Bleeker Street wins Endeavour, Shirl's Speight takes Tampa Bay Stakes
A couple of torrid late rallies landed Bleecker Street and Shirl’s Speight in the Tampa Bay Downs winner’s circle Saturday as the first two graded stakes of the 2021-22 meet were won in mild upsets over firm turf at the Oldsmar, Fla., track.
Bleecker Street remained unbeaten in four career starts when capturing the Grade 3 Endeavour before Shirl’s Speight continued his career resurgence by surging to victory in the Grade 3 Tampa Bay Stakes.
Bleecker Street ($16), ridden by Hector Diaz Jr., launched an eye-catching stretch run to win her stakes debut in the $150,000 Endeavour following three triumphs up the class ladder. The gray 4-year-old filly is owned by Peter Brant and trained by Chad Brown, who ended the day with an 8-for-19 record at the Tampa meet, which began Nov. 24.
Lady Speightspeare, the 9-10 favorite under Emma-Jayne Wilson in a field of nine fillies and mares, appeared to have control with 100 yards to go in the 1 1/16-mile race after taking the lead turning for home and shaking off a couple of challengers. But then Bleecker Street came absolutely rolling to win by 1 1/2 lengths, finishing in 1:41.91.
Brown, based on Florida’s Atlantic Coast during wintertime, was supposed to have two starters in the Endeavour, but he was left only with Bleecker Street when In Italian was an early scratch.
A little more than an hour later, Shirl’s Speight ($21) exacted a measure of revenge for Wilson and the connections of her stablemate Lady Speightspeare, rolling past Get Smokin in the final 70 yards of the $150,000 Tampa Bay Stakes to win by 1 1/2 lengths.
This was the second win in a row since Shirl’s Speight suddenly returned to top form for Hall of Fame trainer Roger Attfield after four straight losses. The 5-year-old Speightstown horse was coming off a Jan. 15 allowance win over the Tampa turf.
Shirl’s Speight stopped the timer in 1:41.20 for 1 1/16 miles for his first stakes victory since the Grade 3 Marine at Woodbine in July 2020.
Lady Speightspeare and Shirl’s Speight both were sired by Speightstown and bred in Kentucky by their owner, Charles Fipke.
Get Smokin, the 2021 Tampa Bay Stakes winner, was making his first start in more seven months. He led most of the way in a field of 12 older male horses and finished second.