Brody's Cause, Destin Top Tampa Bay Derby

With $350,000 on the line and 50 points toward entry to the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) to the winner, a field of 10 was drawn for the March 12 Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby (gr. II). The intrigue in the 1 1/16-mile race, however, revolves around a pair of sons of Giant's Causeway   in Brody's Cause and Destin.



Both colts appear in Steve Haskin's Derby Dozen, and both are looking to move forward in the Tampa Bay Downs' signature race that has a posttime of approximately 5:24 p.m. EST as the 11th race on a stakes-laden program

DERBY DOZEN: March 8, 2016 Presented by Shadwell Farm

Albaugh Family Stable's Brody's Cause is the more accomplished of the two on the track, having won last year's Claiborne Breeders' Futurity (gr. I) and finishing third behind champion Nyquist and Swipe in the Sentient Jet Breeders' Cup Juvenile (gr. I) at Keeneland. However, the Dale Romans-trained runner will be making his first start in 19 weeks.



Twin Creeks Racing Stables' Destin, on the other hand, was fourth in the Jan. 16 Lecomte Stakes (gr. III) at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots and was a 2 1/4-length winner of Tampa Bay's Sam F. Davis Stakes (gr. III) Feb. 13 at the trip. Trainer Todd Pletcher has won the race three times and twice in the past three years.



Brody's Cause, out of Sweet Breanna, by Sahm, was bred in Kentucky by Gabriel Duignan, William Arvin Jr., and Petaluma Bloodstock. The $350,000 Keeneland September yearling will carry highweight of 122 pounds in the Tampa Bay Derby and will be ridden by Corey Lanerie. A string of impressive works at Gulfstream Park this winter were capped by a local half-mile move in :48 2/5 March 6.



Destin, a $400,000 Keeneland September yearling, was bred by James. C. Weigel and Taylor Made Stallions. Despite the grade III under his belt, he'll tote only 116 pounds with Javier Castellano up. A full brother to grade I winner (and Preakness Stakes, gr. I, placed) Creative Cause  , Destin is out of the grade I-winning Dream of Summer.



The other eight runners certainly shouldn't be left off the table in a race that has seen its share of long-priced winners over the years—43-1 winner Watch Me Go (2011) comes to mind.



The wild card is Team Valor International, Gary Barber, and Tucci Stables' Riker who is also making his first start since the Oct. 31 Breeders' Cup Juvenile. A four-time winner over Woodbine's Polytrack last year, Riker was sixth in the Juvenile at Keeneland after leading early. Florent Geroux gets the first-time call from Riker's new trainer Mark Casse. Casse won this race in 2012 with Prospective. The Kentucky-bred Riker is by Include  —Desviacion, by Unreal Zeal, and has fired two bullets from his last three works at Palm Meadows Training Center.

Team Valor, Barber Buy Into Grey Winner Riker



Rafting and Morning Fire, the two-three finishers in the Sam F. Davis, respectively, return in the Tampa Bay Derby. Rafting is a son of two-time leading sire Tapit   while Morning Fire makes his all-important third start off a layoff with a bullet move (1:01) over the track under his belt.



Outwork is unbeaten and untested in two starts (10 months apart) and is a son of 2015 leading juvenile and first-crop sire Uncle Mo  .



Economic Model stretches out after running second to Awesome Banner in the seven-furlong Swale Stakes (gr. II) Jan. 30 at Gulfstream Park. Awesome Banner wheels back quickly off his fifth-place finish behind Mohaymen in the Feb. 27 Xpressbet.com Fountain of Youth Stakes (gr. II).



Calumet Farm homebred Star Hill, a recent maiden winner by Elusive Quality  , figures to improve with added distance while Charles Fipke's Tale of S'avall makes his first start since tiring in last October's Champagne Stakes (gr. I).