Rain, Sloppy Track Fail to Dampen Pegasus Day; Stakes Recaps

By David Joseph —-

Meg Griffin Photo

HALLANDALE BEACH, FL – Despite a sloppy track, rainy conditions and three races being taken off the turf, Saturday’s Pegasus World Cup Day was a huge success at Gulfstream Park.

On-track handle for the 12 races was $4.123 million, flat with last year’s on-track handle of $4.131. Total handle, despite the conditions was $37.786 million, down just 10 percent from 2018.

“It was an incredible day of racing and entertainment,” said Gulfstream’s General Manager Bill Badgett. “There was a great energy throughout the building and, despite the conditions and the three races being taken off the turf, the day was a great success and continues building on The Stronach Group’s modernization of Thoroughbred racing. We want to thank the fans, the horsemen, and the performances of all our athletes. We look forward to the coming weeks of the Championship Meet with more incredible races and entertainment.”

Si Que Es Buena; Lauren King Photo

Si Que Es Buena Rambles to Victory in $200,000 La Prevoyante (G3)

Takaya Shimakawa’s Si Que Es Buena remained unbeaten over Gulfstream Park’s turf course after winning Saturday’s $200,000 La Prevoyante (G3). It was the Argentinean-bred’s second consecutive stakes victory at Gulfstream Park, following her win in the Via Borghese Stakes in December.

Ridden by Chris Landeros, Si Que Es Buena was a one-length winner over the La Prevoyante’s 9-5 favorite, Santa Monica, who finished 1 1/2 lengths in front of the third-place finisher, Semper Sententiae, in the 12-horse field of older fillies and mares.

Trained by Graham Motion, Si Que Es Buena settled comfortably several lengths off the leaders, Rahway and A. A. Azula’s Arch, who set soft fractions over the yielding turf in the 1 1/2-mile La Prevoyante. Santa Monica was directly behind the eventual winner down the backstretch, but then she got the jump on that rival and appeared to be on her way to victory. Si Que Es Buena, however, had different ideas and swooped to the outside in deep stretch to collar Santa Monica as the finish line loomed.

The final time was 2:34.04. The winner returned $17.

A 6-year-old daughter of Equal Stripes, Si Que Es Buena arrived in Motion’s barn from South America last fall. In her first start for her new trainer, Si Que Es Buena finished fourth in the Long Island Handicap (G3) at Aqueduct in November, before winning the Via Borghese at Gulfstream Park on Dec. 29.

La Prevoyante Stakes (G3) Quotes

Winning Trainer Graham Motion (Si Que Es Buena):

“She was a private purchase. She’s a cool filly. What a great ride. Gosh, he’s riding good, this kid. I really hadn’t ridden him until he came to Gulfstream. He rode her very patiently. She’s had two big races pretty close together. I won’t be in a hurry to run her back, to be honest.

“She handled softish ground at Aqueduct. Chris rode such a patient race. That’s what won the race for us. I give him a lot of credit. She’s a very good filly.”

Winning Jockey Chris Landeros (Si Que Es Buena):

“She’s pretty cool, very game mare. I think she’s just getting better with the extra distance, and Graham had her primed and ready, as always. I’m just blessed to be a part of her. I think the sky’s the limit. Let’s just see where we go. I think she’s doing really well. She has her confidence. Graham knows her and is getting to know her even more, and she’s a happy horse.”

Dream Pauline; Gulfstream Park Photo

Dream’ Trip for Connections in Fasig-Tipton Hurricane Bertie (G3)

Stonestreet Stables homebred Dream Pauline took the shortest route around Gulfstream Park to post her second consecutive graded-stakes victory, slipping through a seam along the rail in the stretch to capture Saturday’s $150,000 Fasig-Tipton Hurricane Bertie (G3).

The 14th running of the seven-furlong Hurricane Bertie for fillies and mares 4 and older was the fourth of seven stakes, four graded, worth $1.125 million on the $16 million Pegasus World Cup Championship Invitational Series undercard.

Ridden by Hall of Famer Javier Castellano for trainer Kiaran McLaughlin, Dream Pauline ($7.80) splashed to a 3 ½-length victory in 1:21.45 over a sloppy, sealed main track. It was their second straight win together, after taking the six-furlong Sugar Swirl (G3) over a similar surface Dec. 15 in her 2018 finale.

Dream Pauline broke well and was in the top flight of horses before settling in fourth through a quarter-mile in 22.58 seconds set by narrow 2-1 favorite Blamed and stalked by 40-1 long shot Pacific Gale. Dream Pauline remained inside, found room once straightened for home and opened up on her rivals.

Pacific Gale, third in the Sugar Swirl, was a clear second, 1 ¼ lengths ahead of Grade 2 winner Stormy Embrace, the Sugar Swirl runner-up. They were followed by Shamrock Rose, recently voted the champion female sprinter of 2018, Blamed, Ms Meshak, Awestruck and Victory Rally.

Fasig-Tipton Hurricane Bertie (G3) Quotes

Trainer Kiaran McLaughlin (Dream Pauline): “She’s a special filly. We’ve always been high on her. She’s been a little unlucky, like not getting in the Raven Run, like having a temperature before the Prioress. But she’s a nice filly and Javier rode a great race today. Obviously, she’s won twice her on the wet, so she likes the wet.”

“This was a Grade 1 but they didn’t give us credit for a Grade 1. This was a Grade 3, but it was a Grade 1 competition. The race we’re going to have to point for now is the Madison (G1, April 6, Keeneland).”

Jockey Javier Castellano (Dream Pauline): “I liked the way my horse performed. She broke well and got a good spot on the rail early. I knew there was a lot of speed in the race, so I kept track of the speed duel. I was lucky and fortunate to get through the rail and cut the corner and save some ground. I think the track is in good condition today and we are in good shape. I’m very lucky and fortunate to ride this type of horse. I give all the credit to the track superintendent and the management here at Gulfstream for maintaining the track. The way she handled the distance was great.”

Trainer Mark Casse (Shamrock Rose): “You can’t close today. She tried. She tried to come running. When we ran her in the Breeders’ Cup going seven eighths at Churchill, big pace, she could run them down. But she wants to go farther. So we’ll look for a race and run her back two turns But I’m not disappointed in her.”

Cherry Lodge; Lauren King Photo

Cherry Lodge Blossoms in $150,000 Ladies Turf Sprint

Dolce Lili Notches Sweet Win in South Beach Stakes

Gainesway Stable’s Cherry Lodge led all the way under Jose Ortiz Jr. to capture the Saturday’s $150,000 Ladies Turf Sprint at Gulfstream Park. The Todd Pletcher-trained 5-year-old mare scored by 1 3/4 lengths over Just Talkin, who was closest in pursuit throughout the stakes that was forced off the grass by extended rain.

Cherry Lodge splashed five-eighths of a mile in 57.10 seconds after setting the first quarter-mile in 22.27 and the half-mile in 44.59. The daughter of 2006 Preakness winner and 3-year-old champion Bernardini paid $5.60 to win.

“To be honest, I thought our chances improved when it was taken off the turf,” Pletcher said. “She’d been training well on dirt. I actually gave some thought about running her in the Hurricane Bertie based on the strength of her last dirt breeze, but it seemed like it was coming up to be such a tough race, we opted to go in here.

“She got away alertly and the track has been playing well to speed. Our strategy was pretty straightforward: try to make the lead. She responded gamely.”

Backing up in distance also aided Cherry Lodge, who had faded to 10th in Gulfstream’s $100,000, Grade 3 My Charmer (G3) at a mile on turf in her last start Though third in Saratoga’s Grade 1 Spinaway as a 2-year-old, this was Cherry Lodge’s first stakes victory. She’s now 4-1-2 in 10 career starts.

The Jason Servis-trained Just Talking, with 2018 Eclipse Award champion Irad Ortiz Jr. in the saddle, cut incrementally into her deficit in the stretch but never threatened the winner. Razorback Lady, with Romero Ramsey Maragh riding for Patrick Biancone, came in another six lengths back in third, followed by Smiling Causeway and Pastime.

Dolce Lili Notches Sweet Win in South Beach Stakes

Don Alberto Stable’s Dolce Lili swept toward the leaders on the outside of the far turn, then held off the late-charging Conquest Hardcandy for a half-length victory in Saturday’s $125,000 South Beach Stakes at Gulfstream Park.

Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez gave up ground but avoided traffic in a bulky field by keeping Dolce Lili in the clear on the outside. Conquest Hardcandy, with Tyler Gaffalione aboard, closed well in a pack of horses but couldn’t catch the winner. Dolce Lili covered 7 1/2 furlongs over yielding turf in 1:33.63 after closing into fractions of 24.34 seconds, 49.83 and 1:15. Dolce Lili paid $8.60 to win.

“With all the rain, we were very lucky to have a horse that handles the soft going,” said trainer Bill Mott, another Hall of Famer. “We didn’t think it would hurt us going in. She’s been doing well. We’re really happy with her. She’s progressed nicely and ran good today.”

Fire Key finished another half-length back in third, with Andina Del Sur a close fourth in the field of 13 fillies and mares.

Dolce Lili finished fourth in Aqueduct’s off-the-turf Forever Together Stakes on Nov. 23 in her last start, with the South Beach her first stakes victory. The daughter of the late Scat Daddy now is 4-3-4 in 12 starts.

$150,000 Turf Sprint Stakes a Breeze for World of Trouble
Wins First of Nine Stakes on Pegasus World Cup Card

World of Trouble once again demonstrated high levels of speed and versatility Saturday at Gulfstream Park, where the 4-year-old son of Kantharos sped to a 2 ¾-length triumph in the $150,000 Turf Sprint Stakes.
The five-furlong sprint, which was moved from the turf course to the sloppy main track, was the first of nine stakes on Saturday’s 12-race program, highlighted by the $16 million Pegasus World Cup Championship Invitational Series featuring the $9 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1), North America’s richest race, and the $7 million Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational (G1), North American’s richest turf race.
The expected showdown between Stormy Liberal and World of Trouble, the 1-2 finishers in the Nov. 3 Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint (G1) at Churchill Downs, didn’t occur due to the scratch of Stormy Liberal. However, World of Trouble, a multiple-stakes winner on both dirt and turf, had no trouble traversing the sloppy-seal racetrack. The Jason Servis-trained 1-5 favorite withstood outside pressure from 3-1 second choice Recruiting Ready while setting fractions of 22.18 and 44.37 seconds for the first half mile before drawing clear to post a 56.44 clocking.
Owned by Michael Dubb, Madaket Stables and Bethlehem Stables, World of Trouble had set the pace in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint, only to be nosed out at the wire by Stormy Liberal. He came back to capture seven-furlong Marion County Florida Sire Stakes Dec. 16 at Tampa Bay Downs by 13 ¾ lengths over a sloppy track.
Recruiting Ready, ridden by Luis Saez, finished second, 3 ¾ lengths ahead of Belle Tapisserie and Carlos Montavo.
Turf Sprint Stakes Quotes
Winning Trainer Jason Servis (World of Trouble): “We couldn’t get bandages on him behind. I mean the whole thing coming to the race, I really wasn’t thrilled about. And he was just doing OK. So getting it done, man, was gratifying. He ran on no toe grabs. I was happy with the mud, but he’s not an easy horse to deal with. We had a hard time getting the bridle on him, and the back bandages.

“He’s a runner. A mile-and-a-sixteenth in the Tampa Bay Derby. He doesn’t want to run a mile and a sixteenth, but he hung in there. Mike Dubb will map out (his schedule). I guess Keeneland is on the radar, New York.”

Winning Jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. (World of Trouble): “He’s a nice horse. He broke well so I just tried to hold it together. When I asked him to go he just exploded. Jason let me ride him the way I wanted. I’ve been on him a few times now, so our confidence is high.”

Cover Photo: The Pegasus; Meg Griffin Photo

Gulfstream Park is a Stronach Group company, North America’s leading Thoroughbred racetrack owner/operator. The Stronach Group racetracks include Santa Anita Park, Gulfstream Park & Casino, Golden Gate Fields, Portland Meadows, Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course, home of the world-famous Preakness. The company owns and operates the Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida, and is one of North America’s top race horse breeders through its award-winning Adena Springs operation. The Stronach Group is one of the world’s largest suppliers of pari-mutuel wagering systems, technologies and services. Its companies include AmTote, a global leader in wagering technology; XpressBet, an Internet and telephone account wagering service; and Monarch Content Management, which acts as a simulcast purchase and sales agent of horseracing content for numerous North American racetracks and wagering outlets. The Stronach Group is also a leading producer of social media content for the horseracing industry. For more information contact David Joseph at david.joseph@gulfstreampark.com or call 954.457.6451.