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Florida HBPA Honors Dwoskin, Con Lima At Annual Awards Ceremony

The Florida HBPA held its annual General Nominating Meeting and Awards Dinner Saturday night at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., with nearly 100 owners, trainers, jockeys, grooms, and racing executives in attendance at Ten Palms. The guest speaker was the new President and CEO of the NTRA, Tom Rooney. The evening closed with the annual FHBPA Awards Ceremony. Host Ron Nicoletti announced the winners in nine categories.

“We also changed it up a little this year to honor one of our owners or trainers not just for their accomplishments on the racetrack, but also for their contributions to our community,” Screnci added. “Steve Dwoskin is our first FHBPA 'Person of Distinction,' and we couldn't have found a worthier candidate for the award.”

An owner and trainer in South Florida since 1969, Dwoskin has long been a partner with Sylvester Comprehensive Care Center, a part of the University of Miami Health System (UHealth). A generous donation to Sylvester helped to fund the Dwoskin Proton Therapy Center, which began treating patients with advanced and precise radiation therapy last September.

He is also the owner/trainer of this year's Champion Older Filly/Mare Choose Joy.

Dwoskin, who lost his father and brother to cancer, was emotional when he said, “I can handle most anything, but I couldn't handle it when my brother and my father got cancer. When I first got involved [with Sylvester], it was strictly for research, trying to find a cure for cancer. But I got pretty strong there, and I started helping people, friends, and family. If anyone from the horse industry ever needs help, I'm here for you. Helping people – that's what makes me feel really good.”

The complete list of the 2021 FHBPA Champions is:

Person of Distinction: Steve Dwoskin

Two-Year-Old Colt/Gelding: Octane (Arindel, Owner; Carlos David, Trainer)

Two-Year-Old Filly: Outfoxed (LNJ Foxwoods, Owner; Bill Mott, Trainer)

Three-Year-Old Colt: Papetu (Magic Stables LLC, Owner; Antonio Sano, Trainer)

Three-Year-Old Filly: Con Lima (Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, Joseph F. Graffeo, Eric Nikolaus Del Toro, and Troy Johnson, Owner; Todd Pletcher, Trainer)

Older Horse/Gelding: Miles Ahead (David Melin, Leon Ellman, and Laurie Plesa, Owner; Eddie Plesa, Trainer)

Older Filly/Mare: Choose Joy (Steve Dwoskin, Owner/Trainer)

Turf Horse/Gelding: Warrior's Pride (Just for Fun Stables, Owner; Antonio Cioffi, Trainer)

Turf Filly/Mare: Shifty She (Chris Pallas and Harvey Rothenberg, Owner; Saffie Joseph Jr., Trainer)

The Dinner also featured the nominations for the 2022 FHPBA Election, which will be announced next week.

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Florida HBPA Honors 2021 Award Winners

The Florida HBPA held its annual General Nominating Meeting and Awards Dinner Saturday night at Gulfstream Park, with nearly 100 owners, trainers, jockeys, grooms and racing executives in attendance at Ten Palms. The guest speaker was the new President and CEO of the NTRA, Tom Rooney and the evening closed with the annual FHBPA Awards Ceremony.

“Each year, the Florida HBPA recognizes the horses that shine not just during the Championship Meet, but year-round in South Florida,” FHBPA President Stephen Screnci said. “All of our Champions competed at Gulfstream during the Royal Palm and Flamingo Festival meets that run from April through November. We also changed it up a little this year to honor one of our owners or trainers not just for their accomplishments on the racetrack, but also for their contributions to our community. Steve Dwoskin is our first FHBPA 'Person of Distinction,' and we couldn't have found a worthier candidate for the award.”

Dwoskin, who lost his father and brother to cancer, was emotional when he said, “I can handle most anything, but I couldn't handle it when my brother and my father got cancer. When I first got involved [with Sylvester], it was strictly for research, trying to find a cure for cancer. But I got pretty strong there, and I started helping people, friends and family. If anyone from the horse industry ever needs help, I'm here for you. Helping people–that's what makes me feel really good.”

The night's other winners were:

• Two-Year-Old Colt/Gelding: Octane (Brethen) Arindel, Owner; Carlos David, Trainer
• Two-Year-Old Filly: Outfoxed (Valiant Minister) LNJ Foxwoods, Owner; Bill Mott, Trainer
• Three-Year-Old Colt: Papetu (Dialed In) Magic Stables LLC, Owner; Antonio Sano, Trainer
• Three-Year-Old Filly: Con Lima (Commissioner) Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners, Joseph F. Graffeo, Eric Nikolaus Del Toro & Troy Johnson, Owner; Todd Pletcher, Trainer
• Older Horse/Gelding: Miles Ahead (Competitive Edge) David Melin, Leon Ellman and Laurie Plesa, Owner; Eddie Plesa, Trainer
• Older Filly/Mare: Choose Joy (Munnings) Steve Dwoskin, Owner/Trainer
• Turf Horse/Gelding: Warrior's Pride (Poseidon's Warrior) Just for Fun Stables, Owner; Antonio Cioffi, Trainer
• Turf Filly/Mare: Shifty She (Gone Astray) Chris Pallas and Harvey Rothenberg, Owner; Saffie Joseph, Jr., Trainer

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Officiating Wins Bear’s Den Over Sloppy Gulfstream Track

Vegso Racing Stable's Officiating took advantage of a dream race scenario in Sunday's $75,000 Bear's Den, kicking in through the stretch to score by 3 ½ lengths over heavily favored Papetu after saving ground while tracking a contested pace.

The Bear's Den, a 7-furlong stakes for 3-year-olds, headlined Sunday's 10-race program that also featured the $60,000 Pembroke Park, a five-furlong overnight handicap for 3-year-olds and up at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

The Saffie Joseph Jr.-trained Officiating, who is stakes-placed on turf, seemed to relish the sloppy track Sunday, when a heavy mid-afternoon shower forced the Bear's Den, scheduled for 7 ½ furlongs on turf, to be run on the main track at seven furlongs.

Officiating, who was ridden by Emisael Jaramillo, settled nicely on the backstretch a few lengths behind a solid pace set by Exchange Day and pressed by Dark Timber. The pacesetters were joined by Papetu, who made a three-wide sweep on the far turn. Dark Timber took the lead into the stretch off half-mile fractions of 22.46 and 45.31 seconds with Papetu looming boldly on the far outside. Eased off the rail for the stretch run, Officiating quickly accelerated and surged between Dark Timer and Papetu to grab the lead inside the 1/16th-pole with legs fresh enough to hold the favorite at bay and claim his first career stakes win.

Formerly trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott, Officiating ran seven furlongs in 1:23.11 in his third start for Joseph. Papetu, who won the Carry Back two starts back, finished second under Edgard Zayas, four lengths ahead of Dark Timber and jockey Edwin Gonzalez.

The Pembroke Park was also moved from the turf course to the main track, which posed no inconvenience to Golden Kernel Racing Stable's Yes I Am Free, who scored a narrow hard-fought victory and second success in as many starts on off going.

The Laura Cazares-trained Yes I Am Free also notched his first stakes victory since winning the Texas Glitter at five furlongs on turf at Gulfstream in February 2019.

The son of Uncaptured also benefitted from troubled trips that compromised graded-stakes winners Miles Ahead, the 2-1 favorite who trailed the field early after being bumped at the start, and Double Crown, who was forced to race very wide after breaking a step slowly from his far-outside post position.

Yes I Am Free chased early pacesetter Malroux before taking over the lead heading into the stretch with Double Crown on the attack to his outside. Double Crown's progress slowed in mid-stretch but Yes I Am Free was in the sights of rallying Man of Honor and Miles Ahead. The Florida-bred gelding responded to urging from Miguel Vasquez to win by a neck over a surging Miles Ahead, who had launched a very wide extended rally on the far turn. Man of Honor finished third, another neck back and a half-length ahead of Double Crown.

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Boland Gets Stakes Win With Perfect Silent Cat In Aventura At Gulfstream

Although Perfect Silent Cat entered Saturday's $60,000 Aventura at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., as a maiden, trainer Sharon Boland had a high level of confidence in the son of Tale of the Cat.

“I knew what I had,” Boland said. “You can make those moves when you know what you have running for you.”

Perfect Silent Cat rewarded Boland's faith by providing her with her first stakes victory on her own, although she is hardly a newcomer to the stakes game.

The daughter of Bill Boland, the Hall of Fame jockey who won the 1950 Kentucky Derby aboard Middleground, Sharon has been training and working with horses for more than 30 years.

“Unfortunately, because my father was a steward, they wouldn't let me run horses in my name. In those days, they thought it was a conflict of interest, so I took a back seat and let my [then] husband [multiple graded stakes-winning trainer Anthony Mitchell] run them in his name,” said Boland, who has 21 horses stabled at Palm Meadows, Gulfstream's satellite training facility in Palm Beach County, in her second year of training her own public stable.”

The Charles Fipke-bred Perfect Silent Cat ($27.20) was purchased for $6,000 in February at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Mixed Sale by Shamrock Highlands Thoroughbreds.

“The owner is a new client who bought him and brought him to our stable. We couldn't figure why he slipped through the cracks,” said Boland, whose 89-year-old father lives in Palm Coast, Fla., and plays golf frequently. “We found a few little things we were able to fix, and from the second we fixed his little issues, he's been a 100-percent performer who gives you everything. He's the nicest colt I've been around – just a class act.”

Perfect Silent Cat had run three prior races – an off-the-board debut on dirt, a third-place finish on turf, and a runner-up finish in the June 26 Not Surprising Stakes over a yielding Gulfstream turf course last time out. The Kentucky-bred colt was the beneficiary of a perfect trip under Luca Panici, pressing the pace outside Rabdan past fractions of :24.47 and :48.04 seconds for the first half mile of the mile overnight handicap before drawing away to a three-length score.

Perfect Silent Cat carried the low weight of 114 pounds, 10 fewer pounds than highweight Papetu, the 1-5 favorite who finished fourth following a rough trip in traffic. Perfect Silent Cat ran a mile over a sealed sloppy track in 1:36.35. Emperor's Cause finished second following a three-wide trip, a neck ahead of a tiring Rabdan, who was 1 ¼ lengths clear of Papetu, who had captured the Carry Back Stakes in his prior start.

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