Trainer Michael Campbell is at Tampa Bay Downs again this winter. His stable’s star, Patriot Spirit, will join him there later this winter.
Patriot Spirit won the Grade 3 Vosburgh at Aqueduct to earn an automatic berth into the Breeders’ Cup Sprint, where he finished 13th in the 14-horse field. Campbell said Patriot Spirit’s trips from Kentucky to Del Mar and in the Breeders’ Cup were difficult, and the horse is getting a few months off in Kentucky. Following a physical examination, all checked out well with Patriot Spirit, Campbell said.
Campbell said he will nominate Patriot Spirit “for every Grade 3 from seven-eighths to 1 1/16 miles and hope to have a better year in ’26 than in ’25.”
Campbell has a few horses he is looking forward to running at the Tampa meet, including Atmidnight, who has won her last two starts at Hawthorne on turf; Lady Valor, a 2-year-old filly who won a maiden race at Keeneland in her last start and who is nominated to the Dec. 6 Sandpiper Stakes; and Athenix, a 2-year-old maiden filly who has a decent race on both turf and dirt.
Atmidnnight, a 4-year-old daughter of Kantharos, was claimed for $16,000 at Colonial Downs in the summer of 2024. She did have a second in a starter handicap over Tampa’s turf in March.
“You don’t expect much when you claim one for $16,000, but she’s starting to turn into a real decent filly,” Campbell said. “It’s nice to get a surprise and she’s becoming a very nice surprise.”
Campbell’s first starter at the meet comes in Wednesday’s opener with Battle Warrior, who looks well-spotted in a $10,000 maiden-claiming race going six furlongs on the dirt.
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