Gulfstream Juvenile Maiden Stacked With Potential

Six juvenile races into the spring meet at Gulfstream Park, horses raised in the Sunshine State have illustrated their precociousness. The scorecard: five wins for Florida-breds, one win for Kentucky-breds.

Florida-breds have accounted for the majority of starters, but in the second race at Gulfstream on May 9, a $65,000 maiden event at 4 1/2 furlongs, it is a relatively even fight. Half the eight entrants in the body of the field were bred in Kentucky, the other half in Florida, though by post time those numbers could tilt to favor Florida-breds.

One of the entries, Restored Order, a Todd Pletcher-trained Kentucky-bred son of Frosted , finished third May 8 in a race at Gulfstream after drawing in from the also-eligible list, potentially opening the door for Florida-bred and also-eligible Peppi to move into the field.

Pletcher is left with a Saturday starter in Hyperfocus, by leading second-crop sire Constitution , who stands at WinStar Farm in Kentucky for $40,000. Hyperfocus is the first foal out of the unraced Hat Trick mare Discreet Meating.

A $100,000 purchase last year at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale by Repole Stable from the South Point Sales Agency consignment, Hyperfocus fired a bullet half-mile breeze in :48.44 at Palm Beach Downs April 17 before a couple of gate workouts there in :50.02 and :50.13 on April 24 and May 1, respectively.

Irad Ortiz Jr. will ride.

The Kentucky-bred contingent also includes Breakthrough, the first starter for stallion Nyquist , who won the 2016 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1). Nyquist has a $40,000 stud fee at Darley in Kentucky.

Breakthrough, owned by Ramon Tallaj and Constance Wickes, was scratched from Friday's 2-year-old race by trainer Wesley Ward, who said the colt is of "Royal Ascot quality." The juvenile is out of the Storm Creek mare Murky Waters, who produced Red Vine , a stakes winner who placed in the Cigar Mile Handicap (G1) and Las Vegas Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) in 2015, among other races.

Ward, who won seven of Keeneland's 10 juvenile races last spring, has not been as hot this year with 2-year-olds in Florida, compiling a 1-3-0 record from six starters. His winner came with Kentucky-bred Sunshine City, a daughter of Creative Cause  who won at first asking in a maiden $25,000 claimer April 30 at Gulfstream for owners/breeders Ken and Sarah Ramsey.  

Keeneland's meet was canceled because of COVID-19. 

Along with Ward, two other trainers in Saturday's race—Juan Alvarado and Michael Yates—have already had winners of 2-year-old races at the Gulfstream meet. Last month, Alvarado struck with straight maiden winners and Florida-breds Quinoa Tifah and Gatsby for owner/breeder Arindel, and Yates captured Friday's maiden special weight race with second-time starter Just Right Mike for his Shadybrook Farm.

Ziggy and Cobb, Florida-bred Brethren  colts owned and bred by Arindel, start for Alvarado. Brethren stands at Arindel Farm in Florida for $7,500.

Ziggy's 3-year-old full sister, Raven, was a debut winner last year at 2 in a 4 1/2-furlong race and became stakes-placed one start later in a race at 5 1/2 furlongs.

Yates runs Full Send, a son of Cajun Breeze , the sire of Just Right Mike. Cajun Breeze is at stud at Florida's Stonehedge Farm South for a private fee.