ftboa.com • Thursday • March 25, 2021 FEC/FTBOA PUBLICATION FLORIDA’SDAILYRACINGDIGEST FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION or to subscribe, please call Antoinette at 352-732-8858 or email: [email protected] In This Issue: First Mares Confirmed in Foal to New Ocala Stud Stallions Florida-bred Lugamo Trying for Kentucky Derby Points in UAE Trainer Alessandro Sana Discusses Lugamo in Lead Up to Dubai World Cup Preakness 146 to Offer Limited Seating Sheikh Rashid al Maktoum Dies Florida-bred Soup and Sandwich/LAUREN KING PHOTO Casse to ‘Take a Shot’ Strangles Found in Marion County Gulfstream Park Charts With Soup and Sandwich Tampa Bay Downs Charts in Florida Derby Florida Stallion Progeny List BY BROCK SHERIDAN _____________ almost as long,” Casse said during a tele- Florida Breeders’ List conference Tuesday. “So this is special. Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse, who Ms. Weber was a very dear friend of my Wire to Wire Business Place grew up in Ocala and currently lives and father’s [Norman Casse]. So Live Oak has operates his Casse Racing Training Center always been a part of my life and I’ve been in Ocala, will take more Florida flair than watching it for a long time. So there is Featured Advertisers his local roots into the $750,000 Curlin maybe something a little bit extra special.” Florida Derby presented by Hill ‘n’ Dale As special as the local ties however, Baoma Corp Farms at Xalapa (Grade 1) Saturday when Casse is counting on Soup and Sandwich he saddles Soup and Sandwich, a home- to accomplish another significant feat as Bloodstockauction USA bred for Charlotte Weber’s Live Oak the gray or roan colt would become the Florida Department of Agriculture Plantation, also located in Ocala. first Florida-bred since Hal’s Hope in 2000 FTBOA By Into Mischief, Soup and Sandwich to win Gulfstream Park’s marquee event is also out of Ms. Weber’s Florida-bred and he would do so off of only two career Journeyman Stud mare Souper Scoop, by Tapit. starts. Ocala Breeders’ Feed & Supply “Obviously I grew up in Ocala, 55 years Soup and Sandwich won his first career Ocala Stud there, and Live Oak has been around FLORIDA DERBY See on page 3 Seminole Feed Back to Top Page 3 Florida Derby Continued from COVER start by seven-and-a-half lengths at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 28 before winning a first condition, $75,000 optional claiming allowance at Tampa Bay Downs by two-and-three-quarter lengths going a mile-and-forty-yards on Feb. 24. While the Tampa Bay race was against only two other rivals, Casse said the victory proved he is worthy of taking on some of the best 3-year-olds in North American Saturday and a possi- ble ticket to the Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (G1) at Churchill Downs on May 1. The Florida Derby offers 170 points on the Derby leader- board with 100 to the winner, 40 to second, 20 to third and 10 to fourth. Soup and Sandwich would likely have to finish sec- ond Saturday to guarantee a spot in the Kentucky Derby starting gate. “It was a small field and he did prove he could run two turns and the other thing was he Mark Casse/MICHAEL BURNS PHOTO showed that he could shut off and rate,” Casse said of the victory at Tampa Bay Downs. “[Jockey] Antonio [Gallardo] was extremely impressed and he’s a veteran rider and I’ve never heard him so excited about a horse. And he ran fast. He ran four-fifths off the track record. Even in a three horse field, plus with a slow pace. “It’s big ask, but getting that race under his belt was very important and look—it’s called Derby fever. It’s contagious and you get it and I feel like now is the time to give him a try. If it doesn’t work, we’ll look elsewhere.” Despite the apparent lack of customary credentials going into a major prep race for the Kentucky Derby, Louisville, Ky., radio and podcast host E.J. Clark noted to Casse during the teleconfer- ence that Soup and Sandwich had become somewhat of a “buzz horse” in racing circles. Casse responded by noting that Soup and Sandwich may be worthy of the sudden attention. “Anytime you have a horse who is two for two and he’s run fast and he’s training extremely well, [your horse will get attention],” Casse said. “Everybody likes to be unknown and there’s some unknown with him. I’m glad to hear that there is some buzz. I know there’s a buzz in our camp. I just hope he can live up to it.” Casse said the Tampa race also proved that Soup and Sandwich has the credentials to handle the mile-and-one-eighth distance of the Florida Derby. “I think he proved the other day he can get the distance. He’s by Into Mischief but he’s out of a Tapit mare. He’s a little different than most Into Mischiefs, he’s a little leggier. I think he proved that distance is not much of an issue.” Soup and Sandwich will be ridden by John Velazquez, who has won the Florida Derby five times previously with Quality Road (2009), Orb (2013), Materiality (2015), Always Dreaming (2017) and Audible (2018). Velazquez also won Kentucky Derby Orb and Always Dreaming. Live Oak Plantation won the 2005 Florida Derby with High Fly while Casse is in search of his first score in the Florida Derby. Back to Top Back to Top Page 5 First Mares Confirmed in Foal to Ocala Stud Stallions Seeking the Soul, Win Win Win, and Dak Attack PRESS RELEASE ________________ OCALA, FL—The first mares bred to Ocala Stud stallions Seeking the Soul, Win Win Win, and Dak Attack have been confirmed in foal, the farm announced March 24. Charles Fipke’s Mineshaft mare Mine’s Perfect, who is out of Perfect Forever, a half-sister to Grade 1-winners Forever Unbridled and Unbridled Forever out of Kentucky Oaks (Grade 1) winner Lemons Forever, has been scanned in foal to Seeking the Soul, a Grade 1 winner and multiple Graded stakes-placed millionaire son of Perfect Soul (Ire). A Fipke homebred, Seeking the Soul won the 2017 Clark Handicap (G1), the 2018 Ack Ack Stakes (G3), and the 2019 Stephen Foster (G2) at Churchill Downs. All told, he won or placed in eight graded stakes, including Florida-bred Win Win Win/ELSA LORIEUL PHOTO runner-up finishes in the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (G1) and the $9 million Pegasus World is produced from the stakes-winning Indian Charlie mare Indian Cup Invitational Stakes (G1) and bankrolled more than $3.4 mil- Spell. His second dam is Champion and Kentucky Oaks (G1)- lion in an illustrious career. winner Proud Spell. Bespoken, a daughter of Bernardini out of the Grade 1-winning For more information on Seeking the Soul, Win Win Win, or Deputy Minister mare Well Chosen, has been confirmed in foal to Dak Attack, contact David or Joe O’Farrell at (352) 237-2171 or Win Win Win, a Florida-bred Grade 1 winner and track record-set- visit OcalaStud.com. ting son of Hat Trick (Jpn). Win Win Win captured last year’s Forego Stakes (G1) at Saratoga in impressive fashion, defeating four Grade 1 winners. He set a new track and stakes record in win- ning the previous year’s Pasco Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs, get- ting seven furlongs in 1:20.89 in that seven-and-a-quarter-length score as a 3-year-old. Win Win Win hails from a deep Live Oak family and is a descendant of the influential Halo sire line. CLICK HERE for the latest My Sweet Dani Girl, by Scat Daddy out of Jen’s Halo, by The Florida Horse ONLINE Halo’s Image, checked in foal to Dak Attack, winner of the 2017 Ellis Park Juvenile. A $625,000 Keeneland September yearling purchase, Dak Attack is by perennial leading sire Ghostzapper and Gulfstream Park Championship Meeting Florida-bred and Florida Sire Stakes Bonuses Date Race Conditions Distance Purse Mar. 27 Curlin Florida Derby Presented by Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms at Xalapa (G1) 3 yo 1 1/8 mi. $750,000** Mar. 27 Gulfstream Park Oaks (G2) 3 yo Fillies 1 1/16 mi. $200,000*** **Plus $100,000 Win Bonus for Florida Sire Stakes Eligibles and $100,000 Florida-bred Top 3 Bonus 70%-20%-10%. ***Plus $25,000 Win Bonus for Florida-breds and $25,000 Win Bonus for Florida Sire Stakes Eligibles Back to Top Back to Top Page 7 Florida-bred Lugamo Trying For Kentucky Derby Points in UAE BY BROCK SHERIDAN________________________________ Lugamo Racing Stable LLC’s Lugamo is taking the long route in an attempt of garner qualifying points for the Grade 1 Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve to be run May 1 at Churchill Downs. The 3-year-old son of Baoma Corp stallion Chitu, who stands at Bridlewood Farm, is in Dubai, U.A.E. this week with Alessandro Sano, the son and assistant to trainer Antonio Sano, preparing for a start in Saturday’s Group 2 UAE Derby sponsored by Emirates NBD at Meydan Racecourse. The US$750,000 UAE Derby is an invitational run at a dis- tance of 1,900 meters (about a mile-and-three-sixteenths) for Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere 3-year-olds and offers 170 qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby to the top four finishers on a scale of 100-40-20-10.