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Classic Encounter in Sam F. Davis

A promising group looking to punch their tickets to this season's Triple Crown in Saturday's 1 1/16-mile GIII Sam F. Davis S., awarding 'Road to the Kentucky Derby' points to the first four finishers (10-14-2-1). Looking to return to the winner's circle is Kentucky West Racing and Clarke M. Cooper's Classic Causeway (Giant's Causeway), trained by Brian Lynch. An impressive 6 1/2-length winner ahead of next-out scorer Trafalgar (Lord Nelson) in his career debut going seven furlongs at Saratoga Sept. 4, the chestnut came home third in Keeneland's GI Claiborne Breeders' Futurity Oct. 9 before playing the bridesmaid to undefeated Smile Happy (Runhappy) in Churchill's GII Kentucky Jockey Club S. Nov. 27. On that occasion, he finished ahead of third-place finisher White Abarrio (Race Day), who returned to annex his seasonal bow in the Feb. 5 GIII Holy Bull S. at Gulfstream. Irad Ortiz Jr. rides Classic Causeway for the first time Saturday.

“I'd like to see him get his first graded-stakes victory and keep picking up Derby points,” said Lynch. “His workouts have been solid, and everything about them suggests he should run well.”

He added, “I feel that if he runs his race, he will certainly fit with these horses. He has a high cruising speed and he has gotten much bigger and stronger as a 3-year-old. He has the tactical speed to not be very far from the engine room, and hopefully, he will be first to the wire.”

Red Oak Stable's Make It Big (Neolithic) attempts to collect his first win at the graded level following a trio of wins, including Gulfstream's Juvenile Sprint S. in October before a narrow score in Remington's Springboard Mile S. Dec. 17.

“He got in between horses and had to rate a bit, and then he got hooked late and had to out-battle him to the wire. It was a very professional performance,” said Saffie Joseph Jr. of the colt's latest win. “This horse has a good mind, and he has found a way to win each time. He probably needs to improve to win Saturday, but he has improved in each race, so hopefully he will follow suit.”

Iris Smith Stable's Shipsational (Midshipman) ventures south following a trio of victories facing fellow New York breds. A debut winner at Saratoga last summer, he was fourth in that venue's state-bred Funny Cide S. but bounced back to win his next two, including the one-mile Sleep Hollow S. at Belmont Oct. 30.

God of Love (Cupid), winner of the GIII Grey S. at Woodbine last November, is one of three runners for Mark Casse. The Hall of Famer also conditions undefeated Golden Glider (Ghostzapper) and recent maiden winner Volcanic (Violence).

Howling Time (Not This Time) was a late scratch Friday.

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Rattle N Roll, Make It Big Top Nominees To Tampa’s First Derby Prep

Rattle N Roll, who won the Grade 1 Claiborne Breeders' Futurity on Oct. 9 at Keeneland in his most recent start, and Make It Big, whose 3-for-3 record includes two stakes victories, head a list of 48 nominations for the 42nd renewal of the Grade 3, $250,000 Sam F. Davis Stakes for 3-year-olds on the Feb. 12 Festival Preview Day card at Tampa Bay Downs.

The Sam F. Davis Stakes, contested at a distance of a mile-and-a-sixteenth on the main dirt track, is a “Road to the Kentucky Derby” points race, with the top four finishers receiving points on a 10-4-2-1 scale toward qualifying for a spot in the Run for the Roses at Churchill Downs on May 7. The Sam F. Davis is also a precursor to the Grade 2, $400,000 Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby on March 12, a “Road to the Kentucky Derby” points race awarding 50, 20, 10 and 5 points to the first four finishers.

Three other stakes are scheduled on the Festival Preview Day card. They include the $150,000, mile-and-40-yard Suncoast Stakes for 3-year-old fillies, which is a “Road to the Kentucky Oaks” points race; the $100,000, 6-furlong Pelican Stakes, for horses 4-years-old-and-upward; and the $50,000, 6-furlong Minaret Stakes, for fillies and mares 4-and-upward.

The list of Sam F. Davis nominations includes eight from the barn of Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher, who has won the race a record six times, most recently with Destin in 2016. Heading the list of Pletcher-trained candidates is Mo Donegal, who won the Grade 2 Remsen Stakes on Dec. 4 at Aqueduct, and Emmanuel, who won Sunday's sixth race impressively at Tampa.

Rattle N Roll, a Kentucky-bred colt owned by the Mackin family's Lucky Seven Stable and trained by Ken McPeek, won the 1 1/16-mile Claiborne Breeders' Futurity by a widening 4 ¼ lengths under jockey Brian Hernandez, Jr. After targeting a start in the TVG Breeders' Cup Juvenile Presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance at Del Mar, McPeek changed course after the horse developed a minor foot issue.

Rattle N Roll returned to the workout tab earlier this month at Gulfstream Park and breezed three furlongs Saturday in 35.67 seconds.

Make It Big, owned by Red Oak Stable and trained by Saffie Joseph, Jr., won the Ocala Stud Juvenile Sprint Stakes on Oct. 30 at Gulfstream and the Remington Springboard Mile Stakes on Dec. 17 at Remington Park in his last two starts. Jose Ortiz was aboard for the most recent victory.

Here are the links to the nominations and their past performances for the Sam F. Davis Stakes:

https://www.equibase.com/premium/eqbHorsemenAreaDownloadAction.cfm?sn=SN-TAM-20220212-573142

https://www.equibase.com/premium/eqbHorsemenAreaDownloadAction.cfm?sn=SNPP-TAM-20220212-573142

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Record Springboard Mile Handle Closes Successful Season At Remington Park

Remington Park ended the 2021 Thoroughbred Season with a thrilling Springboard Mile Night on Friday, Dec. 17 as Make It Big won a stretch-long battle with Osbourne to win the track's top stakes event for 2-year-olds.

Both Make It Big (10 pts.) and Osbourne (4 pts.) earned qualifying points for the 2022 Kentucky Derby for their efforts in the Springboard Mile. The featured race was accompanied by a solid undercard of 12 other races with four of those also stakes events. The big night catapulted Remington Park to a record pari-mutuel handle night with wagering reaching $4,050,597. It was the first time in track history that handle on a single racing program exceeded the $4 million.

Total handle for the 67-date Remington Park season (Aug. 20-Dec. 17) reached $98,120,236, an increase of 31.2 percent over the similar number from the 2019 season which handled $74,806,848.

Remington Park also welcomed racing guests back in full for 2021, for the first time since 2019. Those on-track players responded with handle of $3,471,207 an increase of 15.8 percent over the 2019 mark of $2,997,881.

Export handle on Remington Park remained strong with $94,497,917 wagered by players from outside the jurisdiction controlled locally. That is an increase of 31.9 percent above the 2019 total of $71,620,980.

Remington Park's one off-track partner, Thunder Roadhouse in Oklahoma City, handled $151,112. Thunder Roadhouse is less than nine miles from Remington Park, offering wagering convenience to many local horseplayers.

Remington Park horsemen competed for record amounts in total purses of $17,838,020, an average of $266,239 daily. These totals are up 5.1 percent, topping the total mark of $16,971,799 in 2019, when the daily average was $253,310.

All handle and purses comparisons are made to the 2019 season, which was 67 dates in length and the most recent Thoroughbred season at Remington Park where the entire facility was available to guests. The 2020 season was conducted under limited access guidelines due to health concerns brought by the pandemic. 2019 was also the last racing year where the North American horse racing market operated on a regular business level.

There were 601 races conducted this season, nine fewer than a year ago. A total of 4,991 horses started this season for an average field size of 8.3. There were 5,261 starters in 2020 with average field size of 8.6 per race.

Remington Park live racing is on hiatus until the beginning of the 2022 American Quarter Horse Season, starting March 3. Thoroughbred racing will return in late August 2022.

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Four Stakes Wins Across Two Tracks Net Jose Ortiz Jockey Of The Week Title

Jockey Jose Ortiz had three mounts in stakes races at Remington Park on Friday and he made the most of the opportunities. He won all three and then returned to New York on Saturday to win a division of the New York Stallion Stakes Series. Those four stakes victories earned Ortiz Jockey of the Week for Dec. 13 through Dec. 19. The honor, which is voted on by a panel of racing experts, is for jockeys who are members of the Jockeys' Guild, the organization which represents more than 1050 active, retired and permanently disabled jockeys in the United States.

At Remington Park Friday evening, Hall of Fame trainer Steve Asmussen gave a leg up to Ortiz on Casual in the She's All In Stakes for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up. Off at odds of 2-1 in the field of eight, Casual tracked the pace, took command on the far turn and cruised to a 5 1/4-length win in 1:43.96 for the one mile and seventy yard contest on the dirt track. Ortiz was riding the 4-year-old Casual for the first time.

Riding again for Asmussen, Ortiz was aboard Optionality in the Trapeze Stakes for 2-year-old fillies. Just past the half-mile marker, she went to the lead and was never headed drawing off to an impressive 8-1/4 length victory in 1:41.10 for one mile.

“She broke good,” Ortiz said to the Remington Park Publicity team, “and Steve had her ready. She started looking around at the end with it being nighttime and the lights and shadows at the wire, but she got the job done.”

In the final stakes race on the Remington card, trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. called on Ortiz to ride Make It Big in the Springboard Mile for 2-year-olds with Kentucky Derby points on the line. Off as the favorite in the field of seven, Make It Big battled with race favorite Osborne throughout the stretch, posting a half-length win for the mile contest in 1:41.23. Ortiz picked up the mount after regular rider Edgard Zayas had shoulder surgery.

Back at Aqueduct on Saturday, Ortiz rode Yo Cuz for Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott in the Fifth Avenue Division of the New York Stallion Stakes Series, a seven furlong sprint for eligible New York-sired juvenile fillies. Breaking third in the field of 11, Yo Cuz was hustled to the lead and held off a determined Morning Matcha to post a 1 3/4-length win in 1:25.34. The win was the third on the card for Ortiz.

“When you ride good horses, this is what happens,” said Ortiz to the NYRA publicity team. “You get more chances to win races. I appreciate all the opportunities I have been getting with big owners and big trainers supporting my career. That's what it is all about. You have to have the horse to win.”

Weekly statistics for Ortiz included a 31.5 percent win rate and total purse earnings of $778,748.

Other nominees for Jockey of the Week were Junior Alvarado who won the G2 Ft. Lauderdale, Kendrick Carmouche who won the Gravesend at Aqueduct, Luis Saez with two graded stakes at Gulfstream, and Luis A. Valenzuela who won two stakes at Turf Paradise.

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