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Abaan Controls Pace, Romps To Easy Victory In Two-Mile H. Allen Jerkens

Alex Daigneault and Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners' Abaan set all the fractions while racing loose on the lead before drawing clear to a three-length victory in Friday's $100,000 H. Allen Jerkens at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

Trained by Todd Pletcher, the 4-year-old son of Will Take Charge, who galloped the first mile in 1:44.56, ran the two miles of the turf stakes named in memory of the legendary Hall of Fame trainer in 3:24.24 under Luis Saez.

“Today, he controlled the pace and when I came into the stretch, I had a lot of horse,” Saez said. “It was a long distance, but every step he felt comfortable. He just did it pretty easy.

The 7-5 favorite, coming off a dominating 1 3/8-mile optional claiming allowance victory at Aqueduct, was victorious in his stakes debut in the Jerkens.

Ajourneytofreedom, the 8-5 second choice ridden by Paco Lopez, chased Abaan throughout the two miles and had to settle for second. Fantasioso checked in third after racing in third through most of the race.

Who's Hot: Jockey Chantal Sutherland and trainer Jorge Delgado teamed for a double with King Cairo ($7.20) in Race 4 and Yes I'm a Beast ($3.40) in Race 7.

Trainer Armando De La Cerda saddled a pair or winners: Science Friction ($17.40) in Race 2 and California Frolic ($16.40) in Race 9.

Paco Lopez rode a pair of winners: Thelastbulletsmine ($6.60) in Race 3 and Lookinlikeaqueen ($11) in Race 6.

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Tampa Bay Downs, HorseTourneys Teaming Up For Jan 8 High Rollers Handicapping Contest

The annual High Rollers Handicapping Contest Presented by HorseTourneys is Jan. 8 at Tampa Bay Downs in Oldsmar, Fla., with first prize (based on 100 players) of $20,000. Players are required to deposit $1,000 to enter, with $500 serving as the player's bankroll for wagering and the remaining $500 going to the prize pool. At the conclusion of the tournament, any dollar amount remaining in the bankroll remains the property of the player.

Wager types permitted are win, place and show only, with each player making five $100 win, place and/or show bets during the tournament. The player with the highest bankroll takes top prize (50 percent of the prize pool), plus a seat in either the 2022 or 2023 National Thoroughbred Racing Association National Handicapping Championship in Las Vegas, plus accommodations.

To enter, register at www.tampabaydowns.com and make the required $1,000 payment by noon on Jan. 8. For details, contact Margo Flynn at mjflynn@tampabaydowns.com or (813) 855-4401, extension 1368.

Thoroughbred racing continues Sunday, Dec. 26, with a nine-race card beginning at 12:15 p.m. ET. Sunday is also the first day of the track's annual “Calendar Giveaway,” with the 2022 edition given away free to the first 5,000 patrons. The calendar features a variety of images certain to enhance fans' enjoyment of the track and the horses.

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35 Years Ago, Sundays Were Silent At Tampa Bay Downs

Sunday racing returns to Tampa Bay Downs on Dec. 26, the day after Christmas, which is welcome news for families, tourists and bettors seeking to enjoy an exciting weekend afternoon of Thoroughbred action or just soak up sunshine and atmosphere at the Oldsmar, Fla., track.

While a Sunday spent handicapping by the rail and watching kids toss Frisbees in the Backyard Picnic Area seems commonplace, it wasn't always so. The first Sunday card in Tampa Bay Downs history took place on Dec. 7, 1986, and there was no way to predict how it would be received by the public.

Sunday racing became a reality after the state legislature decided to move Florida into step with more progressive fiefdoms.

“We are expecting a large crowd comparable to our Saturday crowds and maybe even better,” Lorraine King, the late Tampa Bay Downs general manager, said on the eve of the occasion. “If we can introduce new people to the sport of Thoroughbred racing by running on Sundays, then we are confident that they will enjoy themselves and come back on a more regular basis.”

At least one thing seemed to be working in the track's favor: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were playing in Chicago, and you had to be kind of a masochist to stay home and watch the Buccos get plastered 48-14 by the defending Super Bowl champion Bears.

Still, King knew putting on a brave face wasn't going to lure fans. So she instituted free grandstand admission and half-price clubhouse admission and added a free soft drink to go with every hot dog purchase.

Tampa Bay Downs also offered a handicapping seminar by noted Ocala turf writer and racing expert Bernie Dickman, plus a slate of races that included the first running of the Big John Naughton Ford Inaugural Stakes for 2-year-olds, offering a grandiose $15,000-added purse.

One thing King was sure of: the history-making event would draw lots of media attention. Reporters from the St. Petersburg Times, the Tampa Tribune and the Clearwater Sun all showed up to document the proceedings.

What they witnessed exceeded the expectations of the most optimistic observers. The turnstiles kept clicking throughout the day, with attendance of 5,893 surpassing the Opening Day crowd of 5,396 four days earlier.

While it's unclear if King was sticking the needle to the Bucs when she told a Times reporter “Today was very much like the Super Bowl,” she had reason to feel giddy.

Total wagering handle was $496,680 (this was before the simulcasting era), and youthful faces made up a larger-than-usual portion of the crowd (minors were not legally allowed inside Tampa Bay Downs until two seasons later).

These days, calling it an “experiment” seems silly, but 35 years ago it was a big deal, and an avenue to so many of the positive changes that have taken place at Tampa Bay Downs in ensuing years.

“Sunday racing means that people who work the other days of the week now have the opportunity to come out and enjoy the races,” said track owner Stella F. Thayer, the Oldsmar oval's president and treasurer, on the big afternoon.

“We're really hoping Sundays will bring a whole new dimension for attendance opportunities.”

So, maybe the day was more of a Super Bowl-type event than anyone realized at the time (including Bucs' fans, who would suffer through a 2-14 season).

“Naturally, if people unfamiliar with the sport are going to come out to Tampa Bay Downs, they are not as likely to wager as much as our more sophisticated patrons,” King said beforehand. “But … what I want to see is a lot of people. That means they will at least be exposed to the excitement of Thoroughbred racing.”

It would be fascinating to know how many are still coming. Probably more than anyone expected.

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Hello Beautiful Rounds Out 2021 Season With Willa On The Move Try

Though her career has been one with far more successes than failures, Hello Beautiful has also shown a resilience to match her talent. Trainer Brittany Russell will be hoping for more of the same from the history-making filly when she caps her 4-year-old season in the $100,000 Willa On the Move Dec. 26 at Laurel Park in Laurel, Md.

Madaket Stables, Albert Frassetto, Mark Parkinson, K-Mac Stables, and Magic City Stables' Hello Beautiful had a three-race win streak snapped when she finished last of five as the favorite in the six-furlong Politely Nov. 26 at Laurel. Russell said the Golden Lad filly came back well, if agitated, from the performance.

“She was very unhappy after the race, in a just [ticked] off kind of way. She knew that it wasn't supposed to go like that,” Russell said. “When I went back to check on her, it wasn't her normal munching her hay. It was like, 'Get away from me.' The important thing is she's doing well, and she's still Hello Beautiful.

“She's been fine. She really only ran about a quarter of a mile, if you really look at how it went down,” she added. “She came back no worse for the wear. She's doing fine, and she's trained well since.”

Prior to the Politely, Hello Beautiful was a front-running winner of the Alma North at historic Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md., and the Weather Vane and Maryland Million Distaff to put her career win total at 10, eight of them in stakes. She is one of only seven horses in event history with three Maryland Million victories.

Hello Beautiful broke from the rail and found herself atypically behind horses in the Politely, outrun to the lead by Princess Kokachin, another speedy type that drew the post just outside the favorite. Jockey Jevian Toledo opted to drop back and then make a run that never materialized.

“I probably should have been a little more clear with Toledo to just kind of stay on that filly. We know our filly. She was a step slow that day, but you've got to go. You've got to go with her,” Russell said. “They were moving, they were going quick, but that's our game, too. When she kind of got checked out of there, it was over.”

Toledo climbs back aboard for the fourth straight race in place of Russell's husband, injured jockey Sheldon Russell, and they drew Post 6 in a field of eight at 124 pounds, a topweight she shares with Call On Mischief and Jakarta.

“You can look at it all different ways, but had our filly drawn outside that filly that day, it might have been a different outcome, too. It's fine. It happens,” Russell said. “You better learn how to lose races, because we lose a lot more than we win. Just be a good loser and hopefully, she bounces back next time.”

Eric Rizer's homebred Princess Kokachin will break inside Hello Beautiful from Post 3 under regular rider Xavier Perez, looking to extend her win streak to six races. The Politely marked the stakes debut for the Jerry Robb-trained 3-year-old Graydar filly, with all of those victories coming against older horses. She set testing fractions of :21.98 and :45.12 before finishing up in 1:11.22 to win by 5 ½ lengths.

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Beaten in the Alma North and May 15 Skipat, also at Pimlico, in two previous trips to Maryland this year, Down Neck Stables' Call On Mischief is set to make her Laurel debut. She prevailed by a half-length after a prolonged drive to win the six-furlong Mahoning Distaff Nov. 22, and was most recently second in the Garland of Roses Dec. 11 over a sloppy surface at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y.

Five Hellions Farm's Dontletsweetfoolya captured last year's Willa On the Move to cap her 3-year-old campaign on a five-race win streak. Winless in her first four starts to open 2021, she went three months between the Grade 3 Runhappy Barbara Fritchie Feb. 20 and Skipat, and returned to the winner's circle with a popular 6 ¼-length optional claiming allowance triumph in front-running fashion sprinting six furlongs Nov. 5 at Laurel.

Also entered are Three Diamonds Farm's Jakarta, a stakes winner making her first start for trainer Mike Trombetta and first dirt start since running fourth in the June 2020 G3 Vagrancy at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.; Kaylasaurus, racing first off the claim for Penn National-based trainer Tim Kreiser; Kentucky shipper Miss Mosiac; and multiple stakes-placed Paisley Singing.

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