HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Southern California transplant Martin Garcia said there’s a lot of things he likes about the small community of Hot Springs. But one perk stands out.
“There is no traffic,” he said. “There is no traffic!”
Trainer Todd Pletcher ran his first horse in the Florida Derby in 2001 and since then has missed only one running of Gulfstream Park’s marquee race for 3-year-olds. More significantly, Pletcher has won a record five Florida Derbies, including four of the last six.
Saturday, Pletcher will be back for another go at the Florida Derby when he sends out Gouverneur Morris and Candy Tycoon in the last of 14 races on a blockbuster card.
The Rainbow 6 pool at Gulfstream, which began Wednesday with a carryover of more than $1.3 million, will be subject to a mandatory disbursement on the last six races Saturday, including the Florida Derby. All pools must be emptied by Sunday, closing day of the four-month championship meet.
Gulfstream also is offering guaranteed pools of $400,000 for the late pick five and $500,000 for the late pick four on Saturday.
Like every trainer in the country, particularly those with Kentucky Derby prospects, trainer Bill Mott is trying to find a path forward for Modernist without having all that data he’ll need regarding potential prep races, or when racing will return to some semblance of normalcy.
:: KENTUCKY DERBY 2020: Derby Watch, point standings, prep schedule, news, and more
“To even try to plan for anything beyond tomorrow is a little bit ridiculous right now,” Mott said.
With Fountain of Youth winner Ete Indien scheduled to run in the Florida Derby on Saturday and Tampa Bay Derby runner-up Sole Volante being pointed to the Arkansas Derby, trainer Patrick Biancone has had a great year so far, but no victory will top a personal milestone he achieved earlier this week, when he was pronounced cancer-free after having his left kidney removed a few weeks ago.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Quite a few stakes horses who otherwise would have sat out the day for a future race elsewhere will compete instead Saturday at Gulfstream Park, one of the dwindling number of racetracks still conducting racing in the United States.
Vekoma, Lucrezia, and Mean Mary are among the notable names whose trainers turned to the Florida Derby Day stakes schedule at Gulfstream when the ongoing coronavirus crisis forced tracks such as Keeneland and Aqueduct to cease activity until further notice.
WHO’S HOT
Wells Bayou and Ny Traffic earned 100 and 40 points, respectively, for their one-two finish in the Louisiana Derby on Saturday and have moved onto the Derby Watch top 20 list. Wells Bayou impressed Daily Racing Form’s Marty McGee enough to make him the co-fifth choice at 12-1 for the Kentucky Derby, now scheduled for Sept. 5. Ny Traffic is 50-1 on McGee’s line.
:: KENTUCKY DERBY 2020: Derby Watch, point standings, prep schedule, news, and more
Trainer Todd Pletcher is closing his Belmont Park stable for the foreseeable future in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic that has shut down New York racing indefinitely.
“For the safety of our employees and to make sure horses are getting the proper care, we’ve decided to temporarily shut down our barn until this thing is over,” Pletcher said Tuesday from Florida where he has a large string of horses based at the Palm Beach Downs training center
Churchill Downs has delayed the opening of its stable area until April 14, the track announced on Tuesday, in response to the coronavirus outbreak.
Churchill Downs had been scheduled to open its stable area last week, but the track put that date off indefinitely. The decision to delay the opening until April 14 comes as more and more states issue “stay at home” mandates, which would greatly complicate the movement of horses across state lines.
Thoroughbred racing in Chicago is on deep hold early this spring.
Arlington has indefinitely pushed back the date it will allow horses onto its backstretch, and making the scheduled May 1 meet opening is something like a 50-1 shot.
Moreover, the coronavirus outbreak and all its racing ramifications has put into limbo difficult negotiations between Arlington and the Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association over a contract that will govern the 2020 racing season – if or when it actually takes place.
