Cheers for Sidney among Bennett's top young prospects

OLDSMAR, Fla. - When you have been training more than 50 years and have won more than 2,300 races, where does the motivation come from to get up at 4:30 every morning and head to the track?.

“It’s the young horses that keep the fires burning,” says trainer Gerry Bennett.

Bennett, who won his fifth race of the Tampa Bay Downs meeting on Sunday to place him second in the trainer standings, one back of Kathleen O’Connell, feels he may have as good a group of young runners as he has ever brought to Tampa. Bennett says he has five juveniles about to turn 3 next week and a like number of 3-year-olds turning 4 and feels there’s talent and potential in many of the group.

One of those he feels could have a bright future is Cheers for Sidney, a 2-year-old filly who set the pace into the stretch of the Sandpiper Stakes here on Dec. 6. Cheers for Sidney won at first asking at Indiana Grand and then came back to be fourth in a six-furlong allowance sprint run in 1:08.78.

In the Sandpiper, Cheers for Sidney broke from the rail and the trainer said she became nervous while the field was loaded and wound up flipping her palate during the running of the race,

“We’ll make some equipment changes for her next and you’ll see the real Cheers for Sidney next time,” Bennett said. “If we can get her to relax a bit I think she could be a really nice filly.”

The youngster is one of several Bennett has with a group of owners headed by Beth Muirhead and the trainer says his new clients seem to be the type who want to develop and race young runners the right way,

“They want what’s best for the horse, which is encouraging,” Bennett said.

Another Bennett youngster the trainer has high hopes for is One Lucky Step. One Lucky Step was second, beaten in a photo in his debut at Indiana Grand but rapped a tendon and was sent to the sidelines.

“He could be a nice colt. He’s out of the mother of Bucky’s Prayer, who won 10 races and $280,000 for us,” Bennett said, “and this will be the last foal for One Buck Coyote. She had a series of heart attacks and died while trying to deliver her last foal.”

Stakes-caliber allowance

Last Friday’s third race wasn’t listed as a stakes but it sure could have been. The seven-furlong, third-level optional $62,500 claiming sprint won by Joe Tess featured fractions of 22.50 seconds, 44.98, and 1:09.38 en route to a final time of 1:22.38. Pyrite Green ran lights out before just hanging late and the Ohio-bred was followed by stakes winner Bourbonize, who was making his first start since September and figures to be a salty foe with that race under his belt.

Track record in turf sprint

Cee ‘n O outgamed veteran Hold On Smokey late in Saturday’s co-featured turf sprint and the final time of 55.66 seconds for the winner was a record for about five furlongs on the turf. Jamie Ness sent out the winner.

World Gone Wright returns Friday

Speaking of fast runners on turf, World Gone Wright, who won at first asking here last spring and proved that victory was no fluke with later tallies at Keeneland and Monmouth, makes her first start since August when she tops a strong field in an no-conditions allowance that is also open to $100,000 claimers sprinting five furlongs on turf.

Trained by Robert Smith and owned by Smith and Mark Hoffman, the 3-year-old World Gone Wright ripped through five furlongs in 55.77 en route to a front- running win over the Monmouth turf course last summer and comes into this one off a string of black-letter drills.

Smith said a strong performance here would go a long way toward earning World Gone Wright a start in the $100,000 Lightning City Stakes going five furlongs on turf Jan. 24.