Bennett off to fast start in defense of training title

OLDSMAR, Fla. – Gerald Bennett won the Tampa Bay Downs training title outright for the first time at the 2015-16 meet and has served notice that it will take a giant effort to unseat him at the current meet.

Bennett, 72, swept the two stakes for juveniles here last Saturday, with Chance of Luck taking the $60,000 Inaugural Stakes by a neck and R Angel Katelyn wiring the $89,000 Sandpiper Stakes by 3 1/2 lengths.

Just about every starter sent out by Bennett at this meet has been well meant, with the barn compiling a 13-6-2-2 record heading into Wednesday’s card. Bennett had 51 wins at the prior meet, 12 more than runner-up Jamie Ness, who had won or shared the previous nine meet titles, including a tie with Bennett at the 2010-11 meet. With 45 horses, including about two dozen juveniles, set to run at this meet, Bennett should be hard to catch.

Chance of Luck and R Angel Katelyn are leading contenders for the two seven-furlong, $100,000 stakes for newly turned 3-year-olds here Jan. 21, the Pasco for horses of either sex and the Gasparilla for fillies.

Chance of Luck ($9.80) earned a 67 Beyer Speed Figure for his neck win over a rallying Dont Come Knockin, stopping the clock in 1:10.84 for six furlongs with Erick Rodriguez aboard. The horse had won his career debut, a $40,000 maiden claimer going seven furlongs at Laurel Park on Oct. 28, by 5 1/2 lengths. The son of Skipshot and the Alphabet Soup mare Winning Chance has earned $48,810 for J J Brevan Stable LLC.

R Angel Katelyn ($5.40) earned a 69 Beyer for finishing the six-furlong Sandpiper in 1:10.67. The daughter of High Cotton and the Southern Halo mare Send for an Angel has three wins and a runner-up finish in four career starts. She’s earned $147,120 for owners Averill Racing LLC and CCF Racing Stable.

Bennett has the 3-1 second choice for Wednesday’s featured fifth race, an optional $100,000 claimer that drew a field of seven 3-year-olds and up going five furlongs on grass. Bill’s Passion will start from the No. 5 post under Daniel Centeno in the allowance prep for the $100,000 Turf Dash, a five-furlong grass sprint for 3-year-olds and up here Dec. 31.

Bill’s Passion, a 3-year-old gelding by Leroidesanimaux, finished second in three turf routes for maidens at the prior meet here before shortening up to sprints. He has a record of 11-2-7-1 and has earned $91,670 for owners Harold Queen, who bred the horse, and Bennett’s Winning Stables LLC.

Bill’s Passion most recently was second in an optional $32,000 claimer on the Laurel Park turf Oct. 29. He led early in that 5 1/2-furlong race before losing by 1 1/4 lengths to Grand Old Game and could benefit from Wednesday’s slightly shorter distance.

“He’s doing all right, and he’s extremely fast,” Bennett said. “I’m looking forward to seeing him run. We’re keeping him strictly sprinting.”