Bella Vincenza in career-best form for Added Elegance
Something must have clicked when Bella Vincenza turned 4. Following undistinguished campaigns at 2 and 3, the Florida-bred filly has suddenly become a model of success and consistency.
In seven starts this year, Bella Vincenza has finished first or second in every one. She’ll get a great chance to test that much-improved form Saturday as one of the prime contenders in the $75,000 Added Elegance, the second of back-to-back stakes on a 12-race card at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla.
Trained by Kathleen O’Connell for Pinnacle Racing Stable and Stein Racing, Bella Vincenza will have Luca Panici back aboard as one of seven starters in the Added Elegance. The bay filly began turning the corner Jan. 14 by winning an $8,000 never-won-three claiming race at Tampa Bay Downs, and she made her way to local prominence by winning both her starts at the Gulfstream spring meet, ending with an allowance victory June 24.
Bella Vincenza will break from post 5 in the seven-furlong Added Elegance, which is restricted to fillies and mares that have never won a stakes. Her main challengers are Doritza (post 1, Edgard Zayas), a stretch-running filly trained by Oscar Gonzalez; Sweet Tooth Haven (post 2, Miguel Vasquez), making her first start in 10 weeks and trained by David Fawkes; and Faith N Hope (post 4, Jorge Perez), a potential danger as the likely front-runner.
First post Saturday is 12:45 p.m. Eastern, with the Added Elegance going as race 11 (6:03). The preceding race, the $60,000 Copingaway (post, 5:28), drew a field nearly twice as large, as 13 3-year-olds and up who have started at least once for a claiming price will clash at 1 1/2 miles over turf.
Archer Road, with Jeffrey Sanchez riding from post 5, brings superior Beyer Speed Figures (89, 83, 90, 89 in his last four starts) to the Copingaway and probably will come favored for Arindel and trainer Stan Gold. But, as with most of these horses stretching out around three turns, there’s a compelling question of distance, and others also rate decent chances given this unknown factor, most notably Could Be (post 8, Nik Juarez) and Bold Daddy (post 13, Tyler Gaffalione).
The Saturday co-features are part of the 20-cent Rainbow 6, which spans races 7-12. The Rainbow 6 carryover starting this racing week on Thursday stood at nearly $450,000, with no jackpot sweeps having occurred since the 56-day summer meet began July 1.
The next six-figure stakes at Gulfstream are set for next Saturday (Aug. 4), when the Florida Sire Stakes series for 2-year-olds begins with a pair of sprints, the $100,000 Dr. Fager and $100,000 Desert Vixen.