Up-and-comers meet in feature

A pair of 2-year-olds coming off sharp runner-up finishes will clash Wednesday in a first-level allowance that anchors a nine-race Wednesday card at Tampa Bay Downs.

Bright Forecast, with Daniel Centeno riding from post 2, will square off with Handsome Playboy (post 5, Pablo Morales) and four other colts and geldings in a $30,500 allowance going six furlongs on the main track.

Bright Forecast most recently was second in a closing-day allowance at Delaware Park, while Handsome Playboy blew up some tickets when second at 33-1 earlier this month in the Inaugural Stakes at Tampa. Both earned career-best Beyer Speed Figures in those efforts, with Bright Forecast getting a 79 and Handsome Playboy a 75.

A high chance of rain in the Oldsmar, Fla., area on Tuesday could wind up determining whether four Wednesday races scheduled for the turf will have to be moved to the main track. First post is 12:30 p.m. Eastern, with the nominal feature set for 1:59 as race 4.

Wednesday kicks off four straight days of racing this week, including a rare Thursday card (12:25 first post) and a Christmas Eve program on Saturday. Tampa then goes dark for simulcasting Sunday (Christmas Day), after which a four-day race week will become the norm, with Thursdays dark amid a Wednesday-to-Sunday schedule.

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The next round of stakes at Tampa won’t come until Jan. 14, when the Pasco, Gasparilla, and Wayward Lass end a traditional five-week gap in the stakes schedule.

Red Crescent back in clover

Red Crescent won for the first time in more than two years when he captured a seven-furlong allowance Saturday at Tampa with Antonio Gallardo aboard.

“He’s a tough bird,” said John Vinson, the New England native who has trained the 8-year-old gelding since early 2018. “He’s all heart, and he tries every single time.”

Red Crescent, a Florida-bred son of Overdriven, has nine wins and earnings of $469,410 from 54 starts. He was injured in January 2021, accounting for a 19-month gap in his past performances.

“He’s a real honest horse who has run against tough horses his whole life,” said Vinson, who again has relocated his small stable from the Atlantic Coast to Tampa for the winter after resuming a long-dormant training career in 2013.

Mena on the mend

Jockey Raul Mena is recuperating at his home after having a titanium rod and screws surgically inserted into his left femur following a spill in the last race Dec. 7 at Tampa.

Mena was injured when thrown from his mount, Hurry Up Dear, when turning into the stretch on the turf course. The 4-year-old filly was not injured, nor were any other riders or horses. Mena, 30, has ridden 300 winners in the U.S. since emigrating from his native Chile in 2015.

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“I might be ready to exercise horses in a few months, but I’m not putting pressure on myself to come back too soon,” he said.

Iorio rides first winner

Melissa Iorio rode her first winner when Hollywood Honey romped by 7 1/2 lengths in the second race Friday. Iorio, 30, has had just eight career mounts, the first coming in September at Monmouth Park in her native New Jersey. She’ll continue riding with a 10-pound allowance until her fifth winner.

◗ Into this week, Jorge Delgado holds a 9-7 lead over perennial kingpin Gerald Bennett among the leading trainers, while Samy Camacho has a 13-10 edge over Pablo Morales atop the jockey standings.

◗ A brief memorial to honor the late trainer Bobby Raymond was held in the Tampa winner’s circle following the second race Saturday. Raymond died in May at age 74.

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