Consumer Credit Ranks High in Fla. Oaks

Consumer Credit brings a three-race winning streak to the table March 7 at Tampa Bay Downs and headlines the $200,000 Florida Oaks (gr. IIIT). The Oaks is part of Tampa Bay Downs' best day of racing that features the $350,000 Tampa Bay Derby (gr. II).



The dark bay or brown daughter of More Than Ready   was entered in the Feb. 28 Herecomesthebride Stakes (gr. IIIT) at Gulfstream Park, but scratched from that event due to a deluge in South Florida.

Consumer Credit will break from post 7 in a full gate of 3-year-old fillies going 1 1/16 miles on the turf. Edgard Zayas rides for the third time, having been aboard for her last two wins, the Wait a While Stakes and Sweetest Chant Stakes (gr. IIIT), both at a mile on the turf at Gulfstream.



Consumer Credit races for Seth Klarman's Klaravich Stables and W.H. Lawrence. She RNA'd for $130,000 out of last year's Fasig-Tipton Florida select sale of 2-year-olds in training from De Meric Sales, agent. Nick de Meric bought her for $185,000 from the 2013 Keeneland September yearling sale. She was bred in Kentucky by Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings and is trained by Chad Brown, who won last year's Florida Oaks with Testa Rossi.



Consumer Credit is out of Sally Bowles, a two-time group winner in her native South Africa. Sally Bowles is also the dam of London Citizen, placed in the Sweden's Land Rover Svenskt Derby.



Consumer Credit sat right off the pace in her last two starts before finding her way to the front in the stretch. She won the Nov. 29 Wait a While by 3 3/4 lengths in 1:36.64 and the Jan. 24 Sweetest Chant by a length in 1:35.80. Both runner-ups, Lismore and Quality Rocks, respectively, follow her to Tampa Bay for the Oaks.



Shamrock Farm's Lismore bounced back from the Wait a While to take a seven-furlong allowance optional claiming race at Gulfstream Feb. 16 in wire-to-wire fashion. The daughter of Tiznow   was solid at two, running second in her debut on the turf at Belmont Park in September and breaking her maiden at Aqueduct at the Florida Oaks distance in November.



Bred in Kentucky by Audrey Otto's Jamm Ltd., she is out of Fastbridled, an unraced half sister to grade IIT winner Interactif, stakes winner Stretching, and group III-placed Wingspan. Her second dam, Pennant Champion, is a Phipps family-bred full sister to Miner's Mark, Traditionally, and Our Emblem. Pennant Champion is also the second dam of 2015 classics hopeful Ocho Ocho Ocho.



Quality Rocks, by Rock Hard Ten—Elusive Virgin, by Elusive Quality  , was on the front end in the Sweetest Chant before being run down inside the eighth pole. At 2 she was second to the good Rainha Da Barteria in Keeneland's Jessamine Stakes (gr. IIIT). Quality Rocks is trained by Bill Mott and will have broad support as she is owned by Flavor Racing, Brous Stable, Wachtel Stable, and Destiny Oaks of Ocala. She also scratched from the Herecomesthebride due to bad weather.



There are plenty of other worthy contenders in the Florida Oaks, including:



Savino A. Capilupi's Nicky's Brown Miss, third in the Wait a While and fifth in the Sweetest Chant. The daughter of Big Brown  , an $80,000 Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. select sale graduate came from off the pace for second in a 1 1/16-mile allowance optional claiming race on the turf at Gulfstream Feb. 6.



Dixiana Farm's homebred Tiger Ride (Candy Ride  —Royal Tigress, by Storm Cat) has won two of three, her last coming Feb. 4 over the Tampa Bay turf by 3 1/4 lengths as the 6-5 favorite. A half sister to New York stakes winner and grade III-placed Ol Donyo, Tiger Ride is trained by Kellyn Gorter.



Joseph W. Sutton's Bugle, a $400,000 Keeneland September sale graduate and daughter of War Front  , broke her maiden last time on the turf at Gulfstream for trainer Eddie Kenneally. Julien Leparoux gets the mount this time around. She was beaten a nose by Oaks runner Get Down Kitten in a maiden tussle Dec. 11 at Gulfstream. Her second dam, Circle of Gold, is a full sister to champion filly Flanders, the dam of champion filly Surfside.



With a tough outside post is Brereton C. Jones and Tim Thornton's Include Betty, winner of the Suncoast Stakes on Tampa Bay's main track Jan. 31. The daughter of Include has yet to test turf, but her off-the-pace running style may come in handy with plenty of pace signed on here. Include Betty has a career 2-1-1 mark from five starts. She is a half sister to 2012 Hollywood Starlet (gr. I) runner-up Blonde Fog.