Averill's R Angel Katelyn Set for Florida Cup Day

A number of top products of Florida's breeding industry will be on display for the 14th renewal of the Florida Cup April 2 at Tampa Bay Downs, an afternoon that will feature six $100,000 stakes restricted to Florida-breds.

While there will be a strong presence from stables racing in South Florida, a Tampa Bay local, R Angel Katelyn, is among the top horses entered in the $100,000 Stonehedge Farm South Sophomore Filly Stakes at seven furlongs.

Owned by Richard Averill's Averill Racing, CCF Racing Stable, and K Lauren Racing, R Angel Katelyn is trained by Gerald Bennett, who met Averill, in part, because his seat at Tampa Bay is located near the owner's seat.

"Rich has a box next to mine here at Tampa," Bennett said, "and it was only natural we would talk horses. (Averill) had other trainers when we first met, but one day he said he liked a horse that was in that day and wanted to claim him. He asked me if I wanted to train the horse for him. We took the horse, did some good with him, and eventually our relationship grew, and we wound up with more horses for him and his partners."

As time went on, Averill, who heads a construction and masonry company in Bradenton, Fla., expanded his involvement in the game to include purchasing young horses at sales. While Averill had an agent, he called upon Bennett for assessments and observations of sale horses in recent years. 

While in Ocala last year for the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. June sale of 2-year-olds and horses of racing age, Bennett saw R Angel Katelyn, by High Cotton  , for the first time and knew this was a horse they had to have.

"She had beautiful lines. She had a great way of going, but more than that, she just had a presence about her that was something special," the trainer explained. "She was like a kid that was a grade ahead of the other kids and while she was a filly, she looked like a colt."

Averill's business plan with young horses concentrates almost solely on fillies and he sets price parameters. Bennett said his owner had a $35,000 evaluation on the High Cotton filly out of the winning Southern Halo mare Send for an Angel who was bred by Craig Wheeler. But Bennett told Averill that if he had to bring in some partners and go higher to get the filly, he needed to do that.

Averill brought in CCF Racing Stable and K Lauren Racing as partners and when the gavel fell they purchased the filly for $50,000. Barry Berkelhammer, agent, signed the ticket for the filly who was consigned by her breeder.

"I knew if we took her home and didn't have any bad luck with her, she was going to turn out to be more than worth the money." Bennett said.

After winning a maiden race at first asking at Delaware Park in September, R Angel Katelyn has won three of five starts—including three stakes—and has amassed earnings of $217,120. In the two races she didn't win, she earned placings—one second and one third. Bennett thinks she fits well in Sunday's seven-furlong test that has drawn eight other 3-year-old, Florida-bred fillies.

At 122 pounds, R Angel Katelyn and stakes winner Lirica are the co-highweights in the Sophomore Fillies Stakes.

Win, lose, or draw, R Angel Katelyn will probably get time off after Sunday's race, as Bennett noted this will be her fifth race since mid-November.

Bennett is mulling over choices as to where he will base his operations this summer. As one of Bennett's top owners, Averill's plans will have a strong impact. Last summer the horseman headquartered at Delaware and he had a good meeting, finishing third in the trainer's standings, but the Florida-bred bonus program funds may be the deciding factor that will see Tampa's current leading trainer heading south this summer to Gulfstream Park.

"I've got 10 horses with Rich now and that may expand if we race at Gulfstream Park," Bennett said. "I have some other owners who have talked about sending me horses if I'd race in Miami in the past, plus it's very expensive to move a stable 1,100 miles. The logistics of shipping, relocating the help, and so many other things is just making it tougher and tougher to make big moves every six months. The Florida-bred money, plus the fact they write state-bred maiden special weight and allowance races makes racing there an attractive option.

EG Vodka Turf Classic S.

Tampa Bay Downs, Sunday, April 02, 2017, Race 4

• STK
• 1 1/8m
• Turf
• $100,000
• 4 yo's & up
• 1:45 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Go Around (FL)	Jose Lezcano	116	William I. Mott	2/1
2	2Two Step Time (FL)	Jose L. Ortiz	116	Michael J. Maker	6/1
3	3Favorite Heir (FL)	Tyler Gaffalione	116	Lilli Kurtinecz	15/1
4	4World Approval (FL)	Julien R. Leparoux	116	Mark E. Casse	3/5
5	5Tutti Sanno (FL)	Samy Camacho	116	Reid Nagle	30/1
6	6Act of Madness (FL)	Scott Spieth	116	Kathleen O'Connell	30/1
7	7Allie's Event (FL)	Fernando De La Cruz	116	Lori A. Smock	20/1

14 Hands Winery Sophomore Turf S.

Tampa Bay Downs, Sunday, April 02, 2017, Race 8

• STK
• 1 1/16m
• Turf
• $100,000
• 3 yo
• 3:50 PM (local)

PP	Horse	Jockey	Wgt	Trainer	M/L
1	1Prize Fight (FL)	Tyler Gaffalione	116	Michael J. Maker	6/1
2	2Two Steps Before (FL)	Edwin Gonzalez	116	Victor Carrasco, Jr.	15/1
3	3Dr. Corday (FL)	Jose Lezcano	116	Kiaran P. McLaughlin	8/1
4	4Squadron (FL)	Javier Castellano	122	Todd A. Pletcher	5/2
5	5Dont Come Knockin (FL)	Carlos Montalvo	116	Angel M. Rodriguez	15/1
6	6In Closing (FL)	Jose L. Ortiz	116	Christophe Clement	2/1
7	7Muggsamatic (FL)	Ronald Dale Allen, Jr.	116	Kathleen O'Connell	5/1
8	8General McGooby (FL)	Julien R. Leparoux	116	Lilli Kurtinecz	8/1