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Cattin Victorious In Inaugural Stakes At Tampa Bay Downs

In today's other stakes at Tampa Bay Downs in Tampa, Fla., the 36th edition of the $100,000-guaranteed Inaugural for males, Florida-bred 2-year colt Cattin moved smartly to the lead on the turn for home under jockey Samy Camacho and continued like he'd appreciate more distance, winning by 2 ½ lengths from another Florida-bred, Lightening Larry.

Cattin's time for the six furlongs was 1:10.90. The victory lifted the spirits of Gulfstream Park-based trainer Ralph Nicks, whose father, long-time trainer Morris Nicks, died on Nov. 25 at 74 after a prolonged fight against cancer.

In the Inaugural, Camacho had close to a dream trip after breaking from the No. 4 post on Cattin, who improved to 2-for-4. “I think I got the perfect trip, because two horses (Magical Mousse, the fourth-place finisher, and Full Disclosure) were fighting on the lead and I was able to sit fourth or fifth early,” said Camacho, who also won the third race on the Florida-bred gelding Morgan Point for breeder-owner Robert C. Roffey, Jr., and trainer Chad Stewart.

“I got a chance to go inside (Lightening Larry) and when I put my horse in the clear, I thought the race was over. I feel great because Ralph Nicks gave me this great opportunity, and I want to keep it going.”

Camacho also won last year's Inaugural with Poppy's Pride. Grand Valley finished a non-threatening third.

Cattin, who is owned by Corinne Heiligbrodt, William Heiligbrodt, and Spendthrift Farm, was bred by Curtis Mikkelsen and Patricia Horth. The son of Neolithic-Adios Dawn, by Adios Charlie, fulfilled all the eligibility requirements, thus collected $80,000 from the purse.

He paid $11.40 to win.

Ralph Nicks's assistant, Sonny Righter, said hopes were high entering the Inaugural after Cattin finished a solid third in his most recent start, the mile-and-a-sixteenth Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' and Owners' Association Florida Sire In Reality Stakes on Sept. 25 at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

“I thought he would run good today,” Righter said. “I was worried he might get shuffled back early, but Samy got him back in the race pretty quick and he caught a good trip after that. He was feeling good going into the race and he ran huge.”

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Pair Of Juvenile Stakes Headline Saturday’s Card At Tampa

Saturday's $100,000 Inaugural Stakes for 2-year-old colts and geldings and the $100,000 Sandpiper Stakes for 2-year-old fillies each attracted 10 entrants and are part of Tampa Bay Downs' 10-race card that begins at 12:10 p.m.

Heading the field for the Inaugural, which is the ninth race on the card, is the gelding Concrete Glory, a Pennsylvania-bred son of Bodemeister who has won three races in a row by a combined margin of 20 lengths. Owned by Carl L. Hess, Jr., and trained by Gerald Brooks, Concrete Glory will be ridden by Antonio Gallardo while breaking from the outside No. 10 post.

Inaugural bettors will also pay close attention to Optigogo, a colt who finished third in the Display Stakes in his most recent start on Oct. 30 at Woodbine. Rocco Bowen is named to ride for owner Calumet Farm and trainer Eoin Harty.

The Sandpiper is the seventh race on the card. Gallardo appears to have another top contender in Florida-bred Strategic Bird, who broke her maiden by 12 ¾ lengths last month at Gulfstream for owner Gary Barber and Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse. Strategic Bird drew the inside No. 1 post.

Also looking tough is trainer David Fawkes's Florida-bred filly Chasing Happiness, who will break from the No. 4 post under Pablo Morales.

Saturday also marks the start of the “10 Days of Festivus Challenge,” an online handicapping contest that runs from Saturday through Dec. 24. There is no cost to enter and handicappers of all experience levels get to test their skills against some of the best.

The contest is a lot of fun and offers a first-place prize of $1,000. Each player begins the “10 Days of Festivus Challenge” with a free lifeline, and players who get off to a slow start may purchase additional lifelines as the contest moves forward.

Participants must register by 10:30 a.m. on the first day of the contest. All wagers are mythical, and players select one horse in one of each day's “Challenge Races,” with results determined from a $2 mythical win-place-show wager on their pick.

A full set of rules is available on the contest website, which can be accessed at www.tampabaydowns.com (click Festivus Challenge on the home page, then click “Create an account” near the top right of the contest page).

The contest focus is on picking winners, so it is likely to produce several “diamond-in-the-rough” contenders who know how to map out a race and factor in all the variables that make handicapping such a fun and challenging endeavor.

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Inaugural, Sandpiper Kick Off Stakes Calendar At Tampa Bay Downs

Promising 2-year-olds, some whose connections have designs on tackling bigger challenges in 2022, will step into the spotlight on Saturday, Dec. 4 when Tampa Bay Downs in Oldsmar, Fla., launches its stakes schedule with a pair of $100,000 six-furlong sprints.

The 36th running of the Inaugural Stakes for 2-year-olds and the 44th edition of the Sandpiper Stakes for 2-year-old fillies begin a progression of Oldsmar stakes races that could lead the best of the bunch to a date with equine destiny in more lucrative engagements as 3-year-olds next year (for record-keeping purposes, all Thoroughbreds are considered to age a year on Jan. 1).

The Inaugural has drawn 28 nominations, while the Sandpiper has attracted 33 nominations. The Inaugural, for colts and geldings, is designed as a precursor to the $125,000 seven-furlong Pasco Stakes on Jan. 15. The next steps for the most talented of the males include the $250,000 Grade 3 Sam F. Davis Stakes at a mile-and-a-sixteenth on Feb. 12 and the $400,000 G2 Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby on March 12.

Both the Sam F. Davis and the Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby are “Road to the Kentucky Derby” races, awarding points to the first four finishers toward qualifying for a spot in the starting gate at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., in the Run for the Roses on May 7.

Gerry Stanislawzyk, the Tampa Bay Downs Stakes Coordinator, said possible Inaugural starters include the gelding Captain Cajun, who broke his maiden on Oct. 3 at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla. The son of Cajun Breeze is trained by Michael Yates, who won last year's Inaugural with Poppy's Pride.

Other Inaugural possible include gelding Concrete Glory, whose three career victories for trainer Gerald Brooks have come at different tracks; Little Vic, a maiden winner at Gulfstream from the barn of trainer Juan Carlos Avila; Viva Victory, a winner on turf at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J., in his only start for owner-trainer Arnoud Dobber; and Whistlewhileyoumow, who broke his maiden earlier this month at Hawthorne Race Course in Stickney, Ill., for trainer Jon Arnett.

The next step after the Sandpiper for the fillies is the $125,000 seven-furlong Gasparilla Stakes on Jan. 15. Those showing sufficient talent and desire could then advance to the $150,000 Suncoast Stakes, a mile-and-40-yard contest on Feb. 12.

The Suncoast is a “Road to the Kentucky Oaks” race, awarding points to the first four finishers toward earning a spot in the May 6 Kentucky Oaks.

Sandpiper possibles, according to Stanislawzyk, include Last Leaf, whose three victories from six starts for trainer Ron Spatz include a score in the Hollywood Beach Stakes on the turf on Sept. 25 at Gulfstream.

Other possible entrants include Strategic Bird, who broke her maiden by 12 ¾ lengths in her career debut on Nov. 13 at Gulfstream for trainer Mark Casse; Chasing Happiness, a David Fawkes-trainee who broke her maiden at Gulfstream earlier this month by 6 ½ lengths; and She's My Warrior, who won the Northern Lights Debutant Stakes in September at Canterbury Park in Shakopee, Minn., for trainer Tim Padilla.

The Inaugural and the Sandpiper are part of what is certain to be a December to remember as action at Tampa Bay Downs heats up approaching the holiday season.

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