ftboa.com • Monday • March 22, 2021 FEC/FTBOA PUBLICATION FLORIDA’SDAILYRACINGDIGEST FOR ADVERTISING Florida-bred Warrior’s INFORMATION or to subscribe, please call Antoinette at 352-732-8858 or Pride Rockets to Victory email: [email protected] in Texas Glitter In This Issue: BY BROCK SHERIDAN___________________ Warrior’s Pride jumped out of the starting gate Life is Good Out of Triple Crown as if he was shot out of a cannon and the Florida- Pacific Gale Rolls to Victory in Hurricane bred colt held on to win the $75,000 Texas Glitter Bertie Stakes with Junior Alvarado aboard. The Texas Glitter featured a field of Travel Column in Fair Grounds Oaks Win eight 3-year-olds and Warrior’s Pride is Chess Chief in New Orleans Classic the third consecutive Florida-bred win- Thriller ner of the five furlong turf stakes fol- lowing the Mark Casse-trained Yes I Hot Rod Charlie Full Throttle in am Free for owner Gary Barber in Louisiana Derby 2019 and Cajun Casanova last year for trainer Michael Pino and owner Just Read It Earns First Stakes Victory in Smart Angle LLP. Cicada Breaking from the outside post United Wins San Luis Rey Off the Bench eight, Warrior’s Pride continued his accelerated velocity into the turn Sir Wellington Upsets in Gazebo Stakes with a two-and-a-half-length lead ahead of Nitro Time in second Gulfstream Park Charts with even-money favorite Field Tampa Bay Charts Day giving chase in third as he sped through a first quarter-mile Track Results & Entries in a blazing :20.57. He continued to keep the wide Florida Stallion Progeny List margin into the stretch and sprint- Florida Breeders’ List ed through a torrid half-mile in :43.05 while extending his lead to Wire to Wire Business Place three lengths past the eighth-pole. Kasim and Field Day tried to launch their respective challenges but Featured Advertisers never got closer than three-quarters of a length at the finish as Warrior’s Pride Baoma Corp completed the distance on the firm turf in :55.37. Florida Department of Agriculture Kasim was second, a nose better FTBOA than Field Day in third with Omaha City, Journeyman Stud Dr. Duke, Nitro Time and No Que No completing the order of finish. Ocala Breeders’ Feed & Supply Warrior’s Pride was let go at 10-1 odds and Ocala Stud paid $23.20 on a $2 win ticket. Seminole Feed See WARRIOR’S PRIDE on page 3 Florida-bred Warrior’s Pride/RYAN THOMPSON PHOTO Back to Top Page 3 Warrior’s Pride Continued from COVER Alvarado, 36, won his first career race at Gulfstream in 2007 and returned this winter for his first full Championship Meet in 12 years. One of his biggest backers has been winning trainer Antonio Cioffi, a fellow Venezuelan. “He’s been a great help since I got here from Venezuela. This win actually meant a lot to me,” Alvarado said. “He just told me, ‘Hang on. When you break out of there, don’t do anything. Let him run. He’s the fastest horse in the race, for sure.’ Junior Alvarado/COGLIANESE PHOTO “I trust [Cioffi]. It’s many years that I know him. [Warrior’s Pride] broke out of there like a rocket and carried me all the way to the wire,” he added. “I knew he was going fast. He’s a very fast horse. Antonio Cioffi has done a great job with him. He said to let him run as free as he wanted to do it and he’s going to hang on to the end. He certainly did.” A homebred for Just for Fun Stable Inc., Warrior’s Pride broke his maiden in his third career start against special weight company going five-and-and-a-half furlongs at Gulfstream Park West on Nov. 15, winning by two-and-three-quarter lengths. He then won a first condition, $75,000 optional claiming allowance going six furlongs by four-and-a-quarter lengths in his next start before try- ing stakes for the first time in the six furlong Limehouse Stakes at Gulfstream on Jan. 2. He finished fifth to winner Drain the Clock in the Limehouse then was fifth again to fellow Florida- bred Willy Boi in the six furlong Hutcheson Stakes on a sloppy track at Gulfstream on March 6 after leading at the first point of call in both. But there was now slowing down in the Texas Glitter has the bay colt won for the third time in seven career starts. The $45,570 first-place check increased his bankroll to $109,702. Warrior’s Pride is by Poseidon’s Warrior and is the first foal from the Pleasant Tap mare Sophia’s Pride. Sophia’s Pride also has a 2-year-old filly by Handsome Mike and an unnamed yearling colt by Decisive Moment. She was bred in 2021 to Curlin. FTBOA Maintains Office Building Drop Box For Official Business While the FTBOA offices remain closed to visitors and mem- bers doing business as a precaution due to the Coronavirus pan- demic, be advised that all services provided by the Association and its related companies remain on going. Most business can be conducted via mail, email or telephone and a drop box has been installed near our side entrance of the FTBOA building at 801 SW 60th Avenue, Ocala, Fla. for mem- bers to use when dropping off time-sensitive documents. Forms may be found at this lo- cation or on our website at www.ftboa.com. Please call us at 352-629- 2160 if you have any questions or contact us at [email protected]. Back to Top Back to Top Page 5 Life is Good Out of Triple Crown BY BROCK SHERIDAN________________________________ Shortly after the Santa Anita press office released information that Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (Grade 1) future book favorite Life is Good had worked well Saturday morn- ing at the Great Race Place, the website Horse Racing Nation reported that the Bob Baffert trainee had suffered a setback and would miss the Triple Crown. The Horse Racing Nation report by Ron Flatter and released at approximately 3:30 p.m. Saturday quoted WinStar president CEO Elliot Walden as saying in a text that the undefeated son of Into Mischief out of Beach Walk, by Distorted Humor was “off in the hind end” and that the colt would be evaluated by Dr. Larry Blamlage of Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Ky. Life is Good is owned by WinStar Farm LLC and CHC Inc. The injury, according to several reports, does not appear to be serious enough to create a safety concern for Life Is Good, but it “officially” forces the colt out of consideration for the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. Earlier Saturday morning at approximately 9:00 a.m., Life is Good worked six furlongs in a bullet 1:13.40 according to the Santa Anita Stable Notes. Life Is Good/BENOIT PHOTO “He worked perfectly and I’m very happy with him,” Baffert was quoted as saying to the track’s press team shortly after the eight lengths, with Medina Spirit again as the runner-up. work and before the problem was discovered when the horse Although the news certainly is a blow to the Hall of Fame train- returned to Baffert’s barn at the track. er who has won the Kentucky Derby six times and the Triple A $525,000 yearling purchase by China Horse Club and Crown twice with American Pharoah in 2015 and with Justify in Maverick Racing at the 2019 Keeneland September Sale, Life is 2018, Baffert still has an impressive army of candidates on the Good won his first career race by nine-and-a-half lengths against road to the 2021 Kentucky Derby including Medina Spirit; special weight maidens in November at Del Mar. He then won the Concert Tour and Hozier, first and second respectively in the Grade 3 Sham Stakes at Santa Anita while holding off a late run Grade 2 Rebel at Oaklawn on March 13; and Southwest Stakes by Florida-bred stablemate Medina Spirit in second on Jan. 2, but (Gr3) runner-up and Curlin Florida Derby presented by Hill and then romped in the March 6 San Felipe Stakes (G2) winning by Dale Farms at Xalapa (G1)-candidate Spielberg. Pacific Gale Rolls to Victory in Hurricane Bertie BY GULFSTREAM PARK PRESS OFFICE first winner in the U.S. at Gulfstream in 2007. “It’s been a really amazing experience HALLANDALE BEACH, FL—Holly Hill and I can’t wait to come back again next Stable’s Pacific Gale rolled to her second winter.” straight graded-stakes victory at Gulfstream The John Kimmel-trained Pacific Gale, Park Saturday, scoring a dominating victory in who had gone winless in 17 straight starts the $100,000 Hurricane Bertie (G3) and pro- before impressively capturing the Jan. 23 viding jockey Junior Alvarado with his fourth Inside Information at Gulfstream under John of five victories and first of two stakes suc- Velazquez, came right back to score a three- cesses on a 12-race card. and-a-half-length triumph in the Hurricane The 22nd running of the Hurricane Bertie Bertie under a ground-saving ride by was a six-and-a-half-furlong sprint for older Alvarado. fillies and mares. “I rode her a couple times at Saratoga and Alvarado, who came back to ride Warrior’s Belmont. We always thought she was great Pride to victory in the Texas Glitter two races but for some reason we never got the best of later on the card (see cover story), has ridden her,” Alvarado said.