Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Bettor believe, Gulfstream Park is ready
Star-studded prime season opener starts with Claiming Crown
Gulfstream Park is pretty much a year-round thoroughbred racing center. The only respite is the recently concluded eightweek break at the former Calder Race Course. Even that has been dubbed Gulfstream West.
Nevertheless, there is something special about Saturday’s opening day of the prime winter season. One of the largest crowds of the season traditionally turns out to greet the influx of snowbird Hall of Fame trainers and jockeys and top-caliber horses.
Todd Pletcher, who saddled 70 winners last winter, will pursue his 16th consecutive training title. Chad Brown, on a roll of back-to-back Eclipse Awards and a contender to capture a third, will try to dethrone the rival he has already superseded on the New York circuit.
Hall of Fame riders Javier Castellano and John Velazquez, each a winner of multiple Eclipse Awards, will again move their tack from New York to Florida. Luis Saez, who raced by both with a record-shattering 137 wins during last winter’s meeting, will attempt to defend his title. Other prominent riders wintering at Gulfstream include the Ortiz brothers, Irad and Jose, who are in fierce battle to capture this year’s Eclipse as outstanding jockey; Julien Leparoux and Edgard Zayas and Paco Lopez, who began their careers in South Florida before becoming nationally prominent. Tyler Gaffalione, who appears on his way to following this path, will ride at Gulfstream before heading north in the spring. (Due to a stakes-heavy card at Aqueduct on Saturday, several of the top riders will delay their seasonal debut at Gulfstream.)
For the seventh straight year, the winter meeting will open with the Claiming Crown, featuring blue collar horses, who have raced with varying price tags on their head. Nine stakes worth more than a million dollars in purses will be contested during the 11-race card with a first post of 11:50 a.m.
The sport’s biggest active name, Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Accelerate, is expected to head the field for the Pegasus World Cup on Jan. 26.
Accelerate could be the third straight reigning Horse of the Year to go to the post in North America’s richest race. He is in a tight battle with Triple Crown champion Justify for that honor. The winner will be announced on Jan. 24 when the annual Eclipse ceremonies are staged at Gulfstream.
This year the $9 million Pegasus will have a $7 million companion turf race, also the largest purse for a grass race. Pletcher is pointing last season’s Florida Derby winner Audible for the Pegasus with a prep in the Harlan’s Holiday stakes on Dec. 15.
This year’s renewal of the $1 million Florida Derby, once around the mile-and-an-eighth oval, is set for March 30. Two of the past three and three of the past six Florida Derby winners have gone on to win the Kentucky Derby.
Derby hopefuls of 2019 will have the usual progression of lucrative preps; the $100,000 Mucho Macho Man at a mile on Jan. 5, the $350,000 Holy Bull at a mile and a sixteenth on Feb. 2 and the $400,000 Fountain of Youth, also a mile and a sixteenth, on March 2. Each of these events will be complemented by stakes-laden supporting cards.
Thanks to South Florida’s mild winters, Gulfstream’s extensive turf racing program is a major lure to horsemen who don’t have grass racing available at their northern bases. Four Claiming Crown events and six races total on the opening day program will be on the infield grass course, which has undergone extensive renovations.
Each Saturday during the winter season, fans are invited to come out from 8-10:30 a.m. to watch morning workouts and take a guided tram tour of the backstretch. The final tram departs at 9:30. Admission is free and a buffet breakfast is available for $10.
With the exception of Pegasus day, general admission and parking for an afternoon at the races is also free.