Near miss Saturday for Florida-breds

Close is only good in horseshoes and hand granades. Always a bridesmaid, never a bride. Close but no cigar.

Well, you get the point.

It was a day of near misses in big races for Florida-breds on Saturday as five horses that are a product of the Sunshine State finished second in five different graded races around the country. Obviously, finishing second is not as good as winning, but a near miss in a graded stake is nothing to sneeze at and quite frankly, is a proud accomplishment.

Plus, it does create some very nice black type. And black type with a “Gr” in a sale catalogue or stallion advertisement can often have a positive financial impact that is far greater than the difference between a first and second-place check in a race.

In the Grade 1 Jenny Wiley Stakes for older fillies and mares at Keeneland, the Adena Springs-bred mare Bay to Bay finished second to winner Daisy Devine in the 1 1/16-mile race.

It happened twice at Oaklawn Park as Santa Anita Handicap (Gr. 1) winner Ron the Greek, who was bred by Jack T. Hammer, made a furious rally in the final strides of the Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap but was unable to catch winner Alternation. Earlier that day at the Arkansas track, Donald Dizney’s homebred 5-year-old horse Apriority, was caught five wide in the far turn of the six furlong Count Fleet (G3), then drifted out in the stretch to lose narrowly to Outta Tune.

Duke of Mischief, a product of Marilyn McMaster’s Florida breeding program, tried to defend his title in the $1 million Charles Town Classic (G2) and looked like he might repeat when he took the lead at the top of the stretch. But the successful defense was not to be as he was caught and passed by eventual winner Caixa Electronica.

Further north in New York, C C’s Pal was unable to pull the upset over It’s Tricky, but hung on for second in the Grade 2 Distaff Handicap. Bred in Florida by Beth Bayer, the 5-year-old mare is also a $7,000 graduate of the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company October Sale as a weanling in 2007.

Do not despair too much Florida breeders. There were plenty of Florida-bred winners on the day including Master Rick, winner of the Northern Spur Stakes at Oaklawn and Immortal Eyes’ victory in the Webb Snyder Stakes at Charles Town.

Florida-breds also won several nice allowance races that day including June Cleaver, a Paul Sharp-bred filly who captured a $49,000 non-winners other than race at Keeneland; They Call Him El, a 5-year-old gelding bred by Tiffany A. Atteberry DVM and Beth Hendry who won a similarly conditioned $33,040 allowance race at Golden Gate; and Joyous Music, who was bred in Florida by John O. Sutton and won a $35,000 allowance event at Charles Town. E. Paul Robsham Stables’ Florida home-bred R King of the Road also took a very nice $62,000 allowance at Aqueduct.

Oaklawn fans witnessed Deadly Card, a 3-year-old Florida gelding bred by Guilherme and Angela Bombonato, break his maiden; while Jewelian Rose did the same a Tampa Bay Downs for breeder Annie-o-Productions.

Master Rick Takes Northern Spur Stakes

The results of the $100,000 Northern Spur Stakes Saturday at Oaklawn Park answer the age old question as to why they run horse races.

Before the race, it was difficult to see how Drill could be beat. He was a Southern California-based multiple stakes winner of the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity and the Grade 2 San Vincente. He came from the barn of Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, who had won his fifth and sixth consecutive stakes at the Arkansas track later in the day when Alternation won the Oaklawn Handicap (G2) and Bodemeister took the Arkansas Derby (G1). Drill was by far the richest competitor in the Northern Spur with $339,710 and the only one with even a six figures bankroll. His pilot was Rafael Bejarano, the second leading rider at the current Santa Anita meeting. Obviously the wagering public thought the same as they made Drill the odds-on favorite at 3-5.

But none of that mattered to Florida-bred Master Rick.

During the early stages of the race, jockey Corey Nakatani had Master Rick placed behind the moderate pace of leader Double Rah Rah, who ran the first quarter of a mile in :24 seconds and the half in an even slower :48.40. Around the far turn, Master Rick came from between horses to get to the front while Drill raced four-wide to get to even terms with the leader and the two began their battle. They bobbed heads until just inside the eighth pole when Master Rick pulled away, winning by 1 ¼ legnths. Master Rick completed the one mile Northern Spur in 1:36.73.

Master Rick gave his supporters $12.60 for their $2 win tickets and gave trainer Steve Asmussen and Nakatani their fifth win together on the day.

Asmussen began the final two days of the Oaklawn meeting one race behind Allen Milligan, who had led the standings for most of the meeting. But Asmussen won three races on Friday to Milligan’s one, then pulled ahead for the title with the big final day concluding the “Fifth Season” with 36 wins to Milligan’s 31.

“It’s a great day for Steve [Asmussen] and I’m really happy to be part of his team,” Nakatani said after winning on Master Rick. “And I’m very [happy] for owner [Richard L. Davis.]” Despite all the success the jockey and Asmussen had earlier, like those who bet Drill and 9-5 second choice Explain, even Nakatani was taken aback by Master Rick’s performance in the Northern Spur. “It shaped up a little better than I thought it would,” he continued. “I was biding my time and about the half-mile pole, I let him out a little bit and when Drill came to me, I opened up a little bit on him. Hoping it would work and it did.”

It was only the second win for Master Rick who had just broke his maiden at Oaklawn Mar. 17 after four tries in previous races. Bred by English Ranch Farms, Master Rick earned $60,000 for the win and increased his earnings to $94,930.

Master Rick is a graduate of the last year’s Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company Spring Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training where he sold for $47,000. That same sale begins a week from today and runs four days through Apr. 28 at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Company located on SW 60th Avenue.

“It was a good opportunity for [Master Rick] today,” Asmussen said. “But we’re going to find more big races for him.”

Drill, who was bred in Kentucky by Stonewall Farm which is now located in Ocala, hung on for second and finished eight lengths ahead of third-place finisher Explain. Drill, a son of the late stallion Lawyer Ron, only returned $2.20 for a $2 place ticket but the $2 exacta with Master Rick on top paid a nice $26.00.

New Sunshine Millions Showcases Florida Stars

The Florida Sunshine Millions takes on a new format in 2012 when the six-race event for Florida-breds highlights the Saturday card at Gulfstream Park. In year’s past, the Sunshine Million consisted of eight races run at Gulfstream Park and Santa Anita (four races at each track), with Florida-breds and California-breds competing against each other.

Whether it was the format change or not however, the $1.3 million program has attracted two Champions making their 2012 debuts in Awesome Feather and Musical Romance and the popular Mucho Macho Man, third in the Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) last year behind winner Animal Kingdom.

Awesome Feather was named Champion Two-Year-Old Filly in 2010 after she finished the year undefeated in six races including winning the Grey Goose Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (gr. 1) at Churchill Downs. Last year, her 3-year-old campaign was stymied by tendon issues but she came back late in the year to win two stakes. She won the Le Slew Stakes at Belmont Park and the grade 1 Gazelle Stakes at Aqueduct last year before trainer Chad Brown gave her a bit of a winter break. The daughter of Awesome of Course has been at Palm Meadows Training Center where she has been preparing for her return in the $300,000 Florida Millions Distaff. A win Saturday would extend her career undefeated streak to nine wins.

Musical Romance was just named the Champion Filly or Mare Sprinter of 2011 after her year that included winning three stakes at Calder Race Course near Miami, the Presque Isle Downs Master Stakes (gr. II) and the Sentient Jet Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint (gr. I) at Churchill Downs. Trained by Bill Kaplan who owns the Concorde’s Tune filly with Adam Lazarus’ Pinnacle Racing Stable, Musical Romance will likely be favored in the $150,000 Sunshine Million Filly and Mare Sprint at six furlongs.

Mucho Macho Man makes his seasonal debut at Gulfstream Park the last weekend of January for the second consecutive year having finished fourth behind Dialed In in the Holy Bull Stakes (gr. II) last year. He then won the Risen Star Stakes (gr. II) and finished third in the Louisiana Derby (gr. II) at Fairgrounds in New Orleans before going on to the Kentucky Derby. Although he disappointed by finishing sixth and seventh in the Preakness and Belmont respectively, Mucho Macho Man was among only Animal Kingdom and Shackleford to start in all three legs of last year’s Triple Crown.

Mucho Macho Man was then sidelined until his successful return when easily winning an Nov. 9 allowance race at Aqueduct. The son of Macho Uno trained by Kathy Ritvo, is perhaps the pre-race star of the $400,000 Sunshine Million Classic, but figures to be well challenged by Adios Charlie and Duke of Mishchief.

Although Adios Charlie did not make it to any of the Triple Crown races last year, he had a successful 3-year-old campaign winning the Jerome (gr. II) at Aqueduct in April and finishing second in the both Peter Pan (gr. II) and Dwyer (gr. II) later in the year.

Duke of Mischief last year won the Charles Town Classic (gr. III) and was second in the Sunshine Classic to Tackleberry. The 6-year-old son of Graeme Hall is a veteran of the older horse ranks with wins in the Philip Iselin (gr. III) and Oaklawn Handicap (gr. II) and nearly $1.7 million in earnings on his resume.