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Octane Overpowers In Reality Stakes Field At Gulfstream

Arindel's Octane overpowered his opposition at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., Saturday with a gutsy front-running victory in the $400,000 In Reality, the open-division finale of the 2021 FTBOA Florida Sire Stakes.

The In Reality, a 1 1/16-mile route for 2-year-olds sired by accredited Florida stallions, co-headlined Saturday's 12-race program with the $400,000 My Dear Girl, the 1 1/16-mile finale for Florida-sired 2-year-old fillies.

Coming off a front-running score in the $200,000 Affirmed, the seven-furlong second leg of the lucrative series for Florida-sired juveniles, Octane offered a repeat performance while carrying his natural speed around two turns for the first time.

The homebred son of Brethren broke alertly from his No. 7 post position to take the lead on the first turn and show the way along the backstretch, where he came under strong pressure to his outside by Cattin. Octane put away Cattin on the far turn, where Cajun's Magic, the Affirmed runner-up, launched his bid after saving ground behind the pacesetters. The winner of the first leg of the FSS Series, the $100,000 Dr. Fager, kicked in through the stretch but was no match for Octane, the even-money favorite who scored by 1 ¾ lengths to win his third straight race since finishing second in his career debut.

The Carlos David-trained Octane ran 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.97 under Emisael Jaramillo. Cajun's Magic, who was ridden by Jesus Rios, finished 6 ½ lengths clear of third-place finisher Cattin.

“I have plenty of confidence in Jaramillo. He's a great rider. He's one of the top jocks here in the summer and in the winter, as well. The plan was, obviously, he's got speed, so we don't want to take that away from him. Just break good, sit outside a little bit and whenever he wants to make the lead, let him do it and see where he goes,” David said. “He's got that speed and every time you have a horse that goes to the lead [distance] is always a question. I'm just glad he was able to do it. He's got a lot of talent.”

Octane exceeded the early expectations of Arindel stable manager Brian Cohen with his impressive two-turn debut.

“It's great. Carlos has done a great job. Back before we sent him to Carlos, he worked one time on the farm super-fast. I wanted to send him a good one. He's a little horse and Carlos does great with these speed horses,” Cohen said. “I never thought that he'd be doing the mile and a sixteenth. He just gets out there and doesn't stop. We're so happy. We have the perfect rider for him. It was just a great effort and a great effort by those guys.”

By passing the two-turn test in the In Reality, his connections have reason to at least take a look at the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in Del Mar, Calif., Nov. 5.

“We'll see how the numbers come back and we'll talk to Carlos and see how we fit,” Cohen said. “No rush, but we'll make a decision in the next week or so.”

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Outfoxed The Star Attraction In Saturday’s Florida Sire Series My Dear Girl

Anticipation for Outfoxed's next start began building the very instant the Bill Mott-trained filly crossed the finish line 13 ½ lengths clear of her competition in her FTBOA Florida Sire Stakes series debut Aug. 28 at Gulfstream Park

The visually stunning and utterly dominating manner in which she graduated in the $200,000 Susan's Girl immediately raised the question: What could LNJ Foxwoods' 2-year-old filly possibly do for an encore?

The question is about to be answered.

Outfoxed is scheduled to make her highly anticipated return to action in Saturday's $400,000 My Dear Girl at Gulfstream Park, where the 1 1/16-mile FSS finale for juvenile fillies will co-headline Saturday's program with the $400,000 In Reality, the 1 1/16-mile open division FSS finale.

The Florida-bred filly, who was purchased for $360,000 at the OBS April 2-year-olds-in-training sale, looked like a bargain buy while making her second career start in the seven-furlong second leg of the lucrative series for juveniles sired by accredited Florida stallions.

After taking some coaxing to load into the gate, Outfoxed settled off the pace under Edgard Zayas before making an eye-catching five-wide sweep on the turn into the stretch and drawing off with complete authority. She ran seven furlongs in 1:23.81, more than a second faster than it took Octane to complete the distance of the FSS Affirmed against colts and geldings two races later.

Did the manner in which she overwhelmed her 10 rivals in the Susan's Girl prompt her connections to consider bypassing the My Dear Girl in favor of running her in a graded stakes elsewhere?

“We never really discussed it,” Mott said. “Everyone agreed we'd take advantage of the races available to her. She's eligible for these spots, and that's what was decided.”

It would have been understandable if Outfoxed's connections had decided to run her in a graded-stakes, considering that she entered the Susan's Girl off a late-closing third-place finish behind Echo Zulu in a Saratoga maiden special weight race. Echo Zulu went on to win the Spinaway (G1) in her next start.

“We liked her first race at Saratoga,” Mott said. “Even though she didn't win, she closed well.”

Could her dazzling graduation in the Susan's Girl have come a bit too easy for Outfoxed with reference to her preparedness for the My Dear Girl?

“Obviously, you don't know how she's going to do but, if it's the same group, I figure she did enough [last time],” Mott said. “A lot of times, you can be confused. It looks like they're doing it easy, but they still have to run.”

Gulfstream-based trainer Ralph Nicks, a former Mott assistant, has been overseeing Outfoxed's preparation for her return.

“She's had a couple works. She had a decent work the other day [with Ralph],” Mott said. “The first one was pretty easy, but she had a pretty good one the other day.”

Even at her very best, Outfoxed will need to prove she can reproduce the brilliance she showed in the Susan's Girl in a two-turn race such as the My Dear Girl.

“I'm not worried too much. It looks like it shouldn't be too much of a problem the way she ran the other day, but they always have to do it,” Mott said. “But she went seven-eighths the other day and she went pretty well.”

Outfoxed is the first winner for her first-crop sire Valiant Minister, a $680,000 son of Candy Ride who retired from racing after winning his six-furlong debut at Santa Anita for trainer Bob Baffert in January 2017.

Zayas has the return call on Outfoxed, who drew the No. 1 post position.

Champion Equine LLC's My Sassenach, who was victorious in the first leg of the Florida Sire Stakes series, will seek to improve on a distant third-place finish in the Susan's Girl Saturday. The David Braddy-trained daughter of Uncaptured raced in traffic before closing to finish third in the Susan's Girl.

My Sassenach graduated in the six-furlong FSS Desert Vixen, shaking off a bumping incident at the start before romping to an 8 ¼-length triumph.

Miguel Vasquez has the return call on the filly who finished second in her debut prior to entering the FSS series.

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Chacalosa will be the new FSS face Saturday while making her Gulfstream debut off an open-stakes victory in the Arlington Lassie. The daughter of Jess's Dream graduated with a late-closing 36-1 upset victory in the seven-furlong sprint over Arlington Park's synthetic surface for owner/trainer Earl Hughes. The Florida-bred filly, who was winless in her two previous career starts, is scheduled to make her debut for Arlington Park's leading trainer Larry Rivelli in the My Dear Girl.

Emisael Jaramillo is slated to ride the Arlington invader for the first time Saturday.

Trainer Daniel Pita's Devilette, who set the pace before being overwhelmed by Outfoxed, will seek to improve on her second-place finish while trying two turns for the first time.

Pita, who saddled Princess Secret for a victory in last year's My Dear Girl, has awarded the return mount aboard Khozan-sired Devilette to Cristian Torres.

Trainer Michael Yate's Cajun Cousin is scheduled to make her stakes debut in the My Dear Girl following a second-place finish in an optional claiming allowance at Gulfstream.

“She's training fabulous. She has had three sprint races. She broke her maiden for a tag and came back in an A-other-than and finished second,” Yates said. “We thought the [Susan's Girl] was too quick back. We just wanted to train up to the mile-and-a-sixteenth and see what happens.”

Jesus Rios has the call aboard the daughter of Cajun Breeze.

Trainer Roger Laurin's Veiled Prophet, who finished fifth in the Susan's Girl, enters the My Dear Girl off a second-place maiden special weight finish. The daughter of Uncaptured had previously finished second in her first two career starts prior to her off-the-board finish in the second FSS leg.

Luca Panici has the mount.

Wendell Yates and Ronald Brown's Sequin Lady, who is winless in two starts, and Arindel's Baby Blue, a three-race maiden, round out the field.

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Campbells, O’Connell Bring A ‘Smile’ Into Saturday’s Florida Sire Series

Gil and Marilyn Campbell's Stonehedge LLC and trainer Kathleen O'Connell will seek to continue longstanding success in the FTBOA Florida Sire Stakes series Saturday when they send out Silver Smile for a start in the $100,000 Desert Vixen at Gulfstream Park.

The Desert Vixen, a six-furlong sprint for fillies, will co-headline Saturday's program with the $100,000 Dr. Fager, a six-furlong open division dash, as the annual series for juveniles sired by accredited stallions standing in Florida gets underway. A mandatory payout of the 20-cent Rainbow 6 carryover pool will also be featured on the program.

O'Connell has saddled 11 of the Campbells' 15 Florida Sire Stakes race winners, including Scandalous Act, who swept the 2013 series for fillies, and Blazing Sword, who won two legs of the open division series in 1996 to launch a multiple graded stakes-winning career.

“I'm very proud of the association I've had with them. It's been over 25 years. We've had a good run. They're wonderful people. They understand the ups and downs of the game. They've brought a lot into the program for Florida-breds,” said O'Connell, who ranks second all-time among women trainers with 2,263 winners. “I wish them nothing but good luck whoever has their horses.”

The Campbells, who will be represented in the Dr. Fager by Michael Yates-trained homebreds Dean Delivers and Cajun's Magic, bred Silver Smile, a daughter of freshman sire Long Island Sound.

Silver Smile (7-2) is scheduled to make her second start Saturday after registering a dominating 4 ¼-length debut victory in front-running fashion June 3 at Gulfstream Park.

“She's trained very well,” O'Connell said. “I think we're all at a handicap because we can't get more educational races between breaking their maiden and the stakes. It's not like it used to be, but we're all in the same spot.”

Silver Smile, who will take on 10 fillies in a lightly raced field, will be ridden by Emisael Jaramillo, who was aboard or her successful debut.

Breeze Easy LLC and trainer Joe Orseno, who will be represented in the Dr. Fager by highly regarded Hope in Him, will send out Stone Beauty ((9-2) for a start in the Desert Vixen. The daughter of Neolithic withstood early pressure before drawing clear by 1 ¾ lengths in her July 16 career debut at Gulfstream.

“When I got her, she was going through a growth spurt. I thought, 'Maybe she's not going to make it.' But she's really come around. She ran really well for me the first time. I think she'll move forward off that race, because I didn't have her really cranked up where I wanted her to be. But I knew if we were going to make the sire stakes, we needed to run her. Everybody was all for it, and now we're going to run in both,” Orseno said. “This is the first time I've run a horse in both races.”

Stone Beauty was purchased by Breeze Easy's Mike Hall and Sam Ross for $130,000 at the OBS April 2-year-olds-in-training sale, a month after they made the winning bid of $190,000 for Hope in Him at the OBS March sale.

“We didn't quite plan on going as high as we did, but we thought that she was a Florida Sire Stakes prospect,” Orseno said. “The owners have been wanting horses for the Florida program. They're standing a stallion in Florida [Curlin's Honor]. They race all over, but they're supporting Florida. They wanted a filly that would fit the bill.”

Samy Camacho has the return mount aboard Stone Beauty.

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Like Silver Smile and Stone Beauty, trainer Roger Laurin's Demurely (8-1) will enter the Desert Vixen off a sharp debut victory. The daughter of Uncaptured rallied from off the pace under returning jockey Chantal Sutherland to capture her May 28 debut by 2 ½ lengths.

Shooting Star Thoroughbreds' Noble Dreamer, who finished second behind Demurely, will enter the Desert Vixen off a sharp 7 ½-length triumph in front-running fashion June 18. The Saffie Joseph Jr.-trained filly is 2-1 in the morning line and one of four daughters of Noble Bird, a Grade 1 stakes-winning freshman stallion, entered in the Desert Vixen.

Joseph will also be represented by Joseph Imbesi's Solar Girl, a daughter of Greenpointcrusader who finished off the board in her recent debut.

Edgard Zayas has the return call on Noble Dreamer, while J. C, Diaz Jr. will ride Solar Girl.

Quintessential Racing Florida LLC, Rocky Top Stable and Tara Sweeney's Royal Rocker is slated to bring two-race experience into the Desert Vixen, in which the daughter of Noble Bird will seek to graduate. The Mark Casse trainee, who was narrowly beaten while finishing second in her June 20 debut at Gulfstream, most recently finished third after experiencing trouble at the start and setting a fast pace into the stretch July 17.

Quintessential Racing Florida LLC and Casse will also be represented in the Desert Vixen field by a pair of Noble Bird-sired first-time starters, Rufa Red Knot and Ukiyo.

Cristian Torres has been named to ride Royal Rocker, while Luca Panici and Leonel Reyes are slated to guide Rufa Red Knot and Ukiyo, respectively.

Jacks or Better Farm Inc.'s Rachel's Rock is also scheduled to make her first career start in the Desert Vixen, in which the daughter of Jess's Dream will seek to provide her owner/breeder Fred Brei with his record 20th Florida Sire Stakes win.

Trainer Ralph Nicks named Jesus Rios to ride the Jacks or Better Farm Inc. homebred filly.

Blazing Meadows Farm LLC's Soul Flight and Champion Equine's My Sassenach, both coming off second-place finishes, will seek to graduate in the Desert Vixen.

The Florida Sire Stakes series will will continue Aug. 28 with the $200,000 Affirmed and the $200,000 Susan's Girl for fillies, both slated for seven furlongs, and Sept. 25 with the $400,000 In Reality and the $400,000 My Dear Girl for fillies, both to be run around two turns at 1 1/16 miles.

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