Trainers Joseph, Trombetta, Fawkes, each notch doubles at Florida Cup Day

Trainers Saffie Joseph Jr., Mike Trombetta and David Fawkes each won two stakes Sunday at Tampa Bay Downs as the Oldsmar, Fla. track held its 21st annual Florida Cup Day, a 12-race card that featured six $110,000 stakes for registered Florida-breds.

Joseph's victories came with Mish ($4.20), who dominated the NYRABets Sprint for older males by 3 1/4 lengths, and Mystic Lake ($3.20), who was the easiest kind of front-running winner taking the Sophomore Fillies by 3 1/2 lengths.

Trombetta's two wins came on the turf as Forever Souper ($3) captured the Turf Classic by 1 1/4 lengths while Crystal Quest ($4) won the Sophomore Turf by three-quarters of a length.

While Joseph and Trombetta won with favorites, Fawkes won his two stakes with mid-priced horses. Pure Class ($16.20) rallied from off the pace to win the Sophomore Sprint by 1 1/4 lengths over the previously unbeaten Sugar Boy. Fawkes came back in the next race to a pull a 6-1 upset in the Distaff Turf as Charlie's Wish ($14.60) held off Mohawk Trail by a half-length.

Paco Lopez rode both winners for Fawkes and also was aboard Forever Souper for Trombetta. All totaled, Lopez won four races on the card.

Mish, a 7-year-old gelding owned by C2 Racing, won for the ninth time from 28 starts. He was coming off a narrow defeat to the multiple stakes winner Sibelius in the Pelican Stakes at Tampa in February. He ran six furlongs in 1:09.82.

"Mish caught a break when Dean Delivers didn't get away good and was able to get in a perfect spot," Joseph said. "He's in really good form right now. He ran really well and just got beat by Sibelius last time, but today was his day."

Two races earlier, odds-on favorite Mystic Lake assumed control soon after the start under Edgard Zayas and was never seriously challenged en route to a 3 1/2-length win in the Sophomore Fillies. Mystic Lake, a 3-year-old daughter of Mo Town owned by C2 Racing and Stefania Farm, added the Sophomore Fillies to a victory earlier in the meet in the Gasparilla Stakes.

"I thought Mystic Lake won well today," Joseph said. "She won a bit easier today than she won last time at Tampa. Overall, glad to get another stakes win for her."

Mystic Lake covered the seven furlongs in 1:23.37.

Crystal Quest, ridden to victory by Javier Castellano, won for the third straight time, rallying by pacesetting Prevent to win the Sophomore Turf by three-quarters of a length.

"I was a little concerned that in a short field the speed would get away from him and it would be hard for him to run them down, but he ran really well," Trombetta said.

In the Turf Classic, Forever Souper saved all the ground under Lopez, tipped outside turning for home and came home fast enough to set a stakes record of 1:46.87 for the 1 1/8 miles. Lopez is 4 for 4 on the horse.

"Paco rides that horse unbelievably well," Trombetta said. "Every time he's ridden him the horse has performed well."

Crystal Quest and Forever Souper are both owned and bred by Live Oak Plantation.

Lopez won the next two stakes.

In the Sophomore, Pure Class split horses on the far turn, angled outside in the stretch and came home strong for his third win from his last four starts. Pure Class, who ran seven furlongs in 1:23.77. is owned by Alex and JoAnn Lieblong.

"Pure Class is really just growing up," Fawkes said. "Even Paco said after the race he's still green. He's got a bright future."

In the Distaff Turf, Charlie's Wish, beaten two lengths by Sweet Dani Girl in the Sunshine Filly and Mare Turf at Gulfstream in January, turned the tables on that one Sunday. Sweet Dani Girl, the odds-on favorite, could only manage a fourth-place finish.

"She's just a cool horse, not the fastest-developing horse in the world, but she's starting to grow up," Fawkes said of Charlie's Wish, a daughter of First Dude owned by Royalight Racing. "I think the hard turf helped her today and Paco had her in a little bit better position."

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