Charge It All possible for Gasparilla Stakes

A third 2-year-old filly in the Tim Hamm barn will get a chance to become a stakes winner at 3 after Charge It All pulled a mild upset Sunday in an allowance race at Tampa Bay Downs.

Hamm said Charge It All could go next in the Jan. 16 Gasparilla at the Oldsmar, Fla., oval after rallying for a 1 1/2-length victory in 1:18.30 going 6 1/2 furlongs. She paid $13.40 when coming off a nose victory in a $50,000 maiden-claiming race at Gulfstream West.

“I like this horse a lot,” Hamm told Tampa publicity afterward. “At this time last year, she was really fat and she looked kind of like a cow. I didn’t know if she would ever slim down, but after being in Miami in June, July, and August, she got some scope to her and has turned into a real nice filly. I’m pleased with her performance. I think there is some upside to her.”

Charge It All, by Will Take Charge, joins Dayoutoftheoffice and Alexandria on Hamm’s list of fillies looking to make noise next year at 3. Easily the most accomplished of the group is Dayoutoftheoffice, who gave the trainer his first-ever Grade 1 victory when capturing the Frizette at Belmont Park in October prior to finishing second as the front-runner in the Nov. 6 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies at Keeneland. Hamm also trains Alexandria, a three-time stakes winner in Ohio this year.

All three fillies are owned in part by Hamm’s main longtime client, Blazing Meadows Farm.

Since shortly after the Breeders’ Cup, Dayoutoftheoffice has been on a break at Siena Farm in Paris, Ky. She will soon head to Blazing Meadows South in Ocala to begin preparing for Kentucky Oaks prep races, Hamm said.

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The Gasparilla is among the next group of stakes to be run Jan. 16 at Tampa following a five-week break in the 2020-21 stakes schedule, along with the Pasco and Wayward Lass.

Nine on Wednesday, Thursday

A nine-race Wednesday card featuring a $23,750 allowance (race 2) kicks off this week at Tampa, where a nine-race Thursday card will replace the Christmas dark day (Friday) on the schedule. First post is 12:42 p.m. Eastern for Wednesday and 12:15 for Thursday.

The regular four-day schedule resumes after Christmas, with Sundays having been added as of last week.

Tampa continues to allow fans to attend the races while employing strict health protocols amid the ongoing pandemic.

59-1 shot storms home

Holy Diver became the longest-priced winner of the Tampa meet when up by a head in the fourth race Saturday at a $120.20 mutuel. Jockey Chad Lindsay, back at Tampa following a four-year absence, combined for the upset with trainer Cody Axmaker, who is in his first year at Tampa.

Holy Diver, a 5-year-old Florida-bred mare, was making her second start at a meet that began Nov. 25.

“It seems like most of my horses need a race here,” Axmaker said. “It’s a little different than some tracks.”

◗ Samy Camacho, seeking a local riding title that was reclaimed last year by Antonio Gallardo, held a 19-18 edge in wins over his familiar rival through Sunday. Camacho was the leading jockey at Tampa at the 2018-19 meet, with Gallardo earning the title in 2019-20 for the fifth time.

◗ Daniel Centeno begins the week just eight winners away from the 3,000-win milestone. Centeno, 49, has been a six-time leading rider at Tampa since he began riding regularly in the United States in 2003.