Large fields throughout eight-race card

The dearth of opportunities on the racing calendar is apparent on Tampa Bay’s eight-race Friday card, which is comprised entirely of claiming races. The smallest field on the day is nine horses, and four races have drawn overflow fields. Average field size is 11.8 entrants as those with stock ready to run seize the opportunity.

The races are evenly split between dirt and turf – and there is a solid chance of rain in the forecast on both Thursday and Friday in the Tampa area. A move off the turf would suit a few entrants in the Friday finale, which sports the day’s biggest purse at $12,600. The race, at a mile on turf with a $25,000 claiming price, is open to 3-year-olds and up who have never won two races.

Three horses in the field have never won on turf – Gate Crew, Global Dinner, and Stunning Baby. Gate Crew is particularly interesting as he drops in class for trainer Michele Boyce. The gelding earned his only career victory in a maiden special weight last August on the synthetic main track at Arlington Park, earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 79, a number that stacks up well in this field. Most recently, Gate Crew has been running on dirt at Tampa Bay. He is dropping out of optional-claiming company and running for a tag for the first time.

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Global Dinner, making just his third career start for Jose Chavez, won a maiden-claiming race in January on Tampa’s dirt track, then was sixth in an optional claimer on turf last time out. In contrast, Stunning Baby, trained by Jennifer Shannon, is one of the most experienced horses in this field. The 5-year-old gelding scored his only win in 32 starts in a maiden special weight sprint on a synthetic track last July at Presque Isle Downs. He has two thirds in seven career outings on turf – both of those on the Tampa course.

Others in this field have done their best work on turf, including morning-line favorite Lion Charmer. The colt, trained by Robert O’Connor, is coming off a maiden-claiming victory going a mile on the Tampa turf last month. He earned a Beyer of 67, the top last-out number in this field.

Angel Suarez, aboard for that victory, retains the mount on the colt, who is well-positioned to use his early speed from post 2 in the 10-horse field.

Minnesota-bred Hold the Spice sports a win and four thirds in five career outings on turf. The win came in a maiden special weight against statebreds last September at Canterbury. In his first outing since, he finished third in a claiming race going a mile on the Tampa turf in February for Bernell Rhone.