No Getting Over Me drops in class while making first start for Joseph

Like the rest of us, No Getting Over Me is looking for a restart to 2020. After two stakes losses to begin the year, No Getting Over Me drops into a restricted Florida-bred allowance/optional claiming race at 1 1/16 miles that serves as the feature on Friday’s 10-race Gulfstream Park program.

No Getting Over Me, a 3-year-old gelding by He’s Had Enough, is making his first start for trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. He made his first four starts, all at Tampa Bay Downs, for Gerald Bennett. He has always been owned by Abdullah Saeed Almaddah.

No Getting Over Me was talented enough to win his career debut last November going a mile and 40 yards at Tampa Bay Downs. Since then, he’s finished second in the Inaugural Stakes, third in the Pasco and, most recently, fifth, beaten 16 3/4 lengths, in the Grade 3 Sam F. Davis Stakes on Feb. 8.

In the Sam F. Davis, No Getting Over Me didn’t break with the field. Around the far turn, after playing catch-up, No Getting Over Me was running with eventual winner Sole Volante, but went wider than that rival and flattened out in the stretch.

Joseph had the horse entered in a similar spot as this in March but scratched after No Getting Over Me got sick.

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“He’s turned the corner, he should run well, he’s in good form,” Joseph said. “The race came up tough. You got a big dropper in Jay’s Way in there; all the class horses have a little edge on the 3-year-olds I think.”

Roman Empire, trained by Todd Pletcher, is another 3-year-old in this field. He won a Florida-bred maiden race on dirt by 8 3/4 lengths in February but has faltered twice in this condition, once on turf and once on dirt.

The 7-year-old Jay’s Way, winner of the Sunshine Millions Classic in 2018, is in for the $16,000 tag – the lowest level of his career – after getting pulled up in the Sunshine Millions Classic in January. He is reunited with trainer Danny Gargan, who had him for 10 starts from April 2016 to May 2017, winning twice.

Trainer Bob Hess sends out the uncoupled entry of First and Three and Lagoon Macaroon. First and Three has run second or third in four tries at this condition, all in one-turn races. Hess called Friday’s two-turn try an experiment.

“He should handle it fine,” Hess said. “In my heart of hearts, he might be a one-turn miler.”

Hess is intrigued by Lagoon Macaroon, whom he claimed for $16,000 in January at Santa Anita and who is running for the allowance condition Friday.

After dealing with an issue following the claim, Lagoon Macaroon has come around in his training. He won twice last November going two turns at Del Mar.

“He’s going to run his A-plus race,” Hess said. “I think he’ll run that good Del Mar race. He might be sneaky good in there. If it’s wet, that’ll be okay. He’s a big, good-looking horse.”

Edgar Prado rides Lagoon Macaroon from post 7, while apprentice Cristian Torres rides First and Three from post 8.

Wild Medagliad'oro, runner-up in a similar condition off-the-turf race, Gray Beau, and Roddick complete the field.