Daily Racing Form National Digital Edition
Four stakes spice up undercard
OLDSMAR, Fla. – Four undercard stakes, all of them around two turns and all but one of them graded, lend a touch of class to an outstanding Festival Day program Saturday at Tampa Bay Downs.
Carded ahead of the featured Tampa Bay Derby (race 11) are the $75,000 Columbia (race 7), the Grade 3, $100,000 Challenger (race 8), the Grade 2, $200,000 Hillsborough (race 9), and the Grade 3, $150,000 Florida Oaks (race 10). They’re all grouped together in the late pick five (races 7-11). Listed purses do not include bonuses restricted to Florida-breds where they apply.
The Hillsborough, which has evolved into an important earlyseason race among older turf females and is the only Grade 2 of the day, drew an excellent field that includes a pair of Grade 1 winners, Rougir and Shantisara, from the powerhouse Chad Brown stable.
Besides the stakes, a busy afternoon also will include an overnight handicap (race 5), an allowance (race 4), and four maiden-specials (races 2, 3, 6, 12). All-sources handle for the entire day can be expected to approach $15 million. In reverse order, here’s a look at the undercard stakes:
Florida Oaks
An oversubscribed lineup of 3-year-old fillies going 1 1/16 miles over a turf course that figures to be quite firm could have Free Look as a slight favorite with Brown and superstar jockey Irad Ortiz Jr. in her corner.
Owned by Klaravich Stables, Free Look will get first Lasix and break from post 10 making her first start since finishing an okay fifth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf in November. In her two prior starts, the Tapit filly was a smashing maiden winner at Saratoga and the runner-up in the Grade 2 Miss Grillo on the Aqueduct turf.
Todd Pletcher also has a major player in here in Alpha Bella, who also gets first Lasix. The daughter of Justify was second to her stablemate Cairo Consort in the Grade 3 Sweetest Chant at Gulfstream Park in her last start.
Dreaming of Snow is the X factor, given that this would be her grass debut after she stunned a big crowd here Feb. 11 in a 38-1 upset of the Suncoast Stakes for Tampa’s perennial leading trainer, Gerald Bennett.
“She’s got the pedigree for the grass,” Bennett said. “We’re still thinking about the Kentucky Oaks, so I’ll look at the race before deciding whether we’ll actually run.”
Unlike at Gulfstream and other tracks, Lasix treatment is permitted in stakes at Tampa. One exception to this rule is the Tampa Derby, for which Lasix is not allowed as a Kentucky Derby qualifier.
Hillsborough
Brown, as usual, holds a very strong hand in the Hillsborough,
which will be run at 1 1/8 miles out of the long infield turf chute. Rougir (post 4, Hector Diaz Jr.) won the Grade 1 E.P. Taylor last fall, while Shantisara (post 6, Ortiz) is still looking for her first triumph since winning the Grade 1 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup in October 2021.
A runner-up finish and a 99 Beyer Speed Figure from Shantisara in the Pegasus Filly and Mare Turf on Jan. 28 is probably enough to make her a solid favorite in a field of seven in the 25th Hillsborough, with Ortiz’s presence further bolstering the support. The 5-year-old Irishbred shows four drills since the Pegasus at Brown’s Payson Park winter base.
Rougir, a Group 1 winner in her native France, will be making her first start since finishing a dull 11th in the BC Filly and Mare Turf in November. For backup, Brown also runs Kalifornia Queen, who figures among the longer prices here.
The non-Brown entries are Surprisingly and Scotish Star, the respective one-two finishers in the Grade 3 Endeavour
here four weeks ago; Gam’s Mission, a two-time Grade 3 winner returning from a ninemonth layoff; and Temple City Terror, a relentless closer who sometimes needs a frantic pace to facilitate her kick.
Brown has won five of the last 11 runnings of the Hillsborough, including the 2022 running with Bleecker Street. The great Tepin (2016) also was among the more recent winners.
Challenger
Classic Causeway, who swept the Sam F. Davis and Tampa Derby last winter when still trained by Brian Lynch, might be favored in a field of nine older horses – but only if Kenny McPeek were to load the colt onto a van Friday from his winter base at Fair Grounds.
“It’ll either be the Challenger or the Essex at Oaklawn” on March 18, McPeek said.
With or without him, Skippylongstocking surely will take his share of tote action with Ortiz riding. The 4-year-old colt earned an eye-catching 106 Beyer in a two-back victory in the Grade 3 Harlan’s Holiday at Gulfstream.
Tax and Trademark are other notables in this 1 1/16-mile dirt race.
Columbia
Tampa linemaker Mark Luther said he struggled mightily with how tightly matched this field of 10 3-year-olds appears to be. Finally, he landed on Freedom Trail (Ortiz) as a lukewarm 3-1 favorite, followed in close order by Mo Stash and a few more just in behind. All in all, this one-mile turf race is a fitting lead-in to all the stakes action on what should be an exceptional day of racing.