Casse sends out pair of speedballs in allowance
While Mark Casse is focusing on his two Kentucky Derby candidates Soup and Sandwich and Helium, both training at Churchill Downs, he’ll have ample reason to look toward Gulfstream Park late Thursday afternoon. Casse sends out key contenders A Thread of Blue and Chuck Willis in the second and best of two allowance events on the nine-race card.
Eight will go about 7 1/2 furlongs on turf in the $48,000 headliner as racing resumes Thursday following the regular three-day hiatus. Leading trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. also will send out a couple of top candidates in the feature offering, the recently claimed Morocco and High Noon Rider.
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A Thread of Blue won the Grade 3 Palm Beach and the Dania Beach here along with the Saratoga Derby when trained by Kiaran McLaughlin at 3 in 2019. He has started just twice since McLaughlin retired to become agent for jockey Luis Saez last spring, with the most recent outing coming for Casse and resulting in a seventh-place finish in an overnight handicap last month at Tampa Bay Downs.
Speed is A Thread of Blue’s best weapon, a trait also possessed by his stablemate Chuck Willis, who figures to be forwardly placed returning fresh from a 9 1/2-month hiatus and stretching out around two turns for just the second time in his career. The Irish-bred Chuck Willis won both his starts last year. Both were allowance races over the artificial surface at Woodbine. He has worked forwardly for his local debut, primarily over the grass at Palm Meadows.
Morocco makes his first start since being claimed by Joseph for $50,000 out of a third-place finish going a mile over a good turf course on March 11 at Gulfstream. The loss snapped a two-race win streak for Morocco, who rarely turns in a poor showing over the local course. High Noon Rider, winner of the Claiming Crown Emerald during opening week of the Gulfstream Park championship meet, would benefit from an honest pace, as he always does his best running from near the rear of the field.
Louder Than Bombs, third in the Grade 3 Canadian at Gulfstream a year ago but whose form tailed off during the end of his 2020 campaign, makes his seasonal debut. The field also includes the recently claimed Blameless, graded stakes-tested Forever Mo, and Glory of Florida, who will make a rare appearance on turf if he starts.