Ami's Flatter impresses in return from layoff

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Ami’s Flatter, who finished a distant third in the 2015 Florida Derby, made a triumphant return to south Florida on Wednesday, coming off a six-month layoff to register a convincing four-length allowance victory. He completed seven furlongs in 1:21.58 and received a 104 Beyer Speed Figure, the fastest main-track Beyer recorded in the U.S. in 2016.

Trained by Josie Carroll for owner Ivan Dalos, Ami’s Flatter shipped locally as a potential Kentucky Derby candidate last winter and ran well in some of the early prep races, finishing second here in the Mucho Macho Man, fourth in the Grade 3 Sam Davis, and third in the Grade 2 Tampa Bay Derby prior to the Florida Derby.

“We’ve always thought highly of this horse,” Carroll said. “He had two really subpar races after the Florida Derby. They really weren’t him. He was very sound but did have some bruising on the end of his cannon bones, which was probably just enough to prevent him from putting out as well as he had earlier in the year. I just wasn’t comfortable running him like that, so we just made the decision to kick him out for the summer and treat him like a good horse.”

Carroll said she wasn’t surprised how well Ami’s Flatter ran in his comeback, but she did not expect him to be as close to the front as he was during the early stages of the race. Ami’s Flatter was a head back in second for the first quarter-mile, and had the lead after a half-mile.

“Needless to say, me and the owner were thrilled with the way he ran the other day,” Carroll said. “I didn’t think he’d be that close, but he was very sharp off the layoff. Right now, I’m thinking if he were to bounce back well off this race, we might look at the Fred Hooper.”

The Grade 3 Fred Hooper will be decided at a mile Feb. 6.