Dunbar Road supplemented to Gulfstream Park Oaks

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Dunbar Road, a most impressive debut winner here on March 3, was supplemented to Saturday’s Grade 2, $250,000 Gulfstream Park Oaks, and if she runs, she could be favored in the 1 1/16-mile stakes for 3-year-old fillies.

The Gulfstream Oaks is one of six undercard stakes on the 14-race Florida Derby card.

Trainer Chad Brown had been pointing Dunbar Road to the Grade 2 Gazelle at Aqueduct on April 6 but was lured into at least entering in the Gulfstream Park Oaks due to a short field. The field swelled to seven when entries closed, but the race still came up rather light on quality.

Dunbar Road drew post 6 and was installed as the 8-5 morning-line favorite by Gulfstream linemaker Jay Stone.

“It’s definitely worth a look,” Brown texted Wednesday.

Dunbar Road, a daughter of Quality Road owned by Peter Brant, galloped to an 8 3/4-length victory in a one-turn-mile race. She finished in 1:37.34 and earned a 76 Beyer Speed Figure.

Point of Honor, a daughter of Curlin trained by George Weaver, is 2 for 2, having won an off-the-turf maiden race here on Dec. 16 and the Suncoast Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs on Feb. 9. Point of Honor drew post 3 and was installed as the 9-5 second choice.

Cookie Dough, beaten a head in the one-turn-mile Davona Dale, and Champagne Anyone, third in the Forward Gal and Davona Dale, would be other contenders in the race.

Shacklette, a winner for maiden $50,000 claiming, and Safta, a maiden, were both supplemented to the Oaks field. Bella Ciao completes the lineup.

The Gulfstream Oaks offers 170 qualifying points (100-40-20-10) to its top four finishers to the $1.5 million Kentucky Oaks on May 3.

Prince Lucky tops Gulfstream Park Mile

Prince Lucky, the six-length winner of the Grade 3 Hal’s Hope Stakes here on Feb. 23, could be the shortest-priced horse on the card when he tops a field of six entered in the Grade 2, $300,000 Gulfstream Park Mile.

Prince Lucky, a son of Corinthian trained by Todd Pletcher, is 5 for 9 lifetime, with listed stakes wins in the Pennsylvania Nursery at 2 and the Easy Goer at 3 before the Hal’s Hope.

The competition includes Tale of Silence, last year’s Grade 3 Westchester winner and fourth in the Hal’s Hope, and Be Gone Daddy, who has won three of his last four starts. Millionaire Runner, All Golden, and Guy Caballero – a combined 5 for 69 – round out the field.

Maker seeks another turf stakes

Trainer Mike Maker will leave Zulu Alpha, a two-time stakes winner at this meet, in the barn Saturday, but he still will be formidable in Saturday’s Grade 2, $250,000 Pan American Stakes, scheduled for 1 1/2 miles on turf.

Maker will send out the uncoupled entry of Soglio, the runner-up to Zulu Alpha in the Grade 3 William L. McKnight here on Jan. 26, and Bigger Picture. Soglio has finished second in three consecutive races, including the H. Allen Jerkens at two miles and the Red Smith at 1 3/8 miles.

Bigger Picture won the John B. Connally Turf Cup at Sam Houston for the third consecutive year on Jan 27. Last year, Bigger Picture finished seventh in the Pan American, and he is 0 for 3 over the Gulfstream Park turf.

Soglio drew post 7 and Bigger Picture the outside in the eight-horse field. Others entered, from the rail out, were Focus Group, Melmich, Village King, Canessar, Nessy, Highland Sky, and Salute the Colonel.

In three ungraded stakes:

• A Bit Special, a three-time stakes winner at Gulfstream, heads a field of eight entered in the $125,000 Sanibel Island Stakes for 3-year-old fillies going a mile on turf.

A Bit Special, a daughter of Mukhadram, is 4 for 5 in her career, with a neck loss in the Sharp Susan Stakes her lone blemish. Julien Leparoux rides for Patrick Biancone.

Maiden winners Positive Skew, Seranitsa, and Trenchtown Cat face winners for the first time. Vow to Recover, La Australiana, Belle Laura, and Scat Mommy complete the field.

• Proctor’s Ledge, a graded stakes winner at 3 and 4, makes her 5-year-old debut in the $100,000 Sand Springs Stakes going a mile. Proctor’s Ledge drew the outside post in a nine-horse field that includes Tropical Park Oaks winner Too Charming and Grade 3 Suwannee River winner Valedictorian.

• Marquee Prince, a two-time stakes winner at Fair Grounds, hopes to keep his good fortune going when he heads a field of seven 3-year-olds entered in the $125,000 Cutler Bay Stakes at a mile on turf.