Florida Filly's second annual Gulfstream Park Awards
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The 2013-2014 Champions Meet at Gulfstream has concluded,
but though the big meet is over, Gulfstream’s gates will not close. Set to run
its second spring/summer meet, racing action will continue on though the big
names will be moving north to the Kentucky and New York tracks. Though I
dropped the ball last year, I am back to present the Gulfstream Park Awards,
the Eclipse Award equivalents for the Championship Meet. There were plenty of
thrills throughout the winter, but who shined when it mattered most?
Champion 3-Year Old
Male: Cairo Prince, Constitution, Wildcat Red
Constitution
might have won Gulfstream’s biggest race for three-year olds, the G1 Florida
Derby, but it was Wildcat Red who was most impressive throughout the Gulfstream
Champions Meet. He made 4 starts during the meet, all in stakes. He won both
the G3 Hutcheson and the G2 Fountain of Youth. He also fell just a head short
in the Gulfstream Park Derby and lost the Florida Derby by just a neck. The D’wildcat
colt proved to be as gritty a competitor as they come, consistently running
winning races and never giving an inch down the lane. Owned by Honors Stable
Corp and trained by Jose Garoffalo, Wildcat Red is pointing toward the G1
Kentucky Derby.
Champion 3-Year Old
Female: Candy Kitty, In Tune, Onlyforyou
Ill-fated Onlyforyou would likely have continued her winning
streak, but a fatal accident ended both her career and her life. During her
short career, she was brilliant, taking steps forward in each race. She was a
perfect 4-for-4 overall with three of those wins coming at Gulfstream. She
notched victories in both the G2 Davona Dale and the G2 Forward Gal, as well as
an additional win in an optional claimer. She likely would have been the
favorite for the Gulfstream Oaks and one of the top picks for the Kentucky Oaks
had fate not interfered.
Champion Older Male:
Lea, Lochte, Palace Malice
Bill Mott trained Lea
took the dirt handicap division by storm. Making his first start over fast dirt
a winning one, the son of First Samurai drew away to win the G3 Hal’s Hope by 3
¼ lengths. He proved that victory was no fluke by posting an upset victory over
favored Will Take Charge in
Gulfstream’s signature handicap event, the Grade 1 Donn Handicap. While winning
that event by 1 ½ lengths, Lea also set a new track record for the 1 1/8 mile
distance, stopping the clock in 1:46:86.
Champion Older Female:
Devil’s Cave, Groupie Doll, Heart
Stealer
A bit of a late bloomer, Marty Wolfson trained Devil’s Cave
really got her act together in the latter half of 2013. Racing 4 times at the
2013-2014 Gulfstream Meet, the daughter of Put It Back recorded a 4: 2-1-1
record at the track. She won both the Ocala Stakes and the G2 Sabin Stakes and
ran 2nd in the Sunshine Millions Distaff and 3rd in the
G3 Rampart Stakes. The filly set a new track record of 1:41 flat while winning
the Sabin, but 3-year old Social Inclusion bested that mark by three-hundredths of a second less than a
month later.
Champion Male
Sprinter: Falling Sky, Ribo Bobo,
Singanothersong
Ribo Bobo has one of the most heart-warming stories going
for him, but he also has a load of talent to boot. Claimed by his current
connections for $8,000 on January 9, 2013, Mr. Amore Stable lost their star to
the claim game only to reclaim him on March 8, 2013. During the winter months,
Ribo Bobo clicked off wins in the Claiming Crown Express, the Sunshine Millions
Sprint, and the Caixa Eletronica. A third place finish in the Sir Shackleton on
the Florida Derby undercard prevented the popular former claimer from having a
perfect record at the meet.
Champion Female
Sprinter: Groupie Doll, Heart
Stealer, My Pal Chrisy
When you’re good, you’re good, and Groupie Doll is great. As
good as Heart Stealer was in her two victories at Gulfstream, she was severely
overmatched by two-time Eclipse Award winner Groupie Doll in the G3 Hurricane
Bertie. Racing in the colors of Mandy Pope’s Whisper Hill Farm for just the
second time, Groupie Doll gave the field a good head start after she blew the
start. The champion mare was only toying with the field, however, as she made a
sustained run from the back of the field to blow them all away to the tune of a
7 length victory in near track record time. The race was Groupie Doll’s swan
song, and the mare has since had a date with Tapit.
Champion Turf Male:
Lochte, Newsdad, Twilight Eclipse
A solid field assembled for the Grade 1 Gulfstream Park Turf
Handicap headlined by Amira’s Prince.
Not quite sharp enough off the layoff, Amira’s Prince conceded defeat to
upstart Lochte, the longest shot in the field, who burst through on the rail surprising them all. A definite late bloomer, the
4-year old only broke his maiden on December 14, 2013 and then went on to win
an optional claimer and run third in another optional claimer before his big
victory. He followed that up with a close second in the G1 Frank E. Kilroe Mile
at Santa Anita, proving his win at Gulfstream was no one-hit wonder.
Champion Turf Female:
Anjaz, Centre Court, Parranda
Trainer Thomas Albertrani had Anjaz ready to rock-n-roll off
the layoff. With Rajiv Maragh in the irons, the mare walked the dog on the lead
in the 1 ½ mile G3 Orchid. Able to set comfortable splits throughout, Anjaz had
plenty left in the tank to rocket home a winner by 2 ½ lengths, getting her
final half mile in a quick 46:75. She beat a solid field, including G3 Very One
winner Inimitable Romanee.
Horse of the Meet:
Devil’s Cave, Lea, Wildcat Red
As impressive as 3-year old Wildcat Red was in all 4 of his
starts at the meet, top honors had to go to Lea for his performance in the
Grade 1 Donn Handicap. With that and his Hal’s Hope performance, he has
announced himself as a top player in a loaded handicap division. The late
summer goal is the Grade 1 Whitney Handicap, but a big meeting with Game On Dude in the Charles Town
Classic looms in the near future.
Top Trainer:
Michael Maker, Todd Pletcher, Dale
Romans
It is no surprise that South Florida stalwart Todd Pletcher
takes home an 11th training title at Gulfstream Park. During the
2013-2014 Champions Meet, Pletcher sent out 226 starters and recorded 66
winners, 40 second place finishers, and 30 third place finishers. He finished
up the meet with his charges winning at a 29% clip and finishing in the money
at a 60% clip for total purses of $3,747,327. Major wins at the meet included
the G1 Florida Derby (Constitution), the G2 Gulfstream Oaks (In Tune), the G2
Gulfstream Park Handicap (Palace Malice), the G2 Forward Gal (Onlyforyou), and
the G2 Davona Dale (Onlyforyou).
Top Jockey: Javier Castellano, Paco Lopez, Luis
Saez
The reigning Eclipse Award winner for Top Jockey made it a
no contest in the Sunshine State. His 131 winners from 428 starters was well
ahead of Paco Lopez’s 88 winners. Castellano’s mounts also finished second 71
times and third 55 times. The top jockey completed the meet winning at a 31%
clip and finishing in the money at a 60% clip for total purses of $5,307,822.
He booted home the winners of the G2 Gulfstream Oaks, G1 Florida Derby, and the
G2 Davona Dale, among many others.
Top Owner: Frank
Carl Calabrese, Northwest Stud Stables, Kenneth and Sarah Ramsey
Ken and Sarah Ramsey have taken the horse racing
industry by storm over the past couple of years. Supporting their stallion
Kitten’s Joy with their mares has resulted in many top notch victories across
the country, several leading owner titles, and a few broken records for number
of victories per meet. They added another leading owner title for the
Gulfstream Champions Meet by recording 36 wins from 122 starters. They also
notched 18 second place finishes and 15 third place finishes for purse money
totaling $926,620.
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