On turf, King's Ghost looks tough in Wasted Tears

It’s that time of year when rain is a regular occurrence in South Florida, so a familiar hour-to-hour situation will prevail Sunday at Gulfstream Park in regard to whether turf racing can proceed as scheduled.

The Sunday feature, the $75,000 Wasted Tears for fillies and mares, surely will have Spanish Harlem as the favorite if the 1 1/16-mile race has to be transferred to the main track. In a sharp last-out victory in the Barely Even on Aug. 18, Spanish Harlem asserted herself as one of the most capable divisional performers on dirt on the local circuit.

But if the Wasted Tears stays on turf, as trainer Danny Gargan hopes, King’s Ghost could be the horse to beat. Based at the Palm Meadows training center with assistant Scott Everett, King’s Ghost has worked sharply preparing for her first start since a June 8 allowance triumph over the Gulfstream turf.

“Scotty said she’s really trained great, and we expect her to run even better than last time,” Gargan said by phone from Saratoga.

The Wasted Tears will be the third start for King’s Ghost since the Miller Racing LLC of Myron Miller turned the 6-year-old mare over to Gargan in February.

“We’d had some problems in the gate with her, so we used the blanket on her for her second start,” said Gargan, referring to the so-called Monty Roberts double-carpeted blanket used to calm anxious horses in the starting gate. “She’s come around real well, and we’re expecting her to take another step forward Sunday.”

In all, 13 are entered in the Wasted Tears, including three main-track-only designates. It is carded as the 11th of 12 races on a Sunday card that starts at 12:45 p.m. Eastern. Gargan has a second entry for Miller Racing in Inside Out, but said Friday he intends to scratch her.

The Wasted Tears is named for the mare who won the 2010 Honey Fox at Gulfstream during an outstanding career in which she earned $941,463, all for owner-breeder-trainer Bart Evans. The race is part of a Rainbow 6 sequence that spans races 7-12 and had its carryover jackpot emptied Thursday by a solo winning ticket worth $69,256.

Mondays are normally dark at Gulfstream, but racing will be held this Monday because of the Labor Day holiday.