Joseph, Zayas claim meet titles

MIAMI – Saffie Joseph Jr. spent much of his summer outside of South Florida, campaigning a string of his best horses at Saratoga while also making several forays into Kentucky. But his absence here on a regular basis did not stop Joseph from taking down leading trainer honors at the recently concluded Gulfstream Park spring-summer session, during which he won 59 races, 16 more than runner-up Mike Maker.

“Winning the title was a testament to the team we’ve built, from the grooms to the riders to the assistants, and also couldn’t have happened without the full support of our owners,” Joseph said by phone from Pimlico, where he will run the star of his stable Ny Traffic on Saturday in the Preakness.

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Joseph said he kept about 90-100 horses in Florida split between Gulfstream Park and Palm Meadows, with another dozen or so, including Ny Traffic, at Saratoga.

“We got into everywhere small this year – New York, Churchill, Keeneland – trying to get our foot in the door and learn the ropes for next year,” said Joseph. “And I was happy with the results. We won a couple of races at Saratoga, a couple at Churchill Downs, one at Kentucky Downs, and we’re looking forward to the upcoming Keeneland meet. It was definitely a learning experience. Next year, I plan to keep a full string at Churchill Downs along with a full stable in Florida.”

Joseph said he’s hopeful he can win another title at the Gulfstream Park West meet, which opens Saturday, although his main goal is to make a run at the trainer’s crown during the Gulfstream Park championship meet, which begins in December.

“The Gulfstream Park West meet will hinge mostly on our 2-year-olds,” said Joseph. “We have some prominent ones I’m planning to run there. But right now I’m looking ahead and gearing up for the championship meet since I think this year we finally have the numbers to win that title.”

Zayas wins another title

Edgard Zayas successfully defended his Gulfstream spring-summer jockey championship, posting 137 victories, 10 more than runner-up Miguel Vasquez. Stonehedge LLC led all owners with 24 winners for purses totaling nearly $1.2 million.

“It feels amazing,” Zayas said of winning the title again. “It’s a big thank you to the trainers, owners, my family and my agent for supporting me. It’s been an amazing year and I hope it continues from here.”

Zayas put a punctuation mark on his outstanding meet when he guided Boca Boy to an upset victory over odds-on favorite Breeze On By in Saturday’s $400,000 In Reality Stakes.

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Three allowance races carded

Sunday’s nine-race card at Gulfstream Park West features a trio of allowance races topped by a five-furlong optional-claiming and allowance dash on the turf, which offers a $44,000 purse and lured a field of seven, including one also-eligible. Fujairah, one of only two 3-year-olds in the lineup, should garner plenty of attention dropping off a series of stakes races, including a third-place finish going 7 1/2 furlongs in the Miss Gracie one month earlier.

There is a strong chance for rain around the local area Saturday and into Sunday. If the headliner is moved to dirt, the recently claimed Cory Gal is likely to be an odds-on favorite coming off an 8 1/2-length victory over a sloppy track.

About an hour earlier, Joseph and Zayas will team up with the 2-year-old Awesome Gerry in a $43,000 optional-claiming and allowance test carded at six furlongs on the main track. Awesome Gerry will face recent runaway maiden special weight winner Tiger for Arindel and trainer Juan Alvarado.