Gulfstream Park

In the Feb. 29 GII Davona Dale S. at Gulfstream, two unbeaten fillies squared off while taking the majority of the public support, with the second choice narrow edging the favorite. Saturday, Tonalist's Shape (Tonalist) and Spice Is Nice (Curlin) will do battle again, alongside 10 other 3-year-old fillies, in the GII Gulfstream Park Oaks at the Hallandale oval. Rallying to a 19-1 upset on debut for Sabana Farms and Juan Avila here last September, Tonalist's Shape was privately purchased and transferred to Saffie Joseph, for whom she captured a...

As the overseer of two of the biggest tracks still running races in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, The Stronach Group's CEO Craig Fravel has a lot of responsibility right now. As Saturday's GI Curlin Florida Derby at Gulfstream nears and the GI Santa Anita Derby follows next weekend, Fravel stopped by the TDN Writers' Room podcast presented by Keeneland to talk with Bill Finley about this tumultuous time. "Things seem to change on an hourly basis," Fravel said. "I think I was in Florida a week and a...

Santa Anita and Gulfstream are only two of the six tracks still racing in the U.S. This week, we check in with Craig Fravel from the Stronach Group to talk about the precautions they're taking. Also, the writers talk about the latest developments in horse racing with the coronavirus, and the challenges horsemen face.

Unbeaten on grass and certainly bred to be any kind, the very promising Golden Tapit (Tapit) posted his second straight decision for trainer Brendan Walsh in impressive fashion over the Gulfstream lawn Saturday. Off a beat slow--just like he was in his previous attempt while earning his diploma negotiating an additional furlong in Hallandale Feb. 8--the lightly raced 4-year-old son of Broodmare of the Year Fun House was on the move while riding the rail heading into the clubhouse turn in the one-mile allowance. Under a snug hold by Luis...

Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano has tested positive for the coronavirus, reports his agent, John Panagot. Castellano is the first North American-based jockey known to have come down with the illness. Castellano had been riding at Gulfstream, but Bill Badgett, the executive director of Florida racing operations for The Stronach Group, said that racing will continue at the South Florida racetrack. He said that Castellano has not ridden at Gulfstream since Mar. 15 and was tested on Sunday when he returned to Florida from New York. "We put protocols...

9th-GP, $52K, OC62k/N2X, 4yo/up, 6f, 5:07 p.m. Soldado (Verrazano), an impressive front-running optional claiming winner with a 97 Beyer Speed Figure in his Feb. 6 comebacker for Todd Pletcher, looks to put them back-to-back in Hallandale. The $80,000 FTKTUR yearling turned $8,000 EASMAY juvenile (How Steve Young Found the Bargain of the Year, by Bill Finley) debuted with a promising decision at this distance at Gulfstream last February over subsequent City of Laurel S. winner and GII Amsterdam S. third 'TDN Rising Star' Honest Mischief (Into Mischief), but disappointed in...

With racing already halted at several venues around the country, Gulfstream Park forges ahead with it's season anchoring marquee test for 3-year-olds, the GI Florida Derby. Highlighting the nine-furlong test is Grade I-winner Tiz the Law (Constitution), one of three runners by the young stallion in Saturday's race. The colt was last seen winning the Feb. 1 GIII Holy Bull S. at the Hallandale oval. "It really hasn't changed anything," said Sackatoga Operating Manager Jack Knowlton of the effect of the colt's training regime due to the Coronavirus pandemic. "We...

Owing to the closure of all casinos and the elimination of on-track handle, officials at Gulfstream Park have announced reductions in stakes purses for the GI Curln Florida Derby and supporting undercard stakes Mar. 28. The Derby, which offers 170 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby, has seen its purse slashed to $750,000 from $1 million, while the GII Kitten's Joy Pan American S. and GII Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream Oaks will run for $200,000, down from $250,000. The Cutler Bay S. and Sanibel Island S., originally $125,000 events, will...

Gulfstream Park issued the following announcement late Thursday night:  Gulfstream Park will suspend racing for one day, Friday, March 20, to update its protocols in a number of areas, including the Jockeys' Room. Racing is scheduled to resume on Saturday, March 21. Last week, Gulfstream Park took strict measures to limit exposure by closing the facility to the public for live racing and simulcast. Gulfstream Park has operated in full compliance with all government and local health orders, while ensuring the protection of the essential personnel that care for the...

On a day when racetracks around the world, including Keeneland, announced they would be shutting their doors due to the COVID-19 outbreak, NYRA, Oaklawn, Gulfstream and the Fair Grounds announced their intentions to continue racing. The decision by NYRA may have been the most surprising among the three as it came just hours after New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a ban of gatherings of 50 people or more and that restaurants, bars, movie theaters and casinos must shut down. Aqueduct's next scheduled day of live racing is Friday. As...

As the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic continues to wreak its havoc on society at large, racing and racing-related operations continue to be impacted. Oaklawn Park announced late Sunday that the adjoining casino will be closed for a period of two weeks beginning Monday with the announcement that two people in Garland County have tested positive for the virus. Operations will be suspended through Mar. 30 in the casino, the Silks Bar & Grill, Bistro 2075 and the sports book. The track is committed to holding racing without spectators. Gulfstream Park announced...

Gulfstream Park's upcoming spring and summer stakes schedule features races worth $3.775 million and later runnings of its signature races. The $300,000 GII Princess Rooney S. and $200,000 GIII Smile Sprint S. have been moved from their traditional June dates and will be run Sept. 5 this year and the Princess Rooney has been shortened from seven furlongs to six. "Both the Princess Rooney and Smile were moved from the middle of the summer to September in hopes of more participation moving closer to the fall," said Mike Lakow, Gulfstream's...