Willy Boi surges in Big Drama Stakes
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Willy Boi returned to the scene of his finest hour, a victory in the Hutcheson Stakes last winter at Gulfstream Park, and became a stakes winner for the second time when drawing away to a convincing 5 1/4-length triumph over the speedy 3-year-old King Cab in Saturday’s $65,000 Big Drama.
Willy Boi, who started his career with trainer Jeff Engler, won the Hutcheson over a sloppy track in just his fourth career start before going winless in five subsequent outings to close out his 3-year-old campaign. Transferred to the barn of Jorge Delgado prior to the start of his 2022 campaign, Willy Boi served notice he could be a force to reckon with at 4 when launching the season with a one-sided, 7 1/2-length optional claiming and allowance win at Tampa Bay Downs on April 8.
With Chantal Sutherland aboard, Willy Boi broke very alertly and was first to show in front before ceding the advantage, as expected, to the younger King Cab in the opening furlong. Willy Boi moved to closer contention approaching the stretch, readily overtook the leader nearing the furlong grounds, then drew off with complete authority while kept under steady urging to the wire.
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King Cab showed the way into the stretch, offered little resistance when challenged by the winner but remained clearly second-best while facing older horses for the second straight start. Shivaree, equipped with blinkers for the first time since his second-place finish in the 2020 Hutcheson, bore out some leaving the turn before rallying mildly to finish third while never a threat to the top pair. Well Defined stumbled badly after the start to lose his best chance.
Lea Farms LLC owns Willy Boi, a son of Uncaptured, who completed seven furlongs over a fast track in 1:22.33 and paid $5.40 as the favorite in a field of eight older runners. The victory earned him a spot in the Grade 3 Smile Sprint here July 2.
“The horse is getting better and better and stronger every day. He had a long, long layoff, so we used the Tampa race as a prep for this race and now this race is a prep for the Smile in July,” Delgado said.
The Virginian bounced back from a series of frustrating near misses in his last four starts to capture the afternoon’s co-featured sixth race, a $60,000 overnight handicap carded at five furlongs on the turf. The Virginian rallied from just off a contentious pace to a 1 3/4-victory over Warrior’s Pride, reversing the result of the pair’s previous meeting under allowance conditions here four weeks earlier. Tape to Tape, who battled Warrior’s Pride for the early lead, finished third.
The Virginian paid $5.80 after negotiating the distance over a firm course in :55.81. The race serves as a prep for the $75,000 Bob Umphrey Sprint, to be run for the first time over the Tapeta surface, on July 3.