gulfstream park | Horse Racing Free Tips

My Prankster Scores Black Type With Gutsy Swale Victory

Robert and Lawana Low's My Prankster earned his first stakes victory Saturday at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., rallying from off the pace to win the $100,000 Claiborne Farm Swale (G3).

The seven-furlong Swale was the first of five graded stakes for 3-year-olds on Saturday's program that was headlined by the $250,000 Holy Bull (G3), the first graded stakes on the Road to the Curlin Florida Derby (G1).

Although he lived up to his even-money favoritism with a gutsy half-length victory in the Swale, My Prankster isn't a likely candidate for Gulfstream's premier 1 1/8-mile Triple Crown prep.

“We'll play it by ear,” Pletcher said. “He gives me the impression that he's a one-turn horse, but we won't rule anything out yet.”

My Prankster, who was coming off a Dec. 10 optional claiming allowance at Gulfstream after finishing second in the six-furlong Bowman Mill at Keeneland, broke from the rail post position and was outrun early as In Dreams took immediate command. The Brad Cox-trained frontrunner went on to set fractions of 22.36 and 44.87 seconds for the first half-mile. Leading jockey Luis Saez took My Prankster to the outside on the backstretch and the son of Into Mischief made steady progress to enter contention on the far turn. Dean Delivers and jockey Miguel Vasquez moved alongside the tiring pacesetter on the turn into the homestretch as My Prankster pulled alongside him while making a three-wide sweep. Dean Delivers fought on gamely through the stretch but was unable to hold off the Pletcher-trained favorite.

“We were concerned about the '1' draw. It cost him a little position early and you could see when he was getting dirt in his face, he wasn't liking it. He was climbing the first eighth of a mile,” Pletcher said. “Luis was able to get him out in the clear. The key part of the race, in the middle of the turn, he put in a big run to catch up.”

My Prankster ran seven furlongs in 1:23.13 to register his third victory in five starts.

“Luis said he got there a little sooner than he wanted and he idled a little when he made the lead, but it was another professional effort. He's a nice horse,” Pletcher said.

Saez entered the Swale with a lot of confidence.

“The [last] work was pretty good, pretty easy. I felt like he was ready for this race,” Saez said. “He always tries. He's an honest horse. I'm so glad to be part of the team.”

My Prankster, a $600,000 yearling purchase at the 2020 Keeneland September sale, won his debut by 10 lengths at Saratoga Aug. 21 at 6 ½ furlongs before finishing a well-beaten fourth in the mile Champagne (G1) at Belmont. The Kentucky-bred was narrowly beat in the Bowman Mills while cutting back in distance before returning to the winner's circle in his first two races during Gulfstream's Championship Meet.

Dean Delivers finished 2 ½ lengths ahead of third-place finisher Of a Revolution.

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Coinage Looks to Rebound in Kitten’s Joy

Looking to start off his 2022 campaign in the winner's circle, Coinage (Tapit) will be facing a competitive field of sophomores in Gulfstream Park's GIII Kitten's Joy S. on Saturday.

Stakes-placed on dirt in Saratoga's NY-bred Rick Violette S. in July, the $450,000 KEESEP purchase took to the turf and two turns with ease, capturing the GIII With Anticipation S. at the Spa in September in his first try over the surface and a route of ground. The colt was a bothered third in the Sept. 26 Nownownow S. at Monmouth Park and was last seen finishing ninth in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Nov. 5 after breaking outwardly and weakening late. The Mark Casse runner enters off a bullet work at Palm Meadows Jan. 28, going five furlongs on grass in 1:00 flat, and has picked up the services of Luis Saez.

“At Monmouth, he had some trouble at the start. He kind of stumbled and didn't get away from there,” Casse said of his colt's recent bout of bad racing luck. “In the Breeders' Cup, it was probably just more about post position. When you go around at Del Mar going a mile and you draw outside, it's kind of brutal. He just had a tough trip. We're just trying to get him back and, hopefully, he'll have a little luck this time.”

Grand Sonata (Medaglia d'Oro) looks to spoil those plans from the rail, last seen winning the Jan 1. Dania Beach S. at this venue after a slow start. The Whisper Hill homebred checked in second to next-out GIII Futurity S. winner Slipstream (More Than Ready) on debut at Belmont in September and broke his maiden next out in an off-the-turf event going two turns at Keeneland Oct. 16. Bumped around at the start of Aqueduct's Central Park S. on the grass Nov. 27, the dark bay was checked hard and asked to close from last to grab fifth. He is joined in the gate by stablemate and Nownownow runner-up Royal Spirit (Into Mischief), who enters off a 1 1/4-length graduation last out in Hallandale Jan. 2.

On the far outside, Red Danger (Orb) looks to pick up his first graded stakes victory and third black-type score overall. A winner sprinting on the turf in both his maiden breaking score Aug. 11 at Saratoga and when winning the Sept. 9 Global Tote Juvenile Turf Sprint S. at Kentucky Downs, he'll be looking to break through at this distance after previously finishing fourth in the GII Castle & Key Bourbon S. Oct. 10 at Keeneland and second in the Oct. 31 Street Sense S. on the main track underneath the Twin Spires. He was last seen closing his 2-year-old campaign in winning style in the Pulpit S. at Gulfstream Park, a race where Speaking Scout (Mr Speaker) finished second for the Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners.

The post Coinage Looks to Rebound in Kitten’s Joy appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Holy Bull: Simplification Should Appreciate More Distance, ‘Ratable’ Tiz The Bomb Returns To Dirt

Tami Bobo's Simplification stretched out to a mile for his stakes debut in the Jan. 1 Mucho Macho Man at Gulfstream, and the Antonio Sano-trained colt rolled to a four-length front-running victory without taking a deep breath.

The 3-year-old son of Not This Time broke his maiden at six furlongs by 16 ¾ lengths in 1:09.81 on the front end in his second career start, but his trainer was convinced that he wanted more ground after having a rough go of things in his next start at six furlongs. After breaking from the rail, he set a pressured early pace and finished third behind talented sprinter Of a Revolution, a prominent entrant in Saturday's $100,000 Claiborne Swale (G3).

“After the race before the Mucho Macho Man, I started training him for long races. I think that more distance is better for my horse,” Sano said. “I gave him open gallops to make him strong for the Mucho Macho Man, and after the Mucho Macho Man, I continued to do the same thing.”

Sano saddled Gunnevera for a second-place finish in the 2017 Holy Bull before his last-to-first 5 ¾-length victory in the Fountain of Youth (G2) in his next start.

“They are different horses. Gunnevera had only one pace and made one run,” Sano said. “This horse can relax or can go to the front. You can put the horse wherever you want him.”

Hall of Famer Javier Castellano, who rode the $5.5 million-earning Gunnevera in the Fountain of Youth, has the return call aboard Simplification for Saturday's Holy Bull.

Phoenix Thoroughbreds LTD's Tiz the Bomb has shown himself to be a talented colt on turf, but trainer Kenny McPeek isn't quite ready to classify him as a turf horse just yet.

The son of Hit It a Bomb is coming off a late-closing second in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf (G1) at Del Mar that followed a victory in the Bourbon (G2) at Keeneland, but he also broke his maiden on dirt in an off-the-turf race at Ellis Park by 14 ¼ lengths.

“I think a good horse can do that. He's out of a Tiznow mare and his sire's line is War Front. I don't think you have to pigeonhole him as a turf horse,” McPeek said. “The only reason he ran turf last fall was because we had some other 2-year-olds that were ready scheduled for races, and I wanted to keep them separated. This time it's his chance to show how good he is.”

McPeek expressed confidence in his colt's chances in the Holy Bull, the first graded stakes for 3-year-olds on the Road to the Curlin Florida Derby (G1).

“He's probably going to show a little more pace in this race and we're going to let him run free and do his thing. He's very ratable,” McPeek said. “When he broke his maiden at a mile at Ellis, he ran off and won by 14 lengths. I don't have that expectation for this race, but I do expect him to run good.”

Brian Hernandez Jr. will travel from Fair Grounds for the Holy Bull.

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Juvenile Third Giant Game ‘Looking Good, Feeling Good’ Ahead Of Holy Bull

West Point Thoroughbreds and Albaugh Family Stable LLC's Giant Game is set to make his 3-year-old debut in Saturday's $250,000 Holy Bull (G3) at Gulfstream Park a bigger and, hopefully, better racehorse.

“Like we say every year, this is the time for the 2-year-olds to turn into men and grow up,” trainer Dale Romans said. “I think he's made a good turn. He had a little freshener. He had a few weeks off after the Breeders' Cup and has gone right back in training.”

If Giant Game, who finished third in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) in only his third career start, returns to action just a little bit better Saturday, the son of Giant's Causeway should be expected to be a major factor in the 1 1/16-mile prep on the Road to the Curlin Florida Derby (G1).

“He's gotten a lot thicker. He's not the tallest horse in the world. He's a more racier Giant's Causeway than you usually see. He has started to thicken up and start to look like the rest of them,” Romans said.

“I think this is the best place to winter to make them good horses later. That's what I'm seeing from him. He's looking good, feeling good. This warm salty air is good for him.”

Giant Game made a late run to finish third in his Sept. 18 six-furlong debut at Churchill Downs before stretching out to 1 1/16 miles to graduate going away by three lengths at Keeneland next time out. The performance encouraged Romans to ship him to Del Mar for the Breeders' Cup.

“I put my neck on the line there, coming off a maiden race at Keeneland. But when you have a horse with his pedigree, looks like him, acts like him, and runs like he did, you expect him to perform at the highest level, so you put them in the highest-level races,” Romans said.

Leading jockey Luis Saez will ride Giant Game for the first time in the Holy Bull.

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