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Zapico Guides Warrior’s Pride to Win in Umphrey Sprint
7/2/2023
Part-Time Jockey Notches First Stakes Victory
The Skipper Too Doubles Up in Kaplan Memorial
Recently Retired Edgar Prado Honored at Gulfstream
HALLANDALE, FL – Jockey Silvia Zapico celebrated the first stakes win of her career Sunday at Gulfstream Park after guiding Warrior’s Pride to victory in the $75,000 Bob Umphrey Sprint.
“It feels great. When you have a good horse, it doesn’t seem as difficult as it seems sometimes,” said Zapico, who also won her first race since 2020 in the 5 ½-furlong sprint on Tapeta.
Warrior’s Pride ($15.60) was, in fact, only her eighth mount in the past three years.
“I started studying physical therapy. That’s what I just finished in November. So, I said, ‘OK, let’s take a break and catch up with the horses again,”” Zapico said. “I’ve been working at a clinic here in Hallandale Beach and I have about 10 patients. I’m trying to make up my mind whether to change from the racing mode to the physical therapy mode.”
Zapico rode 100 horses in Spain before venturing 10 years ago to the U.S. to ride full time in the Mid-Atlantic region and Finger Lakes. She eventually moved to Miami seven years ago and has ridden at Gulfstream sporadically since then.
The Umphrey set up perfectly for Just for Fun Stable Inc.’s Warrior’s Pride and Zapico. Hope in Him, who was seeking his sixth straight victory on Tapeta, jetted out of the gate to quickly open up a lead with Warrior’s Pride closest in pursuit. Hope in Him showed the way while setting sharp fractions of 21.44 and 44.01 seconds for the first half mile but was quickly overtaken by Warrior’s Pride, who drew away in the stretch to win by two lengths in 1:03.11
“We knew [Warrior’s Pride] would have the speed. The plan was to follow him,” Zapico said. “As soon as I asked him, he changed into another gear.”
Uncle B. closed to finish second, three-quarters of a length ahead of rallying Competitive Saint.
Warrior’s Pride, a 5-year-old son of Poseidon’s Warrior owned and trained by Ruben Sierra, earned a $25,000 bonus offered by the FTBOA to a Florida-bred winners.
The Skipper Too Doubles Up in Kaplan Memorial
Arindel’s The Skipper Too ($7) captured his second-straight race Sunday at Gulfstream Park while registering a thoroughly professional victory in the $60,000 William. A Kaplan Memorial, a 1 1/16-mile overnight handicap for 3-year-olds and up honoring the memory of the highly respected South Florida trainer who passed away in May.
Coming off a dominating victory in a one-turn mile optional claiming allowance, The Skipper Too appreciated the stretch-out around two turns Sunday. The homebred son of Brethren overcame a wide trip around the first turn after breaking from the outside post position under a well-judged ride by Emisael Jaramillo. The Skipper Two advanced along the backstretch to press pacesetter Candy Tycoon and took the lead turning from home before holding off 4-5 favorite Steal Sunshine by three-quarters of a length.
“He’s been a hard-trying horse since he was a 2-year-old. He’s just been getting better and better. He’s run against some really tough horses,” Arindel’s stable manager Brian Cohen said. “He’s coming into his own now. It’s nice to see him string together a couple of wins.”
Juan Alvarado-trained The Skipper Too ran 1 1/16 miles in 1:43.56 while carrying 118 pounds, five fewer than highweight Steal Sunshine, who finished 2 ¾ lengths ahead of pacesetter Candy Tycoon.
“We think he really wants to stretch out. We thought this would be a good race to try and get two and a row,” said Cohen, who said the $400,000 Monmouth Cup (G3) July 22 at Monmouth Park is a possible target for the 4-year-old Florida-bred.
William ‘Bill’ Kaplan trained 2011 champion female sprinter Musical Romance., who captured the 2011 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint at Churchill Downs. The Florida-bred daughter of Concorde’s Tune came back the next year to win the Inside Information (G2) and Princess Rooney (G1) at Gulfstream in 2012.
Recently Retired Edgar Prado Honored at Gulfstream
Edgar Prado was accompanied by friends, family, jockeys, and trainers during a winner’s circle ceremony following Race 2 on Sunday’s program at Gulfstream Park in recognition of the recently retired Hall of Fame jockey’s career accomplishments.
The 56-year-old Prado is a native of Lima, Peru, where he was the leading apprentice jockey in 1983 before venturing to South Florida in 1986 as the contract rider for trainer Manny Azpurua. Prado went on to ride in New England and then, Maryland, where he dominated for 10 years before relocating to New York and wintering at Gulfstream.
“I’ve been blessed during my career. I’ve been riding here since I came to this country. Gulfstream was the first place to give me an opportunity. I’ve moved on to other places. I’m glad to come back to the place I started many years ago,” Prado said.
The recently retired Prado enjoyed many of his most memorable achievements at Gulfstream during a career that produced 7119 victories and nearly $273 million in purses-won. He guided Barbaro to victories in the 2006 Holy Bull (G2) and Florida Derby (G1) at Gulfstream prior to their victory in the Kentucky Derby (G1).
Prado was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2008.