Few changes as Tampa Bay Downs opens meet with Sam F. Davis and Tampa Bay Derby as highlights

Tampa Bay Downs begins another five-plus months of live racing when the Oldsmar, Fla., track opens its 2019-20 meet Wednesday with a nine-race card.

Tampa has become a popular winter destination for horsemen and simulcast bettors alike, with all-sources handle averaging more than $4 million per card in recent years. Tampa once again will run primarily on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through May 3.

The stakes schedule remains essentially the same as last year’s, with the two most important dates being centered around Kentucky Derby qualifying races. Those are the Feb. 8 Sam F. Davis and the March 7 Tampa Bay Derby, with both of them being accompanied by several other stakes on marquee Saturdays.

A number of top older horses also can be expected to train and race at Tampa this winter, most notably Imperial Hint, the standout sprinter who arrived several weeks ago after being scratched from the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.

Eleven of the top 12 jockeys from the 2018-19 meet are back, led by Samy Camacho and Antonio Gallardo, both of whom are represented by agent Mike Moran. New faces in the colony include Alonso Quinonez, Angel Suarez, Harry Hernandez, and Jose Batista.

Trainer Gerald Bennett and Rich Averill, one of his main clients, once again will be prominent after topping their respective categories at the 2018-19 meet. Most of the other top trainers from last year also are back, including Kathleen O’Connell, Mike Stidham, Arnaud Delacour, Rudy Brisset, Kent Sweezey, and Jonathan Thomas. Tampa races often are filled further by horses shipping across the Florida peninsula from Miami-area training centers such as Palm Meadows and Payson Park.

Tom Proctor is back after a few years’ hiatus, while Gary Contessa and Tim Glyshaw are sending strings to Tampa for the first time.

The first stakes are a pair of $100,000 sprints for 2-year-olds, the Inaugural and Sandpiper, to be run Dec. 7. Contessa said the Inaugural could be the next start for Another Miracle, third-place finisher in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint earlier this month.

The Wednesday opener starts at 12:25 p.m. Eastern and includes typical fare, with a $22,500 first-level allowance serving as the feature. Purses at Tampa have stagnated in recent years – as opposed to the phenomenal growth being seen in such states as New York, Kentucky, and Arkansas – and some horsemen have expressed resignation with maiden-special purses that start at $22,000 and allowances at $22,500 (including bonuses for registered Florida-breds).

Echoing a familiar sentiment, Contessa said: “I’ve lost money with 10 or so horses every year at Palm Meadows, so I figured why not go to Tampa and enjoy it. I love the track and the people there.”

Tampa will not have an ontrack simulcast host, with Andrew Demsky having departed after five years in that role. Matt Carothers of TVG will give picks via closed-circuit prior to the races each day. Richard Grunder remains the race caller.

Technically, this meet began July 1 (hence some horsemen already show meet statistics) and runs through June 30, with the 2020-21 meet starting July 1, 2020. It’s a quirky arrangement designed to meet legal requirements tied to simulcasting laws.

Sunshine and a high of 78 are in the forecast for Wednesday.