R Private Jet back from layoff

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – As a half-brother to the stakes-winning turf sprint specialist Pay Any Price, who won 17 races on the grass during a career that spanned seven seasons, R Private Jet would have been expected to follow suit. But after finishing seventh and last on the grass in his debut almost two years ago, R Private Jet switched to the dirt and has won two of his three subsequent starts.

On Sunday, R Private Jet returns from a lengthy layoff to take on five rivals in the feature on a nine-race program at Gulfstream Park, a six-furlong allowance dash over the main track restricted to Floridabreds. The race drew a field of just six competing for a $48,000 purse.

R Private Jet has been idle since registering a wire-towire, 3 3/4-length victory going 6 1/2 furlongs here last September while competing under a $35,000 claiming tag. That outing came on the heels of an 11-month hiatus and proved to be his only start during the 2022 campaign. R Private Jet was trained by Georgina Baxter through his first four outings but will launch his comeback Sunday in the hot hands of Rohan Crichton, who has already won 13 races during the meet, putting him just one off the lead in the trainer standings behind defending champion Saffie Joseph Jr.

“This horse is kind of like his brother in a way, a real pain in the ass to train, a big horse who is kind of hard on himself and his own worst enemy,” said Richard Averill, who co-owned Pay Any Price and owns R Private Jet with the CCF Racing Stable. “He got hurt one time because he got scared and flipped in the barn. Stuff like that. I always like to give my horses plenty of time, do what’s right by them when need be, and he certainly deserves it. But I think he should be ready to go on Sunday. We had a race for him a few weeks ago, but Rohan said he thought he needed another work. Then this race didn’t fill for several days before, luckily for us, going on Sunday.”

Averill said that he’ll likely try R Private Jet on the turf once again considering the success he had with Pay Any Price, who is the Gulfstream and U.S. record holder for five furlongs on the grass.

Averill said of R Private Jet, “He was a little immature when we started him the first time on the turf. He doesn’t have the same kind of speed as his brother. He’s kind of a different horse who might want to go farther than Pay Any Price did. But we’ll probably try him over it again at some point.”

R Private Jet has had four works since joining Crichton’s barn last month, including a bullet half in 47 on May 2.

R Private Jet is one of four horses in the field for Sunday’s main event making their first start of the year. The others are Khocu, Captain Cajun, and Advance Cash. Doo Wop Don comes off three straight secondplace finishes. Ensign Parker completes the field.

Averill said he intends to leave Tampa Bay Downs shipper R Adios Jersey with Crichton after she runs Saturday in the Musical Romance Stakes here. Averill said he’s hoping to run R Adios Jersey in the Grade 2 Princess Rooney Stakes here July 2.