Carpe Diem Seizes Kentucky Derby Ticket in Tampa

Carpe Diem was all alone at the finish line in a dominating victory in the Tampa Bay Derby on Saturday at Tampa Bay Downs. (SV Photography)
It took some convincing to get Carpe Diem into the starting gate for his 2015 debut in the $350,000 Tampa Bay Derby, but it proved well worth the effort and the wait.
Carpe Diem had not raced since finishing second to Texas Red in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile on Nov. 1, a layoff that didn’t seem to worry many people as he went off at even-money odds in the Grade 2 Tampa Bay Derby.
Not surprisingly, when they broke from the gate Sam F. Davis Stakes pacesetter and runner-up Divining Rod took the lead. Divining Rod was joined by My Johnny Be Good, with Carpe Diem settling in third and Moonlight Bandit running neck and neck with him. The first quarter-mile of the 1 1/16-mile race was run in :23.10 with the half –mile covered in :46.65 as the front-runners remained in the same order with My Johnny Be Good and Divining Rod leading the pack and Moonlight Bandit and Carpe Diem about a length behind them.
As the field made its way into the far turn, Carpe Diem shook off Moonlight Bandit as the rest of the field joined in the pursuit of the leaders. My Johnny Be Good called it quits about midway through the turn and no one else looked like they would threaten Carpe Diem’s chase of Divining Rod.
It didn’t take much effort for Carpe Diem to draw even with the leader, and turning into the stretch the two horses were locked in a battle.
Divining Rod wasn’t able to put up much of a fight once he was collared, and Carpe Diem easily seized the lead with no challenge from anyone else in the field. A late charge from Ami’s Flatter was good enough to get that colt second, five lengths behind Carpe Diem, as they crossed the finish line in a time of 1:43.60.
Divining Rod held on for third with Danzig Moon rounding out the top four.
Second betting choice Ocean Knight, the Sam F. Davis Stakes winner, lost his undefeated status in the race. He wasn’t able to contend and finished a non-threatening seventh.
A $1.6-million purchase at last year’s OBS March sale of selected two-year-olds in training, Carpe Diem is trained by Todd Pletcher and owned in partnership by Stonestreet Stables and WinStar Farm, who have both had classic race success in the recent past.
Carpe Diem looks to provide his owners with another Kentucky Derby starter as he earned 50 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, which should be good enough to lock him into the field.
Carpe Diem paid $4 to win on a $2 ticket with the exacta paying out $20.20.
For an Equibase chart of the race, click here.
CARPE DIEM EN ROUTE TO THE WINNER’S CIRCLE

SV Photography