Gulfstream Park: Candy Kitty goes for hat trick in Herecomesthebride

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Candy Kitty showed both versatility and a lot of heart winning a pair of stakes here earlier in the meet. The improving 3-year-old filly will go for the local hat trick while also trying to become a graded stakes winner for the first time on Sunday at Gulfstream Park in the Grade 3, $100,000 Herecomesthebride.

Candy Kitty is one of two fillies trainer Todd Pletcher will send out in the nine-furlong turf race, along with recent maiden winner Seeking Her Glory. The stablemates will face seven others: America, Valseuse, High Wire Kitten, Merry Merry Bee, Raging Atlantic, Hardly, and Room Service. Joint Return and Fierce Boots will run only if the race comes off the grass.

[Clocker Reports: Get Mike Welsch’s clocker reports from Gulfstream Park and Palm Meadows]

Candy Kitty had finished off the board in two previous stakes tries before shipping to south Florida for the winter and capturing both the Wait a While and Ginger Brew.

Candy Kitty won for the first time on dirt when gliding over a sloppy track to a 3 1/2-length victory in the Wait a While, a race originally carded for the grass. In the Ginger Brew, Candy Kitty had to steady behind the leaders and alter course to the outside at midstretch before unleashing a final surge that carried her to a one-length victory over Miss Besilu.

“She’s had a good season down here,” said Pletcher, who trains Candy Kitty for Starlight Stable. “She’s versatile. She won the off-the-turf stakes and won the turf stakes. We decided to skip the Sweetest Chant because we didn’t want to try to jam four races in at the meet. But she shows up and tries hard every time. She looked like she was bottled up last time with nowhere to go, yet she got out and found more.”

Pletcher said he’s bringing Seeking Her Glory back a little quick off her two-length maiden special weight victory going 1 1/8 miles on Feb. 9, but felt the distance of the Herecomesthebride was to her advantage.

“Her last race was her best yet number-wise when we stretched her out to a mile and one-eighth, so we want to give her a chance at that distance in a stakes,” said Pletcher.

Room Service and Hardly finished third and fourth behind favored Ready to Act in the Sweetest Chant going a mile, and they figure to relish the extra distance on Sunday.

High Wire Kitten closed out her 2-year-old campaign with a pair of victories within an eight-day span for trainer Wesley Ward, and will make her stakes bow in the Herecomesthebride.

Ribo Bobo a short price

Ribo Bobo will be heavily favored to register his third straight local victory and 12th win in his last 13 starts in Sunday’s $75,000 Caixa Eletronica Stakes. The overnight stakes drew a field of six, with the stakes-placed Dad’z Laugh likely to provide Ribo Bobo with his main competition.

Ribo Bobo has already won the Claiming Crown Express and Sunshine Millions Sprint here this meet for trainer Jason Servis. Ribo Bobo’s lone setback over the last 13 months came at Penn National on Nov. 27 when he finished a close second behind Ben’s Cat in the Fabulous Strike Handicap.

“He’s doing really well, we’re really happy with him,” said Servis, who trains Ribo Bobo for the Mr. Amore Stable.