FOREVER SOUPER LOOKS TO BUILD OFF RECENT FORM SPREE IN SATURDAY’S CLIFF HANGER STAKES AT MONMOUTH PARK

By Tom Luicci —-

Monmouth Park

FOREVER SOUPER LOOKS TO BUILD OFF RECENT FORM SPREE

OCEANPORT, N.J. – The only specific thing that trainer Michael Trombetta says he can point to as a reason for Forever Souper’s recent success and form spree is the calendar.

The 5-year-old gelded son of American Pharoah heads into Saturday’s featured $100,000 Cliff Hanger Stakes at Monmouth Park off three straight sharp efforts to start his 2024 campaign. Two have been his first two stakes victories, with his most recent start a tough-luck third in the Henry S. Clark Stakes at Laurel on April 20.

Since Trombetta took over the training duties from Mark Casse for the Live Oak Plantation runner in 2022, Forever Souper has four wins, a second and two thirds in nine starts.

“Some of these horses improve as time goes on,” said Trombetta. “He must be one of those.”

The Cliff Hanger, at a mile and a sixteenth on the grass for 3 year olds and up, has attracted a field of nine, including talented Jersey-breds He’spuregold and There Are No Words. Though Trombetta sees the race as “pretty wide open,” he enters with confidence that Forever Souper will turn in another big effort.

“He’s just doing really well right now,” Trombetta said. “Everything seems to have fallen into place with him recently. He ran a good race last time out. He just encountered some bad luck.

“But he has been doing really well for us.”

According to the Daily Racing Form comment, Forever Souper was “blocked 1/8th, altered out” while finishing third, beaten 1½ lengths, in the Henry Clark Stakes.

Prior to that he won the Florida-bred restricted Turf Classic at Tampa Bay Downs and a race earlier won the Florida-bred restricted Sunshine Turf Stakes at Gulfstream to kick off his season.

Forever Souper had not been tried in stakes company prior to his last three starts.

“He had shown glimmers of being good enough to go in that direction,” said Trombetta. “He has just gotten a little better with time, as some horses do.”

Overall, Forever Souper has a 6-1-3 line from 14 career starts and is 5-1-3 from 11 lifetime turf tries.

He has also had success at the distance and at Monmouth Park, where he has two wins and a third from four starts.

“He does like it at Monmouth. He has run good there,” Trombetta said. “That’s why this race was one of my choices.”

Daniel Centeno is listed to ride.

He’spuregold, trained by Kelly Breen, will look to get over the $500,000 mark in career earnings as he makes his second start of the season. There Are No Words, trained by Chuck Spina, comes in off a seven-month layoff.

Wicked Finn, Laughing Boy, Dataman, General Jim, California Frolic and Duke of Gloucester round out the field.

THREE-DAY JERSEY SHORE FOOD TRUCK FESTIVAL

HIGHLIGHTS BUSY HOLIDAY WEEKEND AT MONMOUTH

The popular Jersey Shore Food Truck Festival, featuring 32 trucks offering a variety of culinary delights, tops a busy three-day Memorial Day weekend at Monmouth Park, which includes live racing Saturday through Monday.

In addition, tickets for NYRA Bets Haskell Day (July 20) go on sale starting at 11 a.m. on Saturday. Tickets for Monmouth Park’s biggest day of the meet can be purchased through seatgeek.com/monmouth, at the reserved seat booth on the second floor of the grandstand, or by calling 732-571-5563.

Survival at the Shore, Monmouth Park’s free online handicapping game, will also get underway on Saturday. Contestants must pick three races per day and remain in the contest as long as one of those picks finishes on the board. Cash prizes are awarded to the top three overall finishers.

Contestants must be registered by 11 a.m. Saturday morning.

To register, visit www.survivalattheshore.com.

Family Fun Day will also debut for the season on Saturday and Sunday, with free clowns, face painters, a bounce house, pony rides and music available for kids.

The food trucks in attendance will be the following: Cousins Maine Lobster; Dellano’s Food Service; Del Toro Tapas; Empanada Guy; Good Food = Good Mood; House of Cupcakes; Joe Smoke Bar-B-Que; Kee-O-Kee Pierogies; Magic Mike’s Smoked Meats; Mozzarepas; Nip N Truck; Pizza Veloce; The Baked Bear; Twisted Steaks; El Lechon de Negron; Chimney Cake; Cold Stone Creamery; Ohana Food Truck; Enzo’s; Sherri’s Crab Cakes; Magic Mikes Smoke Meats; Tacoholics; Ma & Pa’s Tex Mex BBQ; L’Acquario Seafood Italiano; Five Sisters; Mexiboys; Wild Bill’s; Lola’s; Tony’s Italian Sausage; Star of the Sea Seafood; Ann’s Catering and Little Sicilian.

Saturday’s band “On the Green” will be Pez Head from noon to 4 p.m., with Lakehouse Music Academy performing on the second stage from noon to 4 p.m.

WKMK-FM “Thunder” 106.3/106.5 FM will also broadcast live on site.

On Sunday, The Soulstirs will be the featured band “On the Green” from noon to 4 p.m., with Lakehouse Music Academy again taking the second stage, also from noon to 4 p.m.

Broadcasting live that day will be 107.1 FM The Boss from noon to 2 p.m.

Chris Morrisy takes the stage “On the Green” on Monday from noon to 4 p.m., with Lakehouse Music Academy on the second stage at the same time.

Broadcasting live on Memorial Day will be B98.5 FM from noon to 2 p.m.

Saturday also marks opening day for the Blu Grotto restaurant, with the Moroccan Sheepherders performing starting at 6 p.m. that day (there is a $15 cover charge). On Sunday, Jobonanno & the Godsons of Soul will perform ($10 cover charge).

Monmouth Park’s racing cards will be headlined by a stakes race all three days, with the $100,000 Cliff Hanger at a mile and a sixteenth on the turf on Saturday, the $100,000 Miss Liberty Stakes on Sunday and the $100,000 Mr. Prospector Stakes on Monday.

First race post time all three days is 12:50 p.m.

Parking is free.