Many of the top Florida-breds in training are set to compete in the March 27 Florida Cup at Tampa Bay Downs, with six races for registered state-breds offering $110,000 each in purse money.
The 19th annual Florida Cup races, which are part of a 12-race card beginning at 12:15 p.m., are scheduled as races 6-through-11 and will comprise the day’s 20-cent Ultimate 6 wager.
The field for Sunday’s sixth race, the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Sophomore Stakes for 3-year-olds at a distance of seven furlongs on the main dirt track, grew to seven colts and geldings with the supplementary entry of Stonehedge's homebred Dean Delivers, a Cajun Breeze gelding trained by Michael Yates.
Antonio Gallardo has been named to ride the 8-5 morning-line favorite, who finished second in the Feb. 5 Swale Stakes (G3) at Gulfstream Park and was fifth in that track’s March 5 Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth Stakes (G2) after leading briefly.
Included in the field are the 1-2 finishers in Tampa Bay Downs’ Dec. 4 Inaugural Stakes, Cattin and Lightening Larry.
The seventh race, the Equistaff Sophomore Turf Stakes, is for 3-year-olds traveling 1 1/16-miles on the vaunted Oldsmar grass course. Included in the eight-horse field is a lone filly, 3-year-old stakes-winner Lemieux, owned by D. J. Stable and trained by Hall of Famer Mark Casse.
The 5-2 morning-line favorite in the wide-open affair is multiple stakes-placed C My Meister, owned by Wendell Yates, Carroll Boys Racing and Maritza Weston and trained by Kelsey Danner.
Also entered is the Todd Pletcher-trained Treasure King, who won his debut Feb. 25 at Gulfstream for Mathis Stable.
The eighth race, the third leg of the Ultimate 6, is the Stonehedge Farm South Sophomore Fillies Stakes at a distance of 7 furlongs on the main track. The field of seven is headed by LNJ Foxwoods' Outfoxed, a Valiant Minister filly trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott. Javier Castellano has the riding assignment.
All three of Outfoxed’s victories came in stakes races, including the Gasparilla Stakes here on Jan. 15. She took a step up in class in her most recent race, finishing fifth March 5 in the Davona Dale Stakes presented by FanDuel (G2) at Gulfstream.
Castellano again appears “well-seated” in the ninth race, the Grey Goose Turf Classic for horses 4-years-old and up racing 1 1/8-miles on the grass. He is named to ride Pletcher’s Shamrocket, established as the morning-line 8-5 favorite in the field of nine. The 5-year-old Shamrocket, owned by Donegal Racing, won the Jan. 15 Sunshine Classic Stakes on the dirt at Gulfstream after landing the Point of Entry Stakes on the turf at Belmont Park last fall.
The 10th race, the Pleasant Acres Stallions Distaff Turf Stakes, is for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up at a 1 1/16-miles on the grass. Lightly-raced 6-year-old mare Shifty She, owned by Pedigree Partners and trained by Saffie Joseph, Jr., is the 3-5 morning-line favorite based on her 6-for-12 record that includes three stakes victories, topped by a victory in the Oct. 23 Noble Damsel Stakes (G3T) at Belmont. Edwin Gonzalez is the jockey.
In the final race of the Florida Cup day card, a competitive field of nine drew for the NYRABETS Sprint Stakes. The field includes graded stakes winners Tap It to Win and Officiating.
Vegso Racing Stable's homebred Officiating is the 2-1 morning-line favorite. Trained by Saffie Joseph Jr., the Blame colt has won two of his last three starts at the graded level, notching scores in the Dec. 11 Mr. Prospector Stakes (G3) at Gulfstream and most recently in the March 5 Tom Fool Handicap (G3) at Aqueduct Racetrack.
Edwin Gonzalez has the call.
Tap It to Win, a graded winner around two turns last September in Canada, will attempt to defend his title in the NYRABETS Sprint, a race he captured by 4 1/4-lengths last year for Live Oak Stud and trainer Mark Casse.
Tampa Bay Downs, Sunday, March 27, 2022, Race 6Entries: Ocala Breeders' Sales Sophomore S.
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Dean Delivers (FL) Antonio A. Gallardo 118 Michael Yates 8/5 2 2Morgan Point (FL) Hector Rafael Diaz, Jr. 118 Chad J. Stewart 15/1 3 3Cattin (FL) Samy Camacho 124 Ralph E. Nicks 7/2 4 4Lightening Larry (FL) Javier Castellano 124 Jorge Delgado 7/2 5 5Magical Warrior (FL) Daniel Centeno 118 Gerald S. Bennett 12/1 6 6King Cab (FL) Emisael Jaramillo 122 Edward Plesa, Jr. 4/1 7 7Stormy Pattern (FL) Edwin Gonzalez 122 Saffie A. Joseph, Jr. 10/1
Tampa Bay Downs, Sunday, March 27, 2022, Race 7Entries: Equistaff Sophomore Turf S.
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Skipperini (FL) Luca Panici 118 Peter Wasiluk, Jr. 8/1 2 2Fast Payday (FL) John Bisono 118 Dennis J. Manning 30/1 3 3Merlin (FL) Emisael Jaramillo 118 Juan Alvarado 12/1 4 4C My Meister (FL) Daniel Centeno 118 Kelsey Danner 5/2 5 5Lemieux (FL) UNKNOWN 119 Mark E. Casse 5/1 6 6Treasure King (FL) Javier Castellano 118 Todd A. Pletcher 4/1 7 7Mr Rum Runner (FL) Romero Ramsay Maragh 118 Patrick L. Biancone 3/1 8 8Tapthespeedofsound (FL) Edwin Gonzalez 118 Mark E. Casse 9/2
Tampa Bay Downs, Sunday, March 27, 2022, Race 8Entries: Stonehedge Farm South Sophomore Fillies S.
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Sweet Laura (FL) Edwin Gonzalez 118 Chad J. Stewart 30/1 2 2Killargue's Girl (FL) Wesley Henry 118 Luis R. Dominguez 20/1 3 3Outfoxed (FL) Javier Castellano 124 William I. Mott 4/5 4 4Hot Peppers (FL) Emisael Jaramillo 122 Ronald B. Spatz 5/2 5 5Kaeko (FL) Samy Camacho 118 Carlos A. David 10/1 6 6Rapturous (FL) Luca Panici 122 Kathleen O'Connell 5/1 7 7Midnight Stroll (FL) Pablo Morales 118 John P. Terranova II 8/1
Tampa Bay Downs, Sunday, March 27, 2022, Race 9Entries: Grey Goose Turf Classic S.
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Max K. O. (FL) Daniel Centeno 118 Saffie A. Joseph, Jr. 4/1 2 2Chess's Dream (FL) Samy Camacho 122 Michael J. Maker 12/1 3 3Lure Him In (FL) Jesus Lopez Castanon 122 Robert B. Hess, Jr. 8/1 4 4Drama Chorus (FL) Alonso Quinonez 118 Tim P. Padilla 6/1 5 5Freedom Matters (FL) Edwin Gonzalez 118 Saffie A. Joseph, Jr. 6/1 6 6And Won (FL) Pablo Morales 118 Chandradat Goberdhan 12/1 7 7Fast Fire (FL) Skyler Spanabel 118 Thomas Albertrani 30/1 8 8Shamrocket (FL) Javier Castellano 124 Todd A. Pletcher 8/5 9 9Over the Channel (FL) Emisael Jaramillo 118 David Fawkes 6/1
Tampa Bay Downs, Sunday, March 27, 2022, Race 10Entries: Pleasant Acres Stallions Distaff Turf S.
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Onyx (FL) Emisael Jaramillo 124 Juan Alvarado 12/1 2 2Lovely Luvy (FL) Javier Castellano 124 Saffie A. Joseph, Jr. 10/1 3 3Our Flash Drive (FL) Antonio A. Gallardo 124 Mark E. Casse 7/2 4 4Chick's Shadow (FL) Roberto Alvarado, Jr. 124 Ian Hemingway 15/1 5 5Mona Stella (FL) Romero Ramsay Maragh 124 Patrick L. Biancone 15/1 6 6Shifty She (FL) Edwin Gonzalez 126 Saffie A. Joseph, Jr. 3/5 7 7Sip'n Dip (FL) Jose A. Batista 124 John P. Mc Allen 30/1 8 8Mia Martina (FL) Hector Rafael Diaz, Jr. 124 H. Graham Motion 8/1 9 9Extravagant Rosie (FL) Jose C. Ferrer 124 J. Kent Sweezey 30/1
Tampa Bay Downs, Sunday, March 27, 2022, Race 11Entries: NYRABETS Sprint S.
PP Horse Jockey Wgt Trainer M/L 1 1Cajun Casanova (FL) Pablo Morales 118 M. Anthony Ferraro 6/1 2 2Real Talk (FL) Hector Rafael Diaz, Jr. 120 Carlos A. David 12/1 3 3Gatsby (FL) Emisael Jaramillo 124 Carlos A. David 4/1 4 4Officiating (FL) Edwin Gonzalez 124 Saffie A. Joseph, Jr. 2/1 5 5Tap It to Win (FL) Antonio A. Gallardo 120 Mark E. Casse 4/1 6 6It's My House (FL) Fernando De La Cruz 118 Robert B. Hess, Jr. 30/1 7 7Pudding (FL) Javier Castellano 120 Elizabeth L. Dobles 6/1 8 8Night Cap (FL) Jesus Lopez Castanon 113 Robert A. Raymond 15/1 9 9Shivaree (FL) Samy Camacho 124 Ralph E. Nicks 8/1
