Orb Wins Florida Derby

cc- Didn't you play in the futures? Not because it's ypur pick but because you "had a feeling"? LOL

Frac Daddy eyes Florida Derby

After sending out Frac Daddy for a five-furlong breeze at Gulfstream Park on the morning of March 16, trainer Ken McPeek reported that the 3-year-old son of Scat Daddy would likely run next in the $1 million Besilu Stables Florida Derby.

McPeek had originally planned to run Frac Daddy in the $550,000 Horseshoe Casino Cincinnati Spiral Stakes at Turfway Park March 23. The 1 1/8-mile Florida Derby is March 30.

"I'm leaning towards not running him in the Spiral and probably running him in the Florida Derby. It gives him the extra week for the throat ulcer to heal. It looks good, but I think the extra week will help," said McPeek, who detected the problem two weeks after Frac Daddy's sixth-place finish in the Holy Bull at Gulfstream Jan. 26.

The gray/roan colt, owned by Magic City Thoroughbred Partners, grabbed a quarter in the Holy Bull.

"He grabbed the quarter in the Holy Bull really bad. I think that was probably more an issue than the throat. Then, again, maybe it was the throat," McPeek said. "It's been really a tough one to get together. We've had to wait a long time here. Another week won't hurt him. I'm more inclined to keep him here, because of the extra week and we can school him a little more, and he's been training over this track."

Frac Daddy worked in company with Hollywood Starlet winner Pure Fun and was timed in 1:00 4/5, as was his stablemate. It was Frac Daddy's fifth breeze over the track since returning to the work tab Jan. 21.

"We put her [Pure Fun] on the outside this week. We slowed them down. Last week they worked entirely too fast," said McPeek, referring to a bullet breeze in :58 2/5 March 8.

Corey Lanerie was aboard Frac Daddy for the work and is expected to be named to ride him in the Florida Derby.

Prior to the disappointing performance in the Holy Bull, Frac Daddy finished second in the Nov. 24 Kentucky Jockey Club, in which he was caught late by Uncaptured by a neck. Frac Daddy's sire, Scat Daddy, captured the 2007 Florida Derby.

Frac Daddy broke his maiden three weeks before the Kentucky Jockey Club at Churchill Downs, his only win from four lifetime starts. He has earned $88,116.

Pure Fun is expected to make her 2013 debut in the Bourbonette Oaks at Turfway March 24.

McPeek said Taken By the Storm, who captured a mile turf allowance at Gulfstream March 9, could take Frac Daddy's place in the Spiral.

In other Florida Derby news, Trilogy Stable and Laurie Plesa's 3-year-old star Itsmyluckyday worked five furlongs in 1:01 Saturday morning at Calder Casino & Race Course with jockey Elvis Trujillo in the saddle for trainer Eddie Plesa Jr.

"He worked perfect with Elvis," said Plesa. "He galloped out three-quarters in 1:14. I couldn't be more pleased with him. We're coasting from here. He'll just have an easy half-mile breeze next weekend and that's it. It's been a long wait, but I think we've done the right thing with him."

Itsmyluckyday won the Gulfstream Park Derby by 6 3/4 lengths going a mile on New Year's Day prior to taking the Holy Bull at 1 1/16 miles by two lengths last out under Trujillo. Plesa decided to pass on another opportunity in the Besilu Stables Fountain of Youth Stakes Feb. 23, opting to train him up to the Florida Derby.

The son of Lawyer Ron was a $110,000 OBS March 2-year-old sale purchase and has won three of seven starts last year.

espn.go.com/horse-racing/triplecrown2013/story/_/id/9060182/frac-daddy-likely-florida-derby

i did lol but i also like the breeding - am just hoping the ulcer thing is totally healed

Florida Derby gets new shooter in Merit Man
By Mike Welsch

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – The pace scenario for the $1 million Florida Derby may have changed significantly on Monday after trainer Bob Hess Jr. announced his intention to run Merit Man in the Grade 1 fixture on March 30.

Hess made his decision after sending Merit Man out to work seven furlongs in 1:28.98 under jockey Kent Desormeaux moments after the second renovation break on Monday. Breaking off at the 6 1/2-furlong pole, Merit Man posted fractions of 24.86 seconds, 50.76, and 1:16.96 for the opening six furlongs before galloping out a mile in 1:43.56 while completing his final five-sixteenths of a mile into a relatively strong headwind.

Hess said Desormeaux will ride Merit Man in the Florida Derby.

Merit Man finished second, beaten a nose as the favorite, to close out his 2-year-old campaign in the 2012 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Sprint. He has started twice at 3, winning the Spectacular Bid on New Year’s Day before finishing fourth behind Honorable Dillon five weeks later in the seven-furlong, Grade 2 Hutcheson, the farthest he has run in five starts to date.

“He couldn’t blow out a match when he came back to the barn this morning, I thought it was a great work for him,” said Hess. “Although ultimately I believe he’ll end up being a better sprinter, there are several factors that went into the decision to try the Florida Derby. First of all, I think sometimes horses run their best first time routing. The race is coming up light on numbers, the pot is big, and it just looks like a good time to take a shot for that kind of money.”

Hess also is making no bones about his strategy stretching Merit Man out to 1 1/8 miles for the first time in the Florida Derby.

“The track has been favoring speed, so we’ll take the blinkers off, put him on the lead, try to slow it down, and see what happens,” said Hess.

The addition of Merit Man brings the number of confirmed starters for the Florida Derby to five. The list also includes the top-rated trio of Shanghai Bobby, Itsmyluckyday, and Orb, along with Frac Daddy. Trainer Dale Romans said he is considering running recent maiden-breaker Pick of the Litter in the race.

Orb, winner of the Grade 2 Fountain of Youth in his last start, worked four furlongs in 48 and galloped out five-eighths in 1:01 at Payson Park on Monday under his regular exercise rider, Jenn Patterson, according to trainer Shug McGaughey.

“The work was excellent. I couldn’t be more pleased with it. Everything’s right on schedule,” said McGaughey.

Shanghai Bobby turned in his next-to-last work for the Florida Derby on Sunday morning at Palm Meadows, going five furlongs in 1:00.14 in company with Palace Malice, who will also run on March 30 in the Louisiana Derby. John Velazquez was aboard Shanghai Bobby for his work, although Rosie Napravnik will take her regular seat on the BC Juvenile champion for trainer Todd Pletcher in the Florida Derby. Edgar Prado breezed Palace Malice and has the mount in the Louisiana Derby.

“He went really well,” Pletcher said of Shanghai Bobby. “He worked in company with Palace Malice and they finished up well, head and head, galloped out strong. It was a good work. I think he’s been training as well as he was going into the Holy Bull or even better. We’re just hoping for more of what we’ve been seeing and that’s what we saw this morning.”

Shanghai Bobby is one of more than a half-dozen horses Pletcher will run on Florida Derby day. At the moment, he has also penciled in Dreaming of Julia for the Grade 2 Gulfstream Park Oaks; Travelin Man and Soaring Stocks for the $75,000 Sir Shackleton; Seanchai for the Grade 2 Orchid; and both Ciao Bella and Authenticity for the Grade 3 Rampart.

Disposablepleasure returned to the winner’s circle for Pletcher for the first time since capturing the Grade 2 Demoiselle in November of 2011, winning Sunday’s fourth race, an optional claimer at 1 1/16 miles over the main track. Disposablepleasure, runner-up in the Grade 1 Mother Goose last summer at Belmont, had been idle since finishing far back in Keeneland’s Grade 1 Spinster five months earlier.

Napravnik could have a big day here on Florida Derby day. In addition to riding Shanghai Bobby in the main event, she will also have the call on Take Charge Indy, if he goes, in the Grade 3 Skip Away. Take Charge Indy had his first major work since finishing third in the Grade 1 Donn Handicap, breezing six furlongs in 1:14 at Palm Meadows on Sunday.

“He’s also nominated to the New Orleans Handicap,” said trainer Pat Byrne, “but we’re leaning towards the Skip Away because it would be a lot easier to ship him 45 minutes to Gulfstream rather than all the way to New Orleans to face Graydar.

“Another reason is we can get Rosie to ride him since we’ve already been told Johnny [Velazquez] is riding Cigar Street in the Skip Away for Bill Mott”

Byrne said making an early move at the pacesetting Graydar, who won the race, may have cost Take Charge Indy second in the Donn.

“The winner turned in a freaky performance, but our horse ran well,” said Byrne. “It was a good start to the year. Second would have been nice, but third is okay.”

www.drf.com/news/gulfstream-park-florida-derby-gets-new-shooter-merit-manMerit Man wins the 2013 Spectacular Bid.
Coglianese Photos

It's Attfield - have to respect!

Are You Kidding Me joins Florida Derby cast

Trainer Roger Attfield had entered Are You Kidding Me in the Grade 2 Swale Stakes going seven furlongs at Gulfstream Park on March 2, only to scratch the colt who had finished a close-up fifth in the Grade 1 Breeders' Futurity at Keeneland in his previous start.

Instead, Are You Kidding Me made his three-year-old debut in a 1 1/16-mile allowance race on turf at Tampa Bay Downs a week later on March 9, finishing a strong second by a nose behind Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf runner-up Noble Tune in a good effort.

Are You Kidding Me is now scheduled to face the biggest test of his career in the Grade 1 Florida Derby on March 30 with jockey Jose Lezcano booked to ride the Kentucky homebred son of Run Away and Hide in his first ever start on dirt.

"He's run well on the Polytrack and turf, and trained well on dirt here all winter at Payson Park," Attfield said Friday morning. "Of course you really don't know how they'll handle it until you try it. We've always thought he could be good enough to be thinking of him as a (Kentucky) Derby horse and this is where we'll find out.

"He drew the far outside for the Swale (post 13) and we didn't like that, so we went to Tampa and he got beat a nose on the turf. I was pleased with the race and he got what he needed from it for his next race. We considered the (Grade 2) Louisiana Derby, but I was concerned that he it might be over-subscribed and we might not get in. This way we don't have to worry about shipping and we'll find out where we are."

Are You Kidding Me was developed last year at Woodbine in Canada, making his first five starts there, the first three on Polytrack, and breaking his maiden going six furlongs in his third start. He followed with an allowance victory on turf and a strong runner-up effort when beaten a half-length in the Grade 2 Summer on yielding turf. He completed his juvenile campaign with a good try in the Breeders' Futurity at Keeneland when beaten only 2 1/2 lengths for it all by Joha.

Are You Kidding Me's owner-breeder partnership team is led by Ron Kirk, who operates Ron Kirk Insurance LLC in Lexington, Kentucky, a horse insurance firm, along with Californians John Bates, Michael Riordan and others. Kirk and his partners also bred and raced the sire, Run Away and Hide, winner of all three of his career starts as a two-year-old in 2008.

A son of City Zip trained by Ronny Werner, Run Away and Hide won his debut at Keeneland in April, the Grade 3 Kentucky at Churchill Downs in May and the Grade 2 Saratoga Special at Saratoga in mid-August in his final career start. Run Away and Hide was retired to stand stud at Darby Dan Farm in Lexington and Are You Kidding Me is from his first crop.

Meanwhile, Frac Daddy worked five furlongs in 1:00 1/5 under jockey Corey Lanerie Friday morning at Gulfstream Park in preparation for a start in the Florida Derby.

"He worked super," said trainer Ken McPeek who was beginning a busy weekend of travel to Turfway Park to saddle Taken By the Storm in the Grade 3 Spiral and morning-line favorite Pure Fun in the Grade 3 Bourbonette Oaks on Saturday.

A gray colt by Scat Daddy, Frac Daddy came to Gulfstream this winter with high expectations from McPeek after a game second-place finish by a neck in the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes at Churchill Downs on November 24 won by Uncaptured, who is scheduled to make his three-year-old debut in the Spiral.

In his lone start since the Kentucky Jockey Club, Frac Daddy had a bad day in the Grade 3 Holy Bull on January 26 when he grabbed a quarter rather badly and was never a factor. It was later determined Frac Daddy was suffering from a throat ulcer.

"I've never changed my mind about thinking he was a good colt. In fact, the extra time I had to give him may have done him a lot of good. I think Corey fits him very well and I'm looking forward to the race," said McPeek, who sent out Harlan's Holiday to win the 2002 edition of the Florida Derby.

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Plesa hoping for event-free Florida Derby

The Kentucky Derby hopes of Grade 3 Holy Bull winner Itsmyluckyday and Eclipse Award-winning Shanghai Bobby, among others, lie in their respective performances in Saturday's Grade 1, $1 million Florida Derby.

With so much at stake in Gulfstream Park's marquee event, Itsmyluckyday's trainer is hoping that the 10 entrants in the 1 1/8-mile Kentucky Derby prep have the opportunity to offer their best efforts to decide who continues on to Churchill Downs.

"I don't want any extenuating circumstances to come in the way of everybody's best race. I just want everybody to have a fair shot," said Eddie Plesa Jr., who is scheduled to saddle Itsmyluckyday for an attempt at a third-straight stakes victory at the current Gulfstream meeting. "I've got a lot of confidence in my horse, as I'm sure as everybody else does, and I don't want anything to come in the way of it."

Despite his high ranking among the 2013 crop of three-year-olds, Itsmyluckyday will likely need a first- or second-place finish in the Florida Derby to secure a spot in the 20-horse Kentucky Derby field. The Todd Pletcher-trained Shanghai Bobby, a multiple Grade 1 winner at two, will likely need to finish no worse than third to qualify for the Derby under Churchill Downs' new points system, which has assigned 180 points to the Florida Derby with 100 for first, 50 for second, 20 for third and 10 for fourth.


Having collected 50 points for his Grade 2 Fountain of Youth triumph, the Shug McGaughey-trained Orb is the only horse in the Florida Derby field assured of a Kentucky Derby berth.

"I just want the best horse to win. I don't want anybody to have to come out of that race -- me, Todd, Shug or any of the others in the race -- and say, 'This happened to me; that happened to me,'" said Plesa, whose colt has been installed as the 2-1 favorite on the morning line over Shanghai Bobby (5-2) and Orb (3-1). "I just want everybody to have a fair shot at the race."

Itsmyluckyday has emerged as one of the country's top three-year-olds this season, capturing the Gulfstream Park Derby by nearly seven lengths on January 1 before handing previously undefeated Shanghai Bobby his first career loss with a two-length triumph in the Holy Bull on January 26.

"I've got a horse that could not be feeling any better. He's just tearing down the barn. He's a very, very happy horse. He's been away from the races for a little while and hasn't missed a day of training, hasn't missed a work," Plesa said. "How do I feel? If I'd have known it would have gone this smooth, I would have been so happy."

Although Shanghai Bobby suffered his first career loss in the Holy Bull, his connections don't necessarily see his two-length defeat to Itsmyluckyday as a negative.

"I think from a numbers standpoint the Holy Bull was his best race. I think we got sort of the worst of the track and the pace scenario and got stuck in the one hole," Starlight Racing's Jack Wolf remarked.

"Having said that, I give credit to the horse that beat us, Itsmyluckyday. He certainly has shown in his last two races that he's the horse to beat as far as I'm concerned. We were pleased with how Shanghai Bobby ran and how he's been training.

"There's not much we can do at this point, the trainer's got the horse ready and the horse is going to do his own speaking," added Wolf, whose stable sold a significant interest in the 2012 juvenile champion to Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith. "It's exciting for me and our partners to compete at these levels, so hopefully he shows up and has a good race. The main thing is to get here and hopefully be lucky enough to have a good trip and win the race."


The Harlan's Holiday colt hasn't wowed observers during his recent workouts at Palm Meadows Training Center, but the dark bay has always done his best running in the afternoon.

"He's never been much of a work horse in the morning, but he's shown up in every one of his races, even though he lost his last race," Wolf said. "He's progressed along; Todd likes the fitness level that he's got him to at this point. He's carrying good flesh, his coat looks good, his energy level is good and we're pretty excited."



Itsmyluckyday seeks to complete a three-year-old stakes hat trick at Gulfstream in the Florida Derby (Leslie Martin/Adam Coglianese Photography)
www.brisnet.com/cgi-bin/editorial/news/article.cgi?id=35469&from=656

Thanks Elite! Because of Cait, I've become an Attfield fan. He is sort of cool!

Orb Looks Golden With Powerful Florida Derby
By Jack Shinar



Trainer Shug McGaughey said he was waiting for Orb to take him to Louisville, and the Hall of Fame conditioner should be on his way after the colt's impressive win in the $1 million Besilu Stables Florida Derby (gr. I) March 30.

Under a patient ride from John Velazquez, 5-2 shot Orb headed favored Itsmyluckyday approaching the sixteenth pole and coasted home in front to secure a berth in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) May 4.

Combined with his win in the Besilu Stables Fountain of Youth (gr. I) Feb. 23, Orb has 150 points and rockets to the lead in the standings for a berth in the Derby. The Florida Derby was worth 100 points, with 40 points to the runner-up, 20 to third, and 10 to fourth.

Juvenile champion Shanghai Bobby was a no-show in the Florida Derby, finishing off the board, and appears to be on the outside looking in at the Derby.

Itsmyluckyday, the 8-5 pick in the field of 10 3-year-olds, held second and looks solid for a slot in the Derby starting gate with 50 points. Outsider Merit Man, who set a tepid pace, was third, with 99-1 shot Narvaez fourth.

Orb, a Kentucky-bred son of Malibu Moon out of the Unbridled mare Lady Liberty, races for his breeders, Stuart Janney III and Dinny Phipps.




Read more on BloodHorse.com: www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/77217/orb-looks-golden-with-powerful-florida-derby#ixzz2P4EYx7kk