Canaletto draws outside post in field of nine for Tampa Bay Derby

OLDSMAR, Fla. – Canaletto had the outside post when he won his maiden going a one-turn mile in an eight-horse field at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 25. Saturday, he will again break from the outside post in a nine-horse field drawn Wednesday afternoon for the Grade 3, $400,000 Tampa Bay Derby at Tampa Bay Downs.

The Tampa Bay Derby, the 11th of 12 races Saturday at Tampa, offers its top five finishers qualifying points (50-25-15-10-5) to the May 2 Kentucky Derby.

Canaletto, ridden by Flavien Prat for Chad Brown, used his outside post on debut to his advantage as that was the better part of the track at Gulfstream during the weekend in which he ran. Canaletto showed good speed out of the gate, came back to Prat when two others went to the lead and then ran away from the well-regarded Spartacus, who ended up fifth. Autobahn, who rallied for third, came back to win his maiden in his next start.

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Canaletto lacks the experience of Further Ado, the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club winner, who makes his 3-year-old debut in this spot for trainer Brad Cox from post 6. Further Ado lost his first two races sprinting, but won his next two around two turns including a maiden victory at Keeneland by 20 lengths.

Powershift, who was beaten by the Brown-trained Emerging Market when both debuted on the Sam Davis card here on Feb. 7, drew post 5. He will look to give trainer Todd Pletcher a record-extending seventh Tampa Bay Derby victory.

The field, from the rail out, is Redland Rebels (Junior Alvarado), Talkin (Joel Rosario), Roger That Dana (Reno Rojas), Hulkamania (Jareth Loveberry), Powershift (John Velazquez), Further Ado (Irad Ortiz Jr.) Thunder Buck (Samuel Marin), The Puma (Javier Castellano), and Canaletto (Prat).

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