Trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. will attempt to keep his momentum from Gulfstream Park’s championship meet rolling when the Royal Palm meet opens Thursday. Joseph will send out leading contender Bless America in the featured seventh race.
The first-level allowance is for 3-year-olds and up at 5 1/2 furlongs on Tapeta. It carries an optional claiming price of $25,000.
Joseph won the training title at the championship meet, which closed at the halfway point of Sunday’s card after inclement weather hit Gulfstream resulting in the final races being canceled. He led his peers in both wins and stable earnings, with a respective 70 victories and $5.8 million. It was Joseph’s fourth consecutive championship meet title, according to a Gulfstream press release.
“We had a good meet and it’s a credit to all the owners and our team for putting in the work,” Joseph said. “We’re thankful for that. Blessed. The new meet begins and hopefully we get off to a good start.”
Gulfstream will race on a Thursday-through-Sunday schedule, with the Royal Palm season to end Aug. 30. The highlight of the stakes schedule comes May 10 with the running of both the $100,000 Royal Palm Juvenile and the $100,000 Royal Palm Juvenile Fillies. The five-furlong turf stakes are designated qualifiers for Royal Ascot stakes in June, according to a press release from Gulfstream.
Bless America is part of a field of six in Thursday’s feature, with Takecareofbusiness and Louie the Sun King other top contenders in the race after running a respective third and fourth at this level and distance March 5.
Bless America will be making his first start since Oct. 15, when he won a first-level allowance on the synthetic track at Presque Isle. He covered six furlongs in a rapid 1:08.60 and the Beyer Speed Figure of 83 he earned is the best last-race number in this field. The son of Into Mischief has since moved into the South Florida market for Green With MV Stable and will be making both his first start at Gulfstream and his first for Joseph.
“He’s a bit difficult horse to train in the morning, so fitness-wise I don’t know if we have enough in him,” Joseph said, “but he likes the Tapeta and he’s got a lot of speed, so hopefully, he’ll run well.
“He’s a big, good-looking horse.”
Bless America will start from the rail under Edgard Zayas.
“The rail, you’ve got to be forward,” Joseph said. “Hopefully, he’ll break well and be forward. If he’s on the lead, that’s fine. If not, he can just stalk them.”
Louie the Sun King led throughout to win at this distance on Tapeta in August at Gulfstream. He figures to again be prominent when he breaks from post 3 for trainer Kathleen O’Connell. This will be the second start since October for Louie the Sun King. The race he exits, which was on Tapeta, went in a blazing 1:02.
The eight-race card also features a $35,000 starter allowance for 3-year-old fillies at a mile on turf. It goes as the fourth and is led by Majestic Drive, a four-length maiden route winner on Tapeta last out for trainer Brendan Walsh.
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