Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
Romans barn filled with talent
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Trainer Dale Romans has returned to south Florida for the winter, his barn stacked and loaded, particularly with soon-to-turn 3-year-old prospects led by Grade 1 winner Free Drop Billy and Hollywood Star.
Romans said he plans to get down to some serious work for the first time here on Saturday morning, when he’ll breeze a large contingent of his horses stabled at Gulfstream Park, including 2-year-olds Tiz Mischief, Promises Fulfilled, and Dak Attack. Hollywood Star and Free Drop Billy have just returned to training after being given a bit of a break following their sixth- and ninth-place finishes, respectively, in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.
“All our top 2-year-olds are here at Gulfstream Park and we’ll put a few of them on the rail tomorrow,” Romans said while watching Free Drop Billy jog near the end of training hours on Friday.
Romans said what was a “great year” for his 2-year-olds in 2016 came close to being so much better were it not for a series of narrow setbacks in major stakes around the country in the summer and fall.
“I’ve got a great group of young horses and we really had a fun year,” said Romans. “But think how close we came to it being an unbelievable one.”
Romans won the Breeders’ Futurity with Free Drop Billy and the Ellis Park Juvenile with Dak Attack. But, he also finished second in five major 2-year-old stakes: the Sanford and Hopeful with Free Drop Billy; the Iroquis and Saratoga Special with Hollywood Star; and the Kentucky Jockey Club with Tiz Mischief.
Romans said he has not mapped out serious plans for any of his young horses just yet, though said he is considering the one-mile Mucho Macho Man on Jan. 6 for Dak Attack.
“Primarily, I’m going to wait for the longer races and place them all where it fits them best,” said Romans. “I plan to treat all my 3-year-olds on an individual basis this winter with the goal of getting to the bigger picture, and if at some point that means running a couple of them against each other, we’ll just deal with that situation when the time comes.”
Romans is also looking forward to starting a couple of his older horses here this winter, including J Boys Echo and the up-and-coming Singing Bullet.
J Boys Echo is coming off a second-place finish behind the undefeated C Z Rocket in a one-mile allowance race at Churchill Downs on Nov. 23, his first start since the Belmont Stakes. Singing Bullet, who is owned by Stronach Stables, earned a career-best 95 Beyer Speed Figure winning a second-level optional claimer at Churchill Downs in his 3-year-old finale.
“J Boy is doing super and ready to go, although where I just don’t know yet,” said Romans. “Singing Bullet had to take some time off to start his 3-year-old campaign, but he just ran a mile in 1:34 and change and I think he’s going to be a big horse in 2017.”
Brown regrouping in Florida
Chad Brown also will have no shortage of top 3-year-old talent in south Florida this winter, including Breeders’ Cup winners Good Magic (Juvenile) and Rushing Fall (Juvenile Fillies Turf), along with the undefeated and as yet untested turf specialist Analyze It.
Brown said both Good Magic and Rushing Fall have been training at Stonestreet Farm in Ocala, while Analyze It is with him at Palm Meadows.
“Good Magic will come in next week, but it’s still too early to say when or where he might run next,” said Brown. “Rushing Fall just started back and probably won’t come in until early January. Her schedule is more straightforward. She ran so well at Keeneland in the Jessamine that I’ve got the Appalachian penciled in for her first start back there this spring.”
Brown said Analyze It probably will remain on turf at 3.
“Analyze It stayed with me in training after returning from Del Mar, although he hasn’t breezed yet,” said Brown. “The plan at the moment is to keep him on turf and try to get to the Belmont Derby in July unless he does something to really change my mind in the morning, and I will give him the opportunity to do that.”
Brown also noted that champion Stellar Wind – who recently joined his barn after changing hands at the Keeneland November sale and is listed as a possible starter for the Pegasus World Cup on Jan. 27 – missed a work last week but is scheduled to breeze at Palm Meadows this weekend.
“She had a minor temperature so I played it safe and didn’t work her last week,” said Brown. “She’s fine, and I feel like I still have time if I’m going to get her [to the Pegasus].”
Successful Native back on turf
A field of 10 turf-sprint specialists is scheduled to contest Sunday’s $51,000 main event, a second-level allowance/optional $50,000 claimer to be decided at five furlongs.
Successful Native, a twotime stakes winner last year but winless in 2017, should be among the favorites as he returns to the grass off a thirdplace effort over the main track last month at Gulfstream Park West.
Other key contenders in the main event, to be run as the 10th race on an 11-race program, include Kentucky invader Platinum Prince, the speedy Moonwalker, and Maryland invader Our Independence.