BY BROCK SHERIDAN
Four Florida-breds, led by stakes winners Tessellate and Gerrards Cross, are among six sophomore fillies set to go seven furlongs in the $125,000 Gasparilla Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs Saturday. Tessellate, Gerrards Cross, Love Like Lucy and Ridgie run for the $25,000 portion of the purse for registered Florida-breds, part of Tampa Bay Downs enhanced Florida-bred program.
Both Tessellate and Love Like Lucy are trained by Saffie Joseph Jr., who won the 2024 Gasparilla with that year’s Florida-bred Horse of the Year Mystic Lake.
Tessellate won two of four starts last year including a 13-length domination of the $75,000 Juvenile Fillies Sprint at Gulfstream Park on Nov. 15. Although she was crowded at the start and got off a bit slow in the six-and-a-half-furlong test, the bay daughter of McKinzie circled the field 3-wide in the turn then drew off to win under Edgard Zayas.
A two-length winner of five-furlong maiden special weight for Florida-bred fillies in July at Gulfstream in her introduction, Tessellate was subsequently second in the $75,000 Sharp Susan over a sloppy six furlongs on Aug. 9 and third in the $75,000 Hallandale Beach going a mile on Sept. 26, both won by Florida-bred Willow Case at Gulfstream.
In her four starts, Tessellate has earned $93,510 for Magic Cap Stables, Paul Braverman, Timothy Pinch, Castle Gate Farm, Kuehne Racing and John Reinhardt. She is out of Shotdowninflames, by Trappe Shot and was bred in Florida by Castle Gate Farm.
Zayas travels from his base in South Florida to ride Tessellate, the even money favorite in program, from post three.
Love Like Lucy tries for her first stakes victory after spending the late summer and fall chasing multiple stakes-winning Florida-bred fillies Lennilu and Mythical in the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association Florida Sire Stakes series at Gulfstream.
The bay daughter of Ocala Stud’s Win Win Win was third in Lennilu’s $100,000 Desert Vixen, the six-furlong first leg of the Florida Sire Stakes; then was second the seven-furlong, $200,000 Susan’s Girl division and fourth in the mile-and-a-sixteenth, $300,000 My Dear Girl leg, both won by Mythical.
A winner at first asking against Florida-bred maiden special weight fillies in August, Love Like Lucy has earned $104,800 for MyRacehorse Thoroughbred Acquisition and Miller Racing.
Love Like Lucy is out of Just Like Lucy, by Majesticperfection and was bred in Florida by the late Brereton C. Jones.
Micah Husbands picks up the mount from Edgard Zayas, who had ridden Love Like Lucy in her four previous races. They have post two and are 9-2 on the morning line.
Trainer Kathleen O’Connell is hoping she can return Gerrards Cross to her stake-winning form after finishing seventh in her last race, the $102,000 Sandpiper won by Sneaky Good going six furlongs at Tampa Bay on Dec. 6.
A homebred for James M. Chicklo, Gerrards Cross produced a two-and-a-half-length decision against Florida-bred maiden special weight fillies in the first race of her career in June at Gulfstream then took the $112,000 Colleen on the Monmouth Park grass on July 27.
Gerrards Cross is by Midshipman out of Spanish Concert, by Concerto and she has earned $85,800 in her three races.
Sonny Leon has the riding assignment from the outside post six and Gerrards Cross is 15-1 on the morning line.
Ridgie rides a three-race winning streak into the Gasparilla. After winning a $25,000 maiden claiming on the synthetic main track at Presque Isle Downs in her second start in October, Ridgie was a length-and-a-quarter winner of a $25,000 starter allowance, $25,000 optional claiming at Tampa Bay on Dec. 6. In her last start, the chestnut daughter of Pleasant Acres Stallions’ Neolithic, took a first condition, $75,000 optional claiming for fillies going six-and-a-half furlongs at Tampa on Dec. 20.
Bred in Florida by owner Martin Goodell with Emily Goodell, Ridgie is trained by Maria Bowersock and has sports revenues of $76,500 in four starts.
Ridgie has post five and jockey Cesar Gonzalez and is 8-1 in the program.
Rounding out the field are Lady Valor with Samy Camacho in the irons and Lightscape with rider Samuel Marin.
Return to the January 8 issue of Wire to Wire
