True Timber back in Kentucky, plans to be decided

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – True Timber is back in central Kentucky after being declared from consideration for the Pegasus World Cup because of an unspecified training injury at Palm Meadows several days before the race.

Trainer Jack Sisterson said he expects an announcement to be made this coming week in regard to the long-term future of the 7-year-old horse, whose most recent start resulted in a 5 1/2-length victory and a career-high 106 Beyer Speed Figure in the Grade 1 Cigar Mile on Dec. 5 at Aqueduct.

“He’s turned out in a paddock and will be reevaluated soon,” Sisterson said. “It did take me quite a while to get him to a peak, and now that we’ve had to stop on him, I’m not sure what the plan will be, even with this setback being as minor as it is. We’ll all know soon enough, I’d say.”

Velazquez to ride at Tampa

Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez will be among the Gulfstream riders who will travel to Tampa next Saturday for the Festival Preview Day card at the Oldsmar track. Velazquez will ride Known Agenda for trainer Todd Pletcher in the Sam F. Davis Stakes, one of four stakes on the day.

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Velazquez also has mounts in the other three stakes, including Honorifique for Eddie Kenneally in the Suncoast. The other stakes, both for older horses on turf, are the Tampa Bay and Endeavour.

Julien Leparoux, who rides Runway Magic for Rusty Arnold in the Davis, is among the other Gulfstream riders who’ll be making the one-day trip across the peninsula.

Colt in scrumptious debut

A gray colt named Soup and Sandwich impressed with a flashy debut Thursday at Gulfstream, winning by 7 1/4 lengths when getting 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:16.82 versus fellow 3-year-old Florida-breds.

Soup and Sandwich, trained by Mark Casse, comes by his name naturally. The Into Mischief colt was bred by his owner, Charlotte Weber, an heiress to the Campbell’s Soup fortune.