Gulfstream Park: Valid looking like a heck of a buy

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – When trainer Marcus Vitali put up $115,000 of owner Caroline Vogel’s money to purchase the 3-year-old gelding Valid at the Fasig-Tipton mixed sale in October at Saratoga, he hoped to be getting a horse who might prove “useful” during the Gulfstream Park winter meet. What he got is a horse who ran off the screen to a 23 1/4-length optional-claiming win and earned a whopping 107 Beyer Speed Figure here last Saturday.

Now Vitali must decide whether to take the conservative route with Valid or strike while the iron is hot, having nominated the son of Medaglia d’Oro to both the $100,000 Tropical Turf Handicap and the $100,000 Fred W. Hooper Handicap next weekend at Calder.

“I went with Caroline to the Saratoga sale looking for a couple of horses we thought could perform well during the Gulfstream Park meet,” Vitali said. “We wound up getting Valid and Lochte, who ran second on the turf last week at Gulfstream and for whom we paid $70,000. I figured Valid would have a future here this winter, but to be honest, I never expected to see him run a race like he did [last Saturday]. That race caught me a little off guard. In fact, I wasn’t even there for the race. I stayed at Calder to saddle horses I had running over there the same afternoon.”

Vitali said he’d discuss his options with Vogel, who races under the name Crossed Sabres Farm, before making a decision on Valid’s next start.

“If we run in one of the two Calder stakes, it would probably be the Hooper because at first glance, I think it might be the easier spot,” Vitali said. “I know it’s not graded anymore, but this horse is a gelding, so at this point, that really doesn’t matter. We just want to win races with him, and it looks like he handles both dirt and turf equally well. The other option would be to take the more conservative route and wait for a two-other-than allowance race at Gulfstream sometime in December.”

Bad Debt works back

Bad Debt snapped an 11-race losing skid in impressive fashion with a 6 1/2-length victory in the Florida Sunshine Millions Turf Preview Stakes on Nov. 9, and he breezed for the first time since that race Friday, going an easy half-mile in 48.23 seconds over the main track at Gulfstream.

Bad Debt, as honest as they come with 31 in-the-money finishes in 37 career starts on grass, also is among the nominees for the Tropical Turf Handicap.

Gonzales wins riding title

Jonathan Gonzales came from behind with a late rush to overtake fellow apprentice Edgar Zayas on the last day of the meet and capture the inaugural Gulfstream summer riding title. Gonzales, who entered last Sunday’s program two victories behind Zayas, registered a natural hat trick on closing day, winning the second, third, and fourth races with Indy Breeze, Strongbaksteeltoes, and Lexington Pearl to climb to the top of the leaderboard, then held on to his slim advantage after Zayas was blanked the remainder of the day, including aboard favored Prime Devil in the finale.

Gonzales, who loses his five-pound apprentice allowance Dec. 14, will spend the winter riding at both Gulfstream and Calder, according to his agent, Gil Graell.

Pair of turf features

Sunday’s 10-race program at Gulfstream features a pair of first-level optional-claiming races on turf. The fifth race is for colts and geldings, and the ninth for fillies and mares. Both races will be run at 1 1/16 miles.

Sammy Alexander will be favored to win the fifth race for males, dropping in under a $25,000 claiming tag for the first time. His trainer, Brian Lynch, has gotten off to a quick start since shipping down from Woodbine. Susie’s Gal, Burning Truth, and Auntie Martha may vie for favoritism in the ninth race.