Guys Reward Back for Tampa Bay Defense

Michael J. Bruder's Guys Reward will look to defend his title in the $150,000 Tampa Bay Stakes (gr. IIIT) Jan. 24 at Tampa Bay Downs, where he faces a full field of older horses going 1 1/16 miles on the grass.

Last year Guys Rewards upset the field when he rallied from far off the pace to prevail at almost 15-1 for trainer Dale Romans. This time the 8-year-old son of Grand Reward will be the starting highweight in the field of 14, carrying 120 pounds including jockey Abdiel Jaen, who rode the horse to victory last year.

Guys Reward only won one more race in 2014, scoring in the $170,000 Metropolitan Jets Oceanport Stakes (gr. IIIT) at Monmouth Park July 27. He enters the race on a three-race losing streak, having not started since finishing fourth in the River City Handicap (gr. IIIT) at Churchill Downs Nov. 8. 

Guys Reward will break from post 12 in the Tampa Bay Stakes, which has a post time of 3:50 p.m. EST.

Sky Flight, enters the Tampa Bay Stakes having won his past three starts including the Tropical Park Derby at Gulfstream Park Dec. 20 for trainer Mark Casse. The 4-year-old son of Sky Mesa   finished fifth in his debut Sept. 13 in a maiden special weight race at Kentucky Downs before breaking his maiden in his second career start at Keeneland Oct. 18.

After scoring by four lengths in a grassy allowance race at Churchill Downs Nov. 13, Sky Flight rallied from eighth to take the Tropical Park Derby by a length as the third-choice returning $11.40 to win. Sky Flight will be ridden by Julien Leparoux in the Tampa Bay Stakes, breaking from post 4.

Super Soldier will be making his stakes debut in the Tampa Bay Stakes, having won five of his past six starts, including a victory over this turf course Jan. 3 for trainer Michele Boyce. From May 24 through Sept. 1 of last year, Super Soldier, a 5-year-old Lost Soldier gelding, won four straight allowance races at Arlington International Race Course before suffering a tough beat at Hawthorne Racecourse Oct. 25 when he was nailed on the wire while second.

In his allowance win at Tampa Bay Downs, Super Soldier went right to the front under Luis Garcia and never looked back to prevail by three-quarters of a length. Garcia will be back aboard Super Solider in the Tampa Bay Stakes, breaking from post 3.

Allie's Event will be the oldest starter in the race, trying to win the first stakes races of his career at the age of 9. The gelded son by Wild Event has won 11 of 43 career starts and finished fourth in the 2012 Tampa Bay Stakes. Allie's Event will break from the rail under jockey Pablo Morales.