Go Back
Eamonn Unleashes Late Surge to Capture Pembroke Lakes
5/27/2023
Battle Cry Brings Winning Habit into Sunday’s Musical Romance
Sunday’s Rainbow 6 Gross Jackpot Pool Guaranteed at $175,000
HALLANDALE BEACH, FL – Robert Cotran’s Eamonn unleashed a powerful stretch surge to capture Saturday’s $60,000 Pembroke Lakes at Gulfstream Park.
Cutting back from two turns to one turn and making his first start since undergoing a throat procedure to repair an entrapped epiglottis, Eamonn ($22) entered the stretch far behind several rivals before kicked in with an outside rush to prevail in the five-furlong turf feature by a half length.
“After his last race we found he was entrapped, and we did some throat surgery. He was fresh and I talked to the owner, and I said, ‘Do you want to try?’ He said, ‘Sure,’” trainer Joe Orseno said. “We knew he sprinted before when he was fresh. I said, ‘Let’s blow him out on the Tapeta and see how he is.’ I only wanted to run him on turf. If it rained, he would have been scratched.”
Eamonn, who has been first or second 12 times in 24 starts primarily going two turns on turf, provided apprentice jockey Angel Morales with his first stakes win.
Hope in Him broke alertly to show the way along the backstretch around the turn and into the stretch before being challenged by Xy Speed and Chess Master nearing the wire. Eamonn, who trailed the nine-horse field early, suddenly appeared on the outside and finished off his opponents with one last lunge.
Xy Speed finished second under Edwin Gonzalez, a length in front of Chess Master and Edgar Perez in third.
Warrior’s Pride, the 8-5 favorite, encountered bumping at the start and never threatened.
Eamonn ran five-furlongs on turf in 57.05 seconds.
Battle Cry Brings Winning Habit into Musical Romance
Skull Stable LLC’s Battle Cry is scheduled to seek her fifth victory in her last six starts in Sunday’s $60,000 Musical Romance Handicap in Race 7 on Gulfstream Park’s nine-race program.
The Musical Romance was named after the 2011 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1) winner and 2011 Eclipse Award champion female sprinter who was based in South Florida with recently deceased trainer Bill Kaplan.
Trainer Victor Barboza Jr. entered Beth’s Dream as well as Battle Cry in the 6 ½-furlong handicap for fillies and mares but has opted to scratch Beth’s Dream, the 124-pound co-highweight, in favor of an upcoming stakes engagement. Nevertheless, Barboza figures to be well-represented in the Musical Romance by Battle Cry, who has employed a strong stretch kick on her way to her four most recent victories. Edwin Gonzalez has the mount on Battle Cry, who has been assigned 117 pounds.
A strong pace may be expected with the presence of Averill Racing LLC, ATM Racing and Jayson R. Werth’s R Adios Jersey, also weighted at 124 pounds, and Edward Seltzer’s Bluefield, who has been assigned 121 pounds, in the six-horse field. R. Adios Jersey finished a distant third behind Frank’s Rockette in the Hurricane Bertie (G3) at Gulfstream last time out. Bluefield has won six of 16 career starts while racing forwardly. Leading rider Leonel Reyes has the call on Georgina Baxter-trained R Adios Jersey, while Edgard Zayas has been named to ride Saffie Joseph Jr.-trained Bluefield.
Sunday’s Rainbow 6 Pool Guaranteed at $175,000
The 20-cent Rainbow 6 pool will be guaranteed at $175,000 for Sunday’s nine-race program at Gulfstream Park.
Sunday’s Rainbow 6 sequence will span Races 4-9, featuring the Musical Romance Handicap in Race 7, in which graded stakes-placed R Adios Jersey will concede between three and seven pounds to her five rivals. In Race 8, a 7 ½-furlong optional claiming allowance for 3-year-old fillies on turf, Todd Pletcher-trained Soviet Excess, a son of Uncle Mo who is coming off a sharp maiden score on Tapeta, is rated as the 3-1 morning-line favorite.
The Rainbow 6 jackpot is paid out when there is a single unique ticket sold with all six winners. On days when there is no unique ticket, 70 percent of that day’s pool goes back to those bettors holding tickets with the most winners, while 30 percent is carried over to the jackpot pool.
There will be a Super Hi-5 carryover of $3963.03 heading into Sunday’s card.
Notes: Jockey Miguel Vasquez rode three winners on Saturday’s card, scoring aboard Major King ($4.80) in Race 2, Sea Hunter ($5.60) in Race 3 and Order of Magnitude ($5.20) in Race 5.
Leading rider Leonel Reyes enjoyed another multi-win day aboard Big and Classy ($6.20) in Race 6 and Telephone Talker ($21) in Race 8.