Veteran Conditioner Gold Loaded With Stakes Runners
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Photo:
Lauren King/Gulfstream Park
Trainer Stanley Gold is planning to be a frequent participant in upcoming graded-stakes races during Gulfstream’s Championship Meet, starting with Saturday’s $100,000 Mr. Prospector (G3).
The veteran trainer expects to be well represented in the six-furlong sprint by proven stakes performers C. Zee and Grande Shores. The former is a graded-stakes winner, having captured the Gulfstream Sprint Handicap (G3) in February, while the latter is an uber-consistent runner who came up short of becoming a graded-stakes winner by a neck in the Fred Hooper (G3) in February.
Gold will also have a battle-tested horse in the $100,000 Sugar Swirl (G3) Dec. 26 after deciding to bypass last Saturday’s Rampart (G3) with Dogwood Trail, who captured the Azalea (G3) on Summit of Speed Day July 5.
“I didn’t want to run her a mile,” said Gold, whose 3-year-old trainee has been in light training since finishing second in the $150,000 FSS Meadow Star Oct. 3. “I just backed off her and kept her from getting too high. I haven’t done much with her. She had some R & R, just gallops and some slow works. I just let her unwind a bit. Now, going forward, I’m going to start leaning on her.”
Dogwood Trail breezed six furlongs at Gulfstream Park in 1:11.45 Sunday in preparation for the six-furlong Sugar Swirl.
While Dogwood Trail, C. Zee and Grande Shores have proven themselves against graded-stakes competition, a few of their Jacks or Better Farm stablemates will be given acid tests for class in graded stakes during the next month.
Ballet Diva, a multiple stakes winner whose only off-the-board finish came in a two-turn race, is being pointed to the six-furlong $100,000 Old Hat (G3) Jan. 2. The 2-year-old daughter of Hear No Evil captured the House Party Stakes by two lengths at Gulfstream Park West last time out.
“It was a nice win, but it will be a whole different breed of horse running in the Old Hat. It’s a graded stakes,” Gold said. “This race will be a true test of how much quality she’s got.”
While Ballet Diva will take a step up in class for the Old Hat, stablemate Awesome Banner may face an imposing challenge in the $100,000 Hutcheson (G3) the same day. Awesome Banner debuted with a thoroughly dominating victory by nearly 10 lengths while setting a track record (51.07 seconds) for 4 ½ furlongs June 5 before heading to the sidelines.
“He’s a couple works away. He could be in an a-other-than, which is a logical step, or we might find out real quick and throw him in the Hutcheson,” Gold said. “He’s as inexperienced as a horse can be. He’s had one race in a track record time. It really wasn’t a horse race. Then, you’re talking about throwing him to the wolves. But if you asked me today if I’m going to throw him to the wolves – yes.
“He’s really settled; he looks good; he’s training good," said Gold, whose promising trainee breezed six furlongs in 1:11.61 Tuesday morning. "He didn’t look like a 2-year-old when he came in. He looked like a 3-year-old.”
Although the $100,000 Mucho Macho Man is not yet graded, the mile stakes for newly turned 3-year-olds on Jan. 2 will offer a class check for Fellowship, the late-charging winner of the $500,000 FSS In Reality Stakes Oct. 3 at Gulfstream and runner-up in the Smooth Air at Gulfstream Park West last time out.
“I’m not sure how much potential he’s got. Because of his style, it makes you hopeful that he’ll keep on going and go long. Again, what we ran against (at Gulfstream Park West) is nothing compared to what we’ll run against here,” Gold said. “We’re running against better, but we’re running further, so you’ve got to give him the chance.”
Source: Gulfstream Park
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