Kingfield
Stable’s Buddy’s Saint was sent off the 9-to-5 favorite in Saturday’s $250,000
Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth Stakes (G2) at Gulfstream Park
in his 3-year-old debut for trainer Bruce Levine. With regular jockey Jose
Lezcano in the saddle, the colt ran into traffic in the first turn before
checking in ninth behind Eskendereya at the finish of the 1 1/8 miles test.
“He
(Lezcano) said we got shut off going into the first turn, so we really had a
rough trip and had trouble making up ground,” said Levine Sunday morning. “It’s
a tough track to make up ground on so we’ll just throw the race out and start
again.
“He came
out of it good,” continued Levine. “We’ll give him a few days and then take him
back to the track and see how he is from there. I won’t make up my mind for a
week or two to see how he’s doing before deciding where he goes next.”
A
$100,000 Keeneland September yearling purchase by Saint Liam, Buddy’s Saint was
making his first start since an impressive 4 ¾ lengths victory in the
nine-furlong Remsen Stakes (G2) at Aqueduct on Nov. 28 in his third career
start after winning the Nashua Stakes (G2) at Aqueduct by 12 lengths three
weeks before.
Stakes-Class Field Set for Thursday
Allowance Feature
It’s
prime-time for the South Florida racing season at Gulfstream
Park
and high-profile stakes horses often turn up in the entries for allowance
races. The seventh on Thursday is a prime example with Fab Oak Stables and
partners’ Nownownow, J. Paul Reddam and Willmott Stable’s Wesley and Douglas
Gibson’s Grand Cash in the field of eight older horses drawn for the 1 1/8
miles turf test.
Jockey
Julien Leparoux is named to ride Nownownow for trainer Patrick Biancone as he
makes his first start on the East Coast since capturing the Breeders’ Cup
Juvenile Turf at Monmouth
Park
in October of 2007. The 5-year-old son of Whywhywhy has campaigned in California
for the most part since then, most recently finishing eighth in the San Antonio
Handicap (G2) over the Pro-Ride surface at Santa Anita on Feb. 7.
Nownownow
won the San Fernando Handicap (G2) at Santa Anita early last year and ran a big
race finishing third in the Mervin Muniz Jr. Handicap (G2) at Fair Grounds in
March, beaten a head by Proudinsky. He didn’t run again until finishing third
in the San Pasqual Handicap (G2) at Santa Anita on Jan. 9 this year before the San
Antonio.
Jockey
Javier Castellano rides Wesley for trainer Mark Hennig as he makes his first
start since finishing sixth in the Fourstardave Handicap (G2) at Saratoga
on Aug. 2. The roan/gray El Prado horse won the Hall of Fame Stakes (G2) at Saratoga
as a 3-year-old and the Miami Mile Handicap (G3) at Calder in late April last
year. He ran another big race rallying for third in the Dixie Stakes (G2) at
Pimlico on Preakness Day.
Grand
Cash makes his first start since finishing second in the Calder Derby (G3) on
Oct. 17, beaten a half-length by Sal the Barber after a slow start. Trained by
veteran horseman Dave Vivian, Grand Cash is a 4-year-old son of Belong to Me
who won two overnight stakes on turf at Calder last summer.
Completing
the field are Annamarie Calabrese’s Marquet Cat, F.L. Ortiz; Stuart Janney
III’s Hunting, Alan Garcia; Shadwell Stable’s Danak, Cornelio Velasquez; Eldon
Farm’s Wheels Up At Noon, Rajiv Maragh; and Emma Dixon’s Staying On, Joe Bravo.
Maragh & Catalano Milestone
Watch Carries Over
Jockey
Rajiv Maragh and trainer Wayne Catalano each go into Sunday’s racing action one
short of career milestones for winners, after near misses on Saturday.
Maragh,
a 24-year-old native of Jamaica,
posted two runner-up finishes and three thirds on Saturday’s Fountain of Youth
program at Gulfstream
Park.
He has eight chances on Sunday to click his career total over from 999 to 1,000.
Catalano
had runners entered at three tracks Saturday, one at Gulfstream, two at Tampa
Bay Downs and another at Hawthorne
in Chicago,
but all four lost leaving for another day his opportunity to advance his total
from 1,999 to 2,000. Catalano’s only runner entered Sunday was at Tampa
Bay,
but he was scratched after not drawing into the fifth race off the
‘also-eligible’ list.
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