BY GULFSTREAM PARK PRESS OFFICE

HALLANDALE BEACH, FL—It will be a three-way photo finish in the race for the Sunshine Meet training title at Gulfstream Park heading into Saturday’s 11-race closing day program.

Saffie Joseph Jr. – Lauren King

Saffie Joseph Jr. has won seven consecutive training titles at Gulfstream, including the prestigious Championship Meet each of the past two winters. He has starters in six races Saturday, trailing Victor Barboza Jr. in the standings, 32-31, after Barboza won Friday’s fifth race with Florida-bred Capturethelaughter.

Bred by Versatile Thoroughbreds LLC of Schaumburg, Ill., and Michael and Judy Crowe of Ocala, Fla., Capturethelaughter paid $8.80 to win.

Barboza has horses entered in five races Saturday.

Jose D’Angelo sits in third place in the trainer standing with 29 wins through Friday. He has six horses entered to run at Gulfstream Park Saturday.

With 58 wins, 20 more than runner-up Miguel Vasquez, Edgard Zayas has long since clinched the riding title at the Sunshine Meet, which began Sept. 1. Zayas had a string of 19 consecutive programs with at least one winner between Sept. 8 and Oct. 21.

First race post time Saturday is 12:10 p.m. EST.

 

Rainbow 6 Carryover Guaranteed at $75,000

The 20¢ Rainbow 6 gross jackpot pool will be guaranteed at $75,000 Saturday. The wager, unsolved in four racing programs following a jackpot hit for $136,285.46 Nov. 11, spans the sixth through eleventh races.

Saturday’s sequence kicks off with a maiden special weight for 2-year-old Florida-breds sprinting five furlongs on the all-weather course. The 6-5 program favorite is Joseph-trained Breezero, second as the favorite in debut at the course and distance Oct. 7 behind next out winner Great Venezuela.

The eighth race is an open maiden special weight for 2-year-olds scheduled for one mile on the main track. Break Out will be racing first time for Joseph after running second in his first two starts, the first behind undefeated Hancock.

Florida-bred Lady Jae, second to Amy C (GB) in the Grade 3 Las Cienegas in January at Santa Anita and now trained by Barboza; and Face the Music, front-running winner of a five-furlong sprint on synthetic on Oct. 28, top a field of 10 in the ninth race, a first level, $20,000 optional claiming for Florida-bred fillies and mares, also at five-and-a-half furlongs on the synthetic course.

The co-feature comes in tenth race, a first condition, $20,000 optional claiming on the synthetic for Florida-bred 3-year-olds and older.

D’Angelo-trained Spy Hunter is making his second start off more than a year layoff after finishing a strong second in his return Oct. 29 against older horses. Loyal Louie has been third or better in 13 of 27 tries at the distance including a win over the course June 9.

 

Championship Meet Begins Friday, Dec. 1

Gulfstream’s 84-day Championship Meet, offering 68 stakes worth $14.875 million headlined by the $4.5 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational Series Jan. 27 and $1 million Florida Derby (G1) March 30, opens Friday, Dec. 1.

The third and final legs of the $1.2 million FTBOA Florida Sire Stakes for 2-year-olds by registered Florida stallions will highlight racing on Saturday, Dec. 2 with the $300,000 In Reality for colts and geldings and the $300,000 My Dear Girl for fillies, both at a mile-and-a-sixteenth.

Notes: Jockey Edwin Gonzalez registered a hat trick Friday aboard Florida-bred Lightning Tones ($56.40) in the second race, Capturethelaughter and Florida-bred Demar’s Legacy ($7.60) in the seventh race… Jockey Edgar Perez and trainer Eniel Cordero teamed for a pair of wins with Florida-bred Sabian ($27.80) in the fourth race and Florida-bred Chaina ($21) in the ninth race.

Florida-breds won eight of the nine races carded on Friday.

Return to the Nov. 24 issue of Wire to Wire