Florida Derby Day News & Notes

By David Joseph —-

A Bit Special Targets Fourth Straight Stakes in $125,000 Sanibel Island
Multiple G2 Winner Proctor’s Ledge Opens Year in $100,000 Sand Springs
Marquee Prince Making Gulfstream Debut in $125,000 Cutler Bay

HALLANDALE BEACH, FL – Linda Shanahan, Mrs. M.V. Magnier and J.P. Magnier’s A Bit Special, a neck shy of being undefeated through five starts, goes after her fourth consecutive stakes victory in Saturday’s $125,000 Sanibel Island at Gulfstream Park.

The one-mile Sanibel Island for 3-year-old fillies on the grass is one of six stakes, three graded, worth $1.15 million in purses on the undercard of the $1 million Xpressbet.com Florida Derby (G1), one of the country’s premiere Triple Crown preps for 3-year-olds.

A Bit Special has raced exclusively over Gulfstream’s turf course since breaking her maiden at first asking last August. She came up just short after a poor break in the 7 ½-furlong Sharp Susan in her subsequent start but hasn’t lost since, stringing together three straight scores at the one-mile distance.

“We cannot complain too much. She only got beat one time when she blew the start. She missed the start by four or five lengths,” trainer Patrick Biancone said. “She’s improving, she’s maturing and my owners are very patient. We go step by step and we try to run her here to have her in great form for this summer with all the big races that are coming.”

In her most recent start, A Bit Special was an easy 2 ½-length winner of the Sweetest Chant (G3) Feb. 3 in her graded-stakes debut. It was an emotional win for the connections, the first time the British-bred filly raced without apprentice Romero Ramsey Maragh, injured in a Jan. 31 spill.

Julien Leparoux, aboard in the Sweetest Chant, gets a return call from Post 3 in the field of eight at topweight of 124 pounds, two to six pounds more than her rivals.

“We’ve had no problems. She’s training well and coming into this race good. We look forward to the race,” Biancone said. “The distance is perfect for her. We have been taking our time with her and letting her mature. She’s just a really good horse. She loves to run and she loves to train and we’re very happy with her.”

Though A Bit Special was nominated to the $250,000 Gulfstream Park Oaks (G3) for 3-year-old fillies going 1 1/16 miles on the dirt, Biancone plans to keep her on the grass and point for the inaugural Turf Tiara series that opens with the Belmont Oaks Invitational (G1) July 6.

“We’re trying to get her ready for the Turf Tiara,” Biancone said. “That’s why we go slowly with her now, because we want to be fully mature for that.”

Also in the Sanibel Island are multiple graded-stakes placed Belle Laura, most recently third in the Herecomesthebride (G3) March 2 at Gulfstream; La Australiana, Positive Skew, Seranitsa, Scat Mommy, Trenchtown Cat and Vow to Recover.

Multiple G2 Winner Proctor’s Ledge Opens Year in $100,000 Sand Springs

Patricia Moseley’s multiple graded-stakes winning homebred Proctor’s Ledge, unraced since finishing fifth by 2 ½ lengths in the E.P. Taylor (G1) last October at Woodbine, is set to make her 5-year-old debut in Saturday’s $100,000 Sand Springs.

The one-mile Sand Springs for older turf females will be the 17th career start for Proctor’s Ledge, a bay daughter of 2012 Hall of Famer Ghostzapper that has raced exclusively in graded company since an optional claiming allowance victory Feb. 18, 2017 at Gulfstream. Just three weeks earlier, she broke her maiden over the same course.

“She’s been rock solid. She’s been a great servant to myself and to Mrs. Moseley. She seems like she’s working as good as ever but you never know until they come to the races, so we’ll see what happens,” trainer Brendan Walsh said. “It’s a good spot for her to get started back. She hadn’t run here last winter but the winter before she was two-for-two here so she likes this track.”

Proctor’s Ledge won one of seven starts in 2018, a half-length triumph in the Distaff Turf Mile (G2) on the Kentucky Derby (G1) undercard. She was beaten a head in the Hillsborough (G2) in her season opener, and also finished second by less than a length in the Just a Game (G1) at Belmont Park less than three hours before Justify won the Belmont (G1) and the Triple Crown.

“This year she was a couple weeks behind what she was last year, and we’re kind of plotting it out,” Walsh said “Last year we went for the [G1 Jenny Wiley] at Keeneland but this year we’re trying to build it up to her going back and trying to win the mile race on Derby day again, so this a nice prep for that. It’s five weeks to the Derby if things go right. It should be a good preparation for her.”

Proctor’s Ledge shows eight published works at Palm Meadows, Gulfstream’s satellite training facility in Palm Beach County, for her return including a bullet half-mile in 46.60 seconds March 16 – fastest of 53 horses. Her workmate, St. Denman, was a 2 ¼-length maiden winner going a mile on the Gulfstream turf March 22.

“You never know until you get to the races with them but she’s shown as much zest for it as she’s ever shown, so we’re looking forward to it,” Walsh said. “Right now she looks like she’s in a good place.”

Hall of Famer John Velazquez has the mount on Proctor’s Ledge from outside Post 9 at 120 pounds.

Valedictorian, winner of the Suwannee River (G3) Feb. 2 at Gulfstream and 124-pound topweight; 2018 Florida Oaks (G3) winner Andina Del Sur and stablemate Too Charming, most recently front-running winner of the Tropical Park Oaks Dec. 29 at Gulfstream; multiple stakes winner Fire Key; Midnight Soiree, Mrs. Ramona G., Quebec and Vendita are also entered.

Marquee Prince Making Gulfstream Debut in $125,000 Cutler Bay

Rick Awtrey, Donna Awtrey and Jeff Awtrey’s Marquee Prince, a stakes winner on turf and dirt this winter in New Orleans, will make his South Florida debut as the 122-pound co-topweight in Saturday’s $125,000 Cutler Bay for 3-year-olds at one mile on the grass.

A bay son of 2014 Holy Bull (G2) winner Cairo Prince, Marquee Prince is unbeaten in two starts this year, the Lloyd Captain Maestri Memorial Feb. 2 on grass and an off-the-turf edition of the Black Gold Stakes March 2, both going a mile at Fair Grounds.

Trained by Brad Cox, who shipped in to capture the Sunshine Millions Turf with Big Changes and the Melody of Colors with Play On, Marquee Prince will break from Post 3 in a field of seven under Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano, aboard for the first time.

Sharing topweight in the Cutler Bay is N.T.S. Stable’s Stirling Drive, one-length winner of the Juvenile Turf Stakes Nov. 10 at Gulfstream Park West. He has raced four times at the Championship Meet, all at long odds, beaten two lengths while sixth in the Kitten’s Joy Jan. 5 and most recently sixth in the Palm Beach (G3) March 2. Feargal Lynch rides from Post 5.

Seismic Wave, Forever Mo, Art G Is Back, Insider Trading and Candy Crushem complete the field.

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. For more information contact David Joseph at david.joseph@gulfstreampark.com or call 954.457.6451.