Octane, Outfoxed Dominant in Florida-Bred Stakes

Arindel's homebred Octane  overpowered his opposition Sept. 25 at Gulfstream Park with a gutsy front-running victory in the $400,000 In Reality, the open division finale of the 2021 FTBOA Florida Sire Stakes.

The 1 1/16-mile route for 2-year-olds sired by accredited Florida stallions co-headlined Saturday's 12-race program with the $400,000 My Dear Girl, the 1 1/16-mile finale for Florida-sired 2-year-old fillies.

Coming off a front-running score in the Affirmed, the seven-furlong second leg of the lucrative series for Florida-sired juveniles, Octane offered a repeat performance while carrying his natural speed around two turns for the first time.

The homebred son of Brethren   broke alertly from post 7 to take the lead on the first turn and show the way along the backstretch, where he came under strong pressure to his outside by Cattin . Octane put away Cattin on far turn, where Cajun's Magic , the Affirmed runner-up, launched his bid after saving ground behind the pacesetters. The winner of the first leg of the FSS Series, the Dr. Fager, Cajun's Magic kicked in through the stretch but was no match for Octane, the even-money favorite who scored by 1 3/4 lengths to win his third straight race since finishing second in his career debut.

The Carlos David-trained Octane ran 1 1/16 miles on the fast track in 1:43.97 under Emisael Jaramillo. Cajun's Magic finished 6 1/2 lengths clear of third-place finisher Cattin.

"I have plenty of confidence in Jaramillo," David said. "He's a great rider. He's one of the top jocks here in the summer and in the winter, as well. The plan was, obviously, (Octane)'s got speed, so we don't want to take that away from him. Just break good, sit outside a little bit, and whenever he wants to make the lead, let him do it and see where he goes.

"He's got that speed and every time you have a horse that goes to the lead, (distance) is always a question. I'm just glad he was able to do it. He's got a lot of talent."

Octane exceeded the early expectations of Arindel stable manager Brian Cohen with his impressive two-turn debut.

"Carlos has done a great job," Cohen said. "Back before we sent him to Carlos, he worked one time on the farm super fast. I wanted to send him a good one. He's a little horse and Carlos does great with these speed horses. I never thought that he'd be doing the mile and a sixteenth. He just gets out there and doesn't stop. We're so happy. We have the perfect rider for him. It was just a great effort and a great effort by those guys."

By passing the two-turn test in the In Reality, Octane's connections have reason to at least take a look at the Nov. 5 TVG Breeders' Cup Juvenile Presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (G1) at Del Mar.

"We'll see how the numbers come back and we'll talk to Carlos and see how we fit," Cohen said. "No rush, but we'll make a decision in the next week or so."

Octane improved his record to three wins and a second from four starts, for earnings of $410,000. He is out of the winning Aldebaran mare Star Recruit, whose only other foal to race, the Brethren gelding Gatsby , was runner-up in the 2020 FTBOA Florida Sire Dr. Fager Stakes, and in the Juvenile Sprint Stakes at Gulfstream Park West. The mare has a yearling Brethren filly. Her 2021 foal was born dead and she was not reported bred for 2022.

Video: FTBOA Florida Sire In Reality S. (BT)

Outfoxed Sparkles in My Dear Girl

LNJ Foxwoods' Outfoxed , a record-setting stakes winner to break her maiden last month, followed up with another eye-catching performance to earn a second straight stakes victory in Saturday's $400,000 My Dear Girl at Gulfstream Park.

Breaking from the rail against seven rivals as the 1-5 favorite in her two-turn debut, Outfoxed ($2.40) won by 9 1/4 lengths over 27-1 shot Veiled Prophet  while completing the distance in 1:45.34 over a fast main track. She was a 13 1/2-length winner of the Susan's Girl Aug. 28 at Gulfstream, the largest margin in race history.

"She's certainly done good things for us in the last 30 days, that's for sure," trainer Bill Mott said. "She beat this group easily enough. We know the water can always get deeper."

Outfoxed had a much different trip under meet-leading rider Edgard Zayas than her previous start, when she balked at the starting gate before loading and then raced outside horses in the seven-furlong Susan's Girl. Her unveiling came in a 5 1/2-furlong maiden special weight sprint July 15 at Saratoga Race Course, where she ran third.

"The first time coming down to Florida last time she was a little nervous, but they schooled her in the morning after the race and they said she was doing awesome. The gate crew knew her already and she was really nice in the gate. She actually was a little sharp today," Zayas said. "I think she has a lot of class, I was pretty confident she was going to handle the distance pretty good."

Susan's Girl runner-up Devilette  was once again out on the lead under Cristian Torres tracked by My Sassenach , third in the Susan's Girl, and Cajun Cousin , while Zayas and Outfoxed found themselves hemmed in along the rail in fourth by 30-1 shot Sequin Lady  midway down the backstretch.

As the field approached the far turn, Zayas was able to put Outfoxed in the clear four wide and the daughter of Valiant Minister   responded by closing in quickly on the leaders. She overtook My Sassenach at the midpoint of the turn and straightened for home with an open lead that expanded through the stretch under a hand ride, and was ultimately geared down nearing the wire.

"Last time she was on the outside and I had a clean trip the whole race, and it was a little shorter so the pace was a little faster. Today the pace was a little slower and going two turns, I really didn't want to put her out there on the lead," Zayas said. "She was the target of the race (so) I wasn't going to go against her. I just wanted to cover up a little bit and then put her in the clear and let her do her thing. She did awesome."

Bred by Baoma Corp out of the stakes-winning Kantharos   mare Savingtime, Outfoxed is a $360,000 graduate of this year's Ocala Breeders' Sales Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training, where she was consigned by Coastal Equine and purchased by Solis/Litt for her current connections. She also went through the ring at the 2020 OBS October Yearlings, 2-Year-Olds, and Horses of Racing Age Sale, where she sold to Jesse Hoppel for $27,000 from Abbie Road Farm's consignment. Her earnings now stand at $372,000.

Outfoxed is the first foal out of Savingtime, who has a yearling Tunwoo   filly and foaled a full sister to Outfoxed Feb. 22. She was bred back to Valiant Minister for 2022.

Outfoxed is only the second horse to represent Mott in the FSS series. The other, Inner Light , finished seventh in the 2017 In Reality. Outfoxed has been with Mott's former assistant, Gulfstream-based trainer Ralph Nicks, since the Susan's Girl.

"She's been training good and put on some weight," Nicks said. "She's a nice horse, plain and simple. The real boss is going to have a lot of fun with her."

Mott was unsure whether the Breeders' Cup in November at Del Mar could be on the horizon for Outfoxed.

"I think I'd have to talk to the powers that be. We'll talk to the owners and managers," he said. "That would be a big step, but we'll see what they want to do. I couldn't answer that question right now myself." 

Video: FTBOA Florida Sire My Dear Girl S. (BT)