Gulfstream | Horse Racing Free Tips

Penn National’s Leading Rider Edwin Gonzalez Shifts Tack To Gulfstream

Edwin Gonzalez, the leading rider at Penn National the last two years with more than 400 victories and a 2020 winning percentage of 33 percent, is moving his tack to Gulfstream Park.

Gonzalez, who rode five winners Wednesday evening at Penn National and six winners there Feb. 17, will ride in Pennsylvania through March 19 before heading to Florida. He is expected to ride in Tampa on Florida Cup Day March 28 before riding at Gulfstream.

Gonzalez, who finished second in wins during the 2017 Tampa Bay Downs meet and won six races there on March 10 of that year, has won more than 1,430 races since coming to the U.S. from his native Puerto Rico in 2013. He was ranked 14th in wins in North America last year and 11th in wins in 2019.

Kevin Meyocks, agent for Luca Panici, will represent Gonzalez.

“We've been north here the last two years and it's been good, but we only race two days a week and I'd like to ride at a better track with some better horses,” said Gonzalez, who is moving along with his wife and three children. “There's nice weather down here. We can take the kids out to the park. I talked to Kevin, he's a good agent, and when opportunity comes, you have to take advantage of it.”

Gonzalez, a multiple graded-stakes winner in Puerto Rico, guided Ghost Hunter for his first graded-stakes success in the 2017 Arlington Handicap (G3).

The post Penn National’s Leading Rider Edwin Gonzalez Shifts Tack To Gulfstream appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Casse Will Appeal Herecomesthebride DQ

After Spanish Loveaffair (Karakontie {Jpn}) was disqualified for causing interference in the $100,000 GIII Herecomesthebride S. Saturday at Gulfstream, trainer Mark Casse said he would appeal the decision.

“I have the paperwork right here and I am filling it out,” he said just a few minutes after the race.

On the far turn, Spanish Loveaffair got tangled up with I Get It (Get Stormy) and the two appeared to clip heels, which caused I Get It to bounce off the inner rail. It was not exactly clear whether or not I Get It's rider Miguel Vasquez went for a hole that was not there. The stewards reviewed the race for about 10 minutes before making their call.

Tyler Gaffalione was aboard Spanish Loveaffair, who crossed the wire 2 3/4 lengths in front. I Get It crossed the wire fourth, but was elevated to third because of the disqualification. Spanish Loveaffair was placed fourth.

“I've been through a lot of DQ's in my life and have appealed a few. But it's been about 10 years since I've done that,” Casse said. “I don't want to be a crybaby and I take my lickings. But I thought Vasquez moved into a spot he probably shouldn't have been in. There's no question that they clipped heels, but he initiated the contact. Our opinion is that she should not have been DQ'ed.”

Spanish Loveaffair is a half-sister to GI American Oaks winner Spanish Queen (Tribal Rule).

“Do you know what this race meant to her value as a broodmare?” Casse said. “If they hadn't taken her down she would be a half-sister to a Grade I winner who is a Grade III winner herself at Gulfstream Park. The DQ cost us hundreds of thousands of dollars.”

The post Casse Will Appeal Herecomesthebride DQ appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Tapit’s Greatest Honour Rallies to Fountain of Youth Win

Courtlandt Farm homebred Greatest Honour (Tapit) looked all but hopeless rounding the final bend in Saturday's GII Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth S. at Gulfstream, but he flew home in the stretch to complete a huge daily double for his sire. The Shug McGaughey trainee's victory came just minutes after returning champion Essential Quality (Tapit) cruised in Oaklawn's GIII Southwest S. Pacesetting Drain the Clock (Maclean's Music) held well for second, beaten 1 1/2 lengths, while longshot Papetu (Dialed In), who briefly looked like the winner, checked in third. It was the third Fountain of Youth for Hall of Famer McGaughey, who won in 2019 with Code of Honor (Noble Mission {GB}) and in 2013 with Orb (Malibu Moon). The latter, who employed similar late-running tactics and hails from the same A.P. Indy sire line, would go on to add the GI Florida Derby and GI Kentucky Derby.

Saturday, Gulfstream Park
FASIG-TIPTON FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH S.-GII, $300,000, Gulfstream, 2-27, 3yo, 1 1/16m, 1:44.02, ft.
1–GREATEST HONOUR, 123, c, 3, by Tapit
                1st Dam: Tiffany's Honour, by Street Cry (Ire)
                2nd Dam: Better Than Honour, by Deputy Minister
                3rd Dam: Blush With Pride, by Blushing Groom (Fr)
O/B-Courtlandt Farms (Donald & Donna Adam) (KY); T-Claude
McGaughey III; J-Jose L. Ortiz. $176,700. Lifetime Record:
6-3-1-2, $351,940. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the
   eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Drain the Clock, 120, c, 3, Maclean's Music–Manki, by Arch.
O-Slam Dunk Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Wonder Stables &
Michael Nentwig; B-Nick Cosato (KY); T-Saffie A. Joseph, Jr.
$57,000.
3–Papetu, 118, c, 3, Dialed In–Lady Malkin, by Sharp Humor.
($80,000 Ylg '19 KEESEP). O-Magic Stables LLC; B-Almar Farm,
LLC (KY); T-Antonio Sano. $28,500.
Margins: 1HF, 2, 1 3/4. Odds: 1.00, 2.80, 18.30.
Also Ran: Tarantino, Jirafales, King's Ovation, Prime Factor, Fire At Will, Tiz Tact Toe, Sososubtle. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

Developed with the typical patience McGaughey is renowned for, Greatest Honour was third in seven-furlong events at Saratoga Sept. 5 and Belmont Oct. 11, respectively, to kick off his career. He was beaten a head when stretched out to nine panels at Aqueduct Nov. 8 by well-bred Known Agenda (Curlin), who was subsequently third in the GII Remsen S. and most recently took a local optional claimer by 11 lengths on Friday. Greatest Honour broke through over track and trip Dec. 26, and took his game to a whole different level when annexing the GIII Holy Bull S. Jan. 30 by 5 3/4 lengths.

Immediately out-sprinted, Greatest Honour seemed to resent the kickback early while ultimately settling in third last and saving some ground. He appeared to be going up and down after six furlongs in 1:11.51 and as Papetu blew by him from even farther back midway on the home bend. Drain the Clock turned for home with a three or four-length advantage, but he was going to need a bigger cushion than that. Greatest Honour was switched wide and exploded down the center, bounding by with fluid strides to win with room to spare.

“He broke good, a bit slow like he always does, and I put him in the race,” said winning rider Jose Ortiz. “I tried to be as close as I could going to the backside and I got a good path behind Prime Factor (Quality Road). But, when we hit the turn I bumped the horse outside of me and lost my hind end a little bit and it was very hard to get him back going. He's such a big horse with such a big stride. At the three-eighths pole I'm trying to get him going and I got a space on the inside, but I didn't want to have to stop him again, so I decided to go wide and when he hit the clear, boom. He was there for me. Huge run.”

McGaughey, who said the Mar. 27 GI Florida Derby would be next on the agenda, admitted he wasn't feeling confident for much of Saturday's race.

“I wasn't real comfortable,” he said. “I could see what was going on and I felt like if Jose got him in the clear then we could have a shot to make a run at him. The horse that was second [Drain the Clock], when he did break clear I said, 'Uh, oh.' But, he's a really nice horse.”

He continued, “The pace wasn't that fast today, I don't think, but he was able to overcome it. He's won twice down here now in stakes doing what he doesn't want to do, and that's a mile and a sixteenth. Like Jose said, I'm glad these mile and a sixteenth [races] are behind us. We'll be looking forward to getting him stretched out. Hopefully it's in the near future but, if not, I know what we've got. Hopefully as we keep going longer he'll keep improving. The farther the better for him.”

Owner/breeder Don Adam was also on hand to celebrate.

“It's very exciting,” he said. “Being a horse that I bred and the history by which I came by him is very gratifying. I was a little concerned in this one. It looked like he wasn't in the best position, but this will be the shortest race he runs in a long time. And the longer he goes, the better he will be.”

Adam added, “I bought the mare [Tiffany's Honour] in foal to a Tapit colt and that colt hit the ground and was killed in a paddock accident. So, I bred her back to Tapit and got him. I bought her at a Fasig-Tipton sale.”

Click here for more on Courtlandt and Tiffany's Honour and her Tapit colts.

Pedigree Notes:

Greatest Honour is one of 88 graded stakes winners by Tapit, but is the only one out of a Street Cry mare. Street Cry also sired the dam of Fearless (Ghostzapper), who took the GII WinStar Gulfstream Park Mile S. earlier on the card. Courtlandt acquired dam Tiffany's Honour after she RNA'd for $2.3 million at the 2015 Fasig-Tipton November Sale in foal to Tapit. The unplaced daughter of GISW and Broodmare of the Year Better Than Honour (Deputy Minister)–dam of GI Belmont S. and GI Kentucky Oaks heroine and class of 2021 Hall of Fame nominee Rags to Riches (A.P. Indy)–produced a War Front colt in 2017 who would go on to fetch $1.1 million at Keeneland September the following year. After producing Greatest Honour, Tiffany's Honour sold to Japan's Katsumi Yoshida for $2.2 million at the 2018 Keeneland November sale.

The post Tapit’s Greatest Honour Rallies to Fountain of Youth Win appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Got Stormy Gets the Bob in Honey Fox

Got Stormy scored her first win for her new connections Saturday in Gulfstream's GIII Honey Fox S. Heavily favored in this seasonal bow, the chestnut broke on top, but was overtaken by Jakarta (Bustin Stones) and settled in second through an opening quarter in :24.29 and a half in :48.76. Challenging the pacesetter on the far turn, the $2.75 million FTKNOV buy surged to the front in the final strides and held off a late bid from Zofelle (Ire) to win by a nose.

“She had a great spot,” said trainer Mark Casse. “Just kind of what we thought, we thought the horse that was on the lead would be there and she was sitting nice. She kicked and you could see a little bit of the rustiness today. She kicked, but she didn't kick as hard as she does sometimes. I think she'll build from this and get better.”

He continued, “I was really confident with her, as long as the turf stayed hard. She should build from this; it's just which direction do we go. She can do a little bit of anything. I don't know. We may sprint her. Never over a mile though.”

“She's a tremendous filly,” said jockey Tyler Gaffalione. “I've been able to get to know her the past few years and I have a lot of confidence every time I'm on her. She shows up every time. Really all the credit goes to Mark and his team to get her ready off the layoff. She fired a big one today.”

Winner of the GI Fourstardave H. and GI Matriarch S. in 2019, Got Stormy was second in both the GI Woodbine Mile and GI Breeders' Cup Mile that season. Off the board in last term's GIII Endeavour S., she was a close second in the GI Frank E. Kilroe Mile last winter and was fourth in both the GIII Beaugay S. and GIII Poker S. Got Stormy finished second when attempting to defend her Fourstardave title last summer, but captured the GIII Kentucky Downs Ladies Sprint S. next out Sept. 12. Rallying to victory in the GIII Buffalo Trace Franklin County S. next out at Keeneland Oct. 9, the speedy chestnut was fifth in the GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint S. at the venue Nov. 7 and went through the ring at Fasig-Tipton the next day, bringing $2.75 million from Spendthrift Farm. They returned her to Mark Casse's barn and My Racehorse, who teamed up with Spendthrift on Horse of the Year Authentic (Into Mischief), joined in as a partner.

Saturday, Gulfstream Park
HONEY FOX S.-GIII, $125,000, Gulfstream, 2-27, 4yo/up, f/m, 1mT, 1:35.52, fm.
1–GOT STORMY, 123, m, 6, by Get Stormy
1st Dam: Super Phoebe, by Malabar Gold
2nd Dam: Air France, by French Deputy
3rd Dam: Twin Propeller, by Known Fact

($23,000 Ylg '16 KEESEP; $45,000 2yo '17 EASMAY; $2,750,000
5yo '20 FTKNOV). O-My Racehorse CA, LLC & Spendthrift Farm
LLC; B-Mt. Joy Stables, Pope, Pope Jr. & Marc McLean (KY);
T-Mark E. Casse; J-Tyler Gaffalione. $75,175. Lifetime Record:
MGISW, 27-11-5-3, $2,096,553. *1/2 to Sky Gold (Successful
Appeal), SP, $151,020. Werk Nick Rating: A.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Zofelle (Ire), 123, m, 5, Zoffany (Ire)–Height of Elegance (Ire),
by Galileo (Ire). (27,000gns 3yo '19 TATJUL). O-Heider Family
Stables LLC; B-Fullbury & Minch Bloodstock (IRE); T-Brendan P.
Walsh. $24,250.
3–Feel Glorious (GB), 120, m, 5, Bated Breath (GB)–Self
Centred (GB), by Medicean (GB). (52,000gns Ylg '17 TAOCT;
130,000gns 2yo '18 TATAHI). O-Reeves Thoroughbred Racing
& Tango Uniform Racing LLC; B-Mrs E. C. Roberts (GB);
T-Christophe Clement. $12,125.
Margins: NO, NK, NK. Odds: 1.10, 1.50, 11.20.
Also Ran: Jakarta, Art of Almost, Ricetta (GB), Secret Time (Ger), Bienville Street. Scratched: Nomizar. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

Pedigree Notes:
Got Stormy is the only Grade I winner for her sire Get Stormy and is one of six graded winners and nine black-type scorers for the stallion. Her dam Super Phoebe is a half-sister to MGSW & MGISP Smooth Air (Smooth Jazz) and GSW Overdriven (Tale of the Cat). The 17-year-old mare is also responsible for the sophomore colt Got Curly (Super Saver); a juvenile colt by Mohaymen, who brought $315,000 at the Fasig-Tipton October Sale; and a yearling colt by Bolt d'Oro. She was bred back to Uncle Mo.

The post Got Stormy Gets the Bob in Honey Fox appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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