacho has the return mount.
Arindel will be represented in the Affirmed by a quartet of homebred sons of Brethren, Carlos David-trained Octane and Juan Alvarado-trained Clapton, Gilligan and Merlin. Octane overcame traffic to graduate in his second start in a five-furlong maiden special weight race July 17. Clapton also graduated in his second start, rallying five-wide to win a six-furlong maiden special weight race July 24. Gillian is coming off a maiden-breaking win in $25,000 claiming company, while Merlin has finished second three times in four starts.
Emisael Jaramillo has the call on Octane; Chantal Sutherland has the return mount on Clapton; Edgard Zayas has accepted the mount on Gilligan; and Miguel Vasquez will ride Merlin.
Amalio Ruiz-Lozano's Gold Special, who finished a distant third in the Dr. Fager; Lea Farms LLC's Lightening Larry, who defeated Gold Special, Octane and Clapton while breaking his maiden June 18; and Alex and JoAnn Lieblong's Big And Classy, who has fifth in the Dr. Fager; round out the field,
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