Doctor Oscar, Chicks Dig Scars blow in from Chicago for Tampa feature

A couple of horses who left a Chicago winter for the warmer climate of Oldsmar, Fla., will face each other for the first time Wednesday in the feature race at Tampa Bay Downs.

Doctor Oscar and Chicks Dig Scars, both coming off two starts at Hawthorne this fall, are top contenders in a $25,500, third-level allowance going six furlongs on the main track. They’re among a field of six 3-year-olds and up in the sixth race, the lone allowance of a nine-race card that starts at 12:30 p.m. Eastern.

Doctor Oscar, who developed into one of the leading Minnesota-bred 3-year-olds over the summer at Canterbury Park, will break from post 3 with Alonso Quinonez aboard as the 9-5 choice on the morning line set by Tampa oddsmaker Mark Luther. The Shackleford colt has won 5 of 10 starts for Tim Padilla, the veteran trainer who now follows an annual circuit of Tampa, Canterbury, and Hawthorne.

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Chicks Dig Scars (post 1, Carlos Lozada), a last-out winner at Hawthorne following a busy summer campaign at Prairie Meadows in Iowa, is the 7-2 third choice. Ranked between them at 5-2 is the mid-Atlantic shipper About Today (post 6, Pablo Morales).

The Wednesday program begins with a $6,250 claiming sprint that marks the 106th career start for Mr Lightning Boy, a 10-year-old gelding with $457,854 in earnings. Mr Lightning Boy is the 2-1 second choice behind Zamfir (7-5).

Sunshine and a high near 80 are in the local forecast, meaning the dirt track should be fast and the turf course firm for races 5, 7, and 9.

Delgado to an early lead

Jorge Delgado has assumed early command atop the local trainer standings at a five-month-plus meet that began Nov. 23. Through last weekend, Delgado had recorded seven wins, two more than perennial leader Gerald Bennett.

Delgado, 32, is enjoying a breakthrough year, having won nine stakes while staying on pace to surpass the $3 million mark in stable earnings before year’s end. He is based year-round on the Atlantic Coast at Gulfstream Park and Palm Meadows while also maintaining satellite strings at Tampa in winter and Monmouth Park in summer.

Delgado is the nephew of Gustavo Delgado, a training legend in their homeland of Venezuela. Gustavo Delgado also is now entrenched in South Florida, having run his first horse in the United States in 2014.

Bennett has topped the Tampa standings every year since the 2015-16 meet. He led the 2021-22 meet with 36 wins.

Atop the 2022-23 jockey standings, Samy Camacho leads in wins (11), mounts (50), and earnings ($188,973)

Itinerary set for ‘Jersey’

The Grade 2 Inside Information on the Jan. 28 Pegasus World Cup undercard at Gulfstream Park is the next target for R Adios Jersey, whose 1 3/4-length victory Saturday in the City of Ocala Stakes at Tampa graded out to an 81 Beyer Speed Figure. Bennett trains 4-year-old R Adios Jersey for Averill Racing and retired baseball star Jayson Werth.

The City of Ocala was co-featured with a second stakes restricted to Florida-breds, the Marion County. Octane, a 3-year-old Arindel homebred trained by Carlos David, earned an 88 Beyer edging heavily favored Willy Boi by a half-length.

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