Saffie Joseph wins 10th consecutive Gulfstream training title

Saffie Joseph Jr. collected his 10th consecutive Gulfstream Park training title Sunday as the 2024 summer meet came to a close.

Joseph broke his own summer meet record with 93 victories, eclipsing the 71 winners he sent out during the 2021 stand. Jose D’Angelo, with 43 winners, finished a distant second behind Joseph, who has won the past three winter-meet titles.

Edgard Zayas regained the top spot in the jockey standings for the summer meet with 112 winners. Zayas rode 137 winners in 2020 and 119 winners in 2021 to win summer meet titles before finishing behind Miguel Vasquez and Leonel Reyes in each of the past two seasons, respectively. Emisael Jaramillo was second best with 91 visits to the winner’s circle.

Joseph and Zayas had wrapped up their respective titles long ago, but the owner’s title was far more competitive among Ken Ramsey, Vicente Stella Stables and Moshe Mark, who ended the meet in a three-way tie.

The Joseph-trained Comedy Town suddenly emerged as a main-track attraction. The 6-year-old gelding, who had run his first 24 races on either turf or Tapeta for a number of trainers with moderate success, established himself as unexpected dirt specialist while winning three straight races on the main track, including the Smile Sprint and the Benny the Bull Stakes.

Drayden Van Dyke, who scored aboard Comedy Town in the Benny the Bull, has fit in very nicely since joining the jockey colony at Gulfstream in early June, clicking at a 23-percent winning rate with 31 trips to the winner’s circle.

Victor Barboza Jr.-trained Beth’s Dream dominated the older fillies and mares division while winning three straight races, including the Aug. 17 Sheer Drama, all by open lengths. Bobby Dibona-trained Fly the W, an 8-year-old gelded son of Ghostzapper, won four straight starter allowances during the meet before finishing second last time out while carrying 130 pounds.

While the older horses more than held their own, the summer meet has been marked by juvenile excellence. St. Elias Stable’s Rated by Merit made an eye-popping debut July 13 winning by 9 3/4 lengths. The Michael Yates-trained son of Battalion Runner ran six furlongs in 1:10.50, earning a 92 Beyer Speed Figure from Daily Racing Form. That was the highest for all 2-year-olds until Todd Pletcher-trained Ferocious, a $1.3 million colt, earned a 96 at Saratoga two weeks later.

Carlos David-trained Win N Your In distinguished herself with a 7 1/2-length debut victory July 6. The juvenile daughter of Win Win Win went on to capture the Sharp Susan Stakes on Aug. 10 by 4 3/4 lengths. Win N Your In and Rated by Merit are both eligible for the upcoming Florida Sires Stakes series.

D’Angelo-trained Gabaldon registered a front-running victory in the $100,000 Royal Palm Stakes, a five-furlong dash on turf for 2-year-olds, May 11. The son of Gone Astray, who earned free entry into one of Royal Ascot’s juvenile stakes and a travel stipend, came up just short of victory while finishing second the Windsor Castle Stakes June 19.

Mark Casse-trained Bullet won the $100,000 Royal Palm Juvenile Fillies by 2 1/4 lengths after rallying from far back in the five-furlong dash. The daughter of War Front went on to win the My Dear Stakes on Tapeta at Woodbine in her next start.

The 2024 fall meet gets underway Friday and runs through Nov. 24.