Tampa postpones two turf stakes due to wet forecast

Due to a forecast that calls for rain, Tampa Bay Downs has postponed two turf stakes scheduled for Saturday until Feb. 24, the track announced Wednesday.

Entries for the $100,000 Leinster Turf Dash for 4-year-olds and up and the $100,000 Leinster Lightning City Stakes for fillies and mares 4 and up were to be taken Wednesday. But the decision was made earlier in the day not to draw those five-furlong turf stakes and push them back by one week.

“Most forecasts call for rain and potential thunderstorms to begin Friday night or early Saturday morning and continue throughout much of Saturday, with a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms predicted Sunday,” Peter Berube, Tampa’s vice president and general manager, said in a press release. “It’s important to our horsemen to keep both races on the turf course, and to conduct them on slick or soggy grounds would pose a safety risk to the horses and jockeys, as well as degrading the essence of both races.”

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