Atreides will kick off new year in Hal's Hope

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Atreides bounced back from his only loss in five career starts and earned a berth in the Grade 3 Hal’s Hope on Jan. 10 by overcoming early trouble to register a 4 1/2-length victory over Dudeman and six other overmatched 3-year-olds in Sunday’s $50,000 Aventura Handicap.

Atreides, now 4 for 4 at Gulfstream, suffered his only setback in his previous start, finishing a disappointing sixth as the even-money favorite following a rough trip in the Grade 2 Indiana Derby.

Atreides was jostled about between horses following the start of the one-mile Aventura but recovered quickly, readily overtook the leaders under confident handling from jockey Edgard Zayas turning for home, and drew off to a convincing win. The Stonestreet Stables homebred son of Medaglia d’Oro began his career with three easy victories, for which he received triple-digit Beyer Speed Figures. He earned an 89 Beyer in the Aventura.

“I was really upset with what happened at the break. It wasn’t his fault,” trainer Marty Wolfson said. “But he relaxes so well, you can put him wherever you want. I wanted to get one race into him before the Hal’s Hope, and this worked out perfectly.”

Zayas, Saez hot on Sunday

Zayas and Luis Saez shared top honors on Sunday’s program, winning three races apiece. It was also a good day for jockey Miguel Vasquez, who booted home a pair of winners on the 10-race card, including the 12-1 Petite Lapin in the finale to give David Rakoff the first victory of his training career. Rakoff was an assistant to the late Fred Warren before striking out on his own following his boss’s death this year.