Kathleen O'Connell | Horse Racing Free Tips - Part 4

Off 16-Month Layoff, Grade 1 Winner Green Gratto Entered For $20,000 Tag At Monmouth

Found to be infertile and thus gelded, 10-year-old Green Gratto had been entered for a comeback last fall at Gulfstream when a social media firestorm forced him to be withdrawn from that race. Now, according to the Daily Racing Form, the Grade 1 winner has been entered in a $20,000 claiming race on Sunday at Monmouth Park.

“I know the big uproar it caused the last time he was entered, but I think everyone needs to know that this is best for the horse and he has a forever home here,” co-owner Norman Wilson told drf.com.

Unraced since April of 2018, Green Gratto was under the care of trainer Tamara Levy when his first comeback attempt was spoiled. He returned to Wilson's farm, where Wilson said the gelding became listless and unhappy, before he was sent to trainer Kathleen O'Connell in 2020.

Green Gratto has recorded three workouts at Monmouth since late June, and shows works at Tampa Bay Downs as early as Feb. 8 of this year. The gelding is listed at 8-1 on the morning line for Sunday's six-furlong contest, which is restricted to New Jersey-breds.

Prior to his unsuccessful stallion career, Green Gratto amassed earnings of $1,149,202 with a record of nine wins, nine seconds, and nine thirds from 65 starts. His graded stakes victories include the G1 Carter in 2017, G3 Toboggan in 2017 and G3 Fall Heighweight in 2015.

Read more at the Daily Racing Form.

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FTBOA Names 2019 Florida-bred Champions

The Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association has announced its Florida-bred champions for 2019.

For the 16th time in FTBOA history, Charlotte Weber was honored with a Florida-bred champion that was bred by her Live Oak Stud and owned by her Live Oak Plantation as Global Access (Giant’s Causeway) was named the Florida-bred champion 3-year-old colt or gelding. Live Oak Stud was also named the Florida Breeder of the Year for the third time and the Leading Owner by Florida-bred earnings for the fourth time.

Global Access won the 2019 GIII Saranac S., GIII Marine S. and GIII Ontario Derby, and was also named champion 3-year-old colt in Canada.

Blue Heaven Farm’s Starship Jubilee (Indy Wind), heroine of last year’s GI E. P. Taylor S., was named champion older female and champion female turf horse. Bred by William P. Sorren, the 7-year-old mare received Sovereign Awards as Canada’s Horse of the Year and champion female turf horse in 2019.

Shooting Star Thoroughbreds’ Chance It (Currency Swap) garnered the champion 2-year-old colt or gelding title after winning the FTBOA Florida Sire S. Dr. Fager and the FTBOA Florida Sire S. In Reality. He was bred by Bett Usher.

K P Dreamin (Union Rags) was named the Florida-bred champion 2-year-old filly. She was third in both the GI Chandelier S. at Santa Anita and the GI Starlet S. at Los Alamitos. Owned by Karl Pergola, K P Dreamin was bred in Florida by Peter Vegso’s Vegso Racing Stable.

William Stiritz’s Wildwood’s Beauty (Kantharos) used the Florida Sire S. program for older horses and Florida-bred stakes to catapult herself to the title as the Florida-bred champion 3-year-old filly and champion female sprinter. She was bred by Philip and Karen Matthews.

In the stallion categories, Journeyman Stud’s Khozan was Florida’s leading juvenile sire and leading freshman sire, while Ocala Stud resident Adios Charlie was Florida’s stallion of the year.

Kathleen O’Connell and Saffie Joseph, Jr., tied with 58 Florida-bred wins at Florida tracks while O’Connell was also the leading Florida trainer of Florida-breds by black-type stakes wins with six, and Joseph was the leading Florida trainer by Florida-bred earnings with $1,977,046.

The Joe O’Farrell Memorial Award presented by Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company went to William A.T. and Lyn Rainbow’s The Acorn as the original consignor of Starship Jubilee, the year’s top Florida-bred graduate of OBS.

Sally J. Andersen was presented the Needles Award as Florida’s small breeder of the year. Andersen bred multiple stakes winner Anyportinastorm (City Zip).

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