Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
TAMPA Big names in the mix for Hillsborough
A matchup of Grade 1 winners is shaping up for the March 10 Hillsborough Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs, with Daddys Lil Darling and La Coronel both being pointed to the Grade 2 turf race.
Daddys Lil Darling, winner of the Grade 1 American Oaks to end 2017, is likely to make her 4-year-old debut in the $200,000 Hillsborough when rematched with La Coronel, who beat her a half-length when they ran one-two in the Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup in October.
Daddys Lil Darling has been training at Payson Park, some two hours north of Gulfstream Park. Trainer Ken McPeek has been eyeing the 1 1/8-mile Hillsborough as a logical return spot for the Scat Daddy filly, who earned $777,040 last year. Julien Leparoux has the mount.
“She worked well last weekend,” said McPeek, referring to a half-mile breeze Friday in a bullet 48.80 seconds. “She’ll work again Saturday, and if I’m pleased with how she’s doing, we’re a go.”
La Coronel, trained by Mark Casse, will have benefit of a race over the course, having finished second to Dona Bruja in the Feb. 10 Endeavour.
The Hillsborough is one of four supporting stakes on a Festival Day card highlighted by the $350,000 Tampa Bay Derby. Officials say it could be the biggest day in the history of the Oldsmar, Fla., oval, with as much as $1 million being offered in stakes purses alone. Some of those purses include bonuses restricted to Florida-breds.
At this early date, expected starters for the 1 1/16-mile Tampa Bay Derby include Flameaway, Vino Rosso, Untamed Domain, and either or both of the Dale Romans pair of Tiz Mischief and Hollywood Star. The race offers 85 qualifying points to the Kentucky Derby, including 50 to the winner. All Festival entries will be drawn March 7.
The other stakes on the Festival undercard are the $150,000 Florida Oaks, the $100,000 Challenger, and the $75,000 Columbia.
Blueblood, unbeaten in two races, will return in the Columbia at a mile on turf.
The 2016 Festival Day card drew the track record of $12,250,447 in all-sources handle.
Samy Camacho on a roll
The last couple of weeks have been good to jockey Samy Camacho. The 29-year-old native of Venezuela rode 13 winners in nine days of racing (Feb. 15-25) while moving into third place in the Tampa standings behind perennial leaders Antonio Gallardo and Daniel Centeno. His hot streak included three wins Feb. 16 and a victory in a $50,000 race at Gulfstream the following day on the remarkable 7-year-old mare Chella.
When the Tampa meet ends, Camacho once again will ride regularly at Gulfstream. In fact, he and agent Steve Elzey were at Gulfstream early Monday to drum up business.
“I’m trying my best, working hard every day,” Camacho said. “I want to try to go up in the standings even more.”
Solid debut for India-bred
Serjeant At Arms was a good second behind his Graham Motion-trained stablemate, Scholar Athlete, in a $23,000 turf allowance last Friday in his North American debut. Serjeant at Arms, bred in India, was a champion in his homeland when winning 12 of 14 starts.
Vispi Patel, co-owner of Serjeant At Arms, told Tampa publicity that many fans and members of India’s racing community watched the race, which was run at about 1 a.m. their time. Motion said he was happy with how the 5-year-old ran, especially considering it was his first race in a counterclockwise direction.
Scholar Athlete, owned by West Point Thoroughbreds, earned a 93 Beyer Speed Figure. Serjeant At Arms got an 89.
◗ A $27,500 allowance (race 8) serves as the highlight of a nine-race Wednesday program that starts at 12:23 p.m. Eastern. The next stakes will be run on Festival Day.