Florida-breds in the spotlight at Gulfstream

A Florida-bred allowance that’s part of another burgeoning Rainbow 6 will serve as the highlight of a nine-race Friday card at Gulfstream Park in South Florida.

The $51,000 feature is carded as race 8, with Pacific Princess, Bimini, and Tiz Possible Dear among a core of lukewarm favorites in a field of eight statebred fillies and mares going a one-turn mile on the main track.

First post is 2 p.m. Eastern, with the nominal feature set for 5:36. It’s part of the 20-cent Rainbow 6, which spans races 4-9 with a standing jackpot of $226,038 and a pool guarantee expected to be around $400,000.

Earlier attractions include a $37,000 starter/optional-claiming sprint (race 5) and a $70,000 maiden-special turf sprint for 2-year-old fillies (race 6) in which no Lasix usage is permitted. The card opens with a $60,000 maiden race for statebred 2-year-old fillies, also with Lasix banned.

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The weekend highlight at Gulfstream is Saturday’s $75,000 Mr. Steele, a 1 1/16-mile turf race for which entries were to be released late Wednesday afternoon.

The next six-figure stakes are set for July 31, when the $100,000 Dr. Fager and $100,000 Desert Vixen will be run. Those six-furlong races kick off the annual Florida Sire Stakes series for 2-year-olds.

Gulfstream continues to run just three days a week, Fridays through Sundays. The ontrack Silks simulcast area is open seven days a week.

Joseph dominates standings

Saffie Joseph Jr., now also active at Saratoga and Monmouth Park, continues with a commanding lead atop the local trainer standings. Joseph has sent out 49 winners at a spring-summer meet that began April 1 and runs through Sept. 26. There’s a three-way tie behind Joseph, with Carlos David, Jorge Delgado, and Antonio Sano all having 17 wins apiece.

Joseph said he expects to run all three of the older horses he has nominated to the Mr. Steele, those being Max K.O., Noble Indy, and Renaisance Frolic .

Meanwhile, the Gulfstream jockeys’ race is much tighter. Edgard Zayas enters Friday’s action with 76 wins, two more than Emisael Jaramillo in their ongoing battle atop the standings.

Tapeta construction continues

Construction on the new Tapeta course scheduled for completion in late August is ongoing at Gulfstream, accounting in large part for the reduction from a four-day racing schedule since early June. The outer perimeter of the turf course is being converted into an all-weather course to be used primarily when weather conditions force races off the turf.

The Tapeta surface will be 60 feet wide. A new drainage system for the turf course also is in the works.