NEWS
Delightful Kiss highlights Hal's Hope
Posted: Thursday, January 01, 2009 12:21 PM
DELIGHTFUL KISS
Bill Vassar/Bay Meadows photo
After a late surge to finish second in his final race of 2008, Delightful Kiss will try to secure the fifth stakes triumph of his career in the $100,000 Hal’s Hope Stakes (G3) on Saturday at Gulfstream Park.
The Hal’s Hope is the feature race on Saturday’s Gulfstream card, which opens a winter meeting that will offer $325,000 in daily purses on cards with stakes races.
Winner of the 2007 Ohio Derby (G2), Delightful Kiss launched a late rally to finish second to Einstein (Brz) in the Clark Handicap (G2) on November 28 at Churchill Downs. Plans call for the Florida-bred Kissin Kris gelding to use Saturday’s race as a prep for the $1-million Sunshine Millions Classic Stakes on January 24 at Gulfstream.
Also expected to be running late will be Bribon (Fr), who will contest a third-straight one-turn mile after finishing third to Tale of Ekati in the Hill ‘n’ Dale Cigar Mile Handicap (G1) on November 29 at Aqueduct. Trained by Robert Ribaudo, Bribon won an Aqueduct optional claiming race at the same distance on November 7.
Bullsbay may be the hottest horse going into the Hal’s Hope. The Tiznow colt enters off a pair of allowance victories at Churchill Downs, including a five-length November 28 triumph in which he defeated Belmont Stakes (G1) winner Da’ Tara.
Veteran Finallymadeit, who has placed in 17 stakes races during his 36-race career, enters after securing his first graded stakes win in the Fred W. Hooper Handicap (G3) on December 13.
Like many of the nine races on Saturday’s card, the one-mile Hal’s Hope has attracted a full field.
“We see the size of the fields and the quality in those fields are indications that this is just the tip of the iceberg,” new racing secretary Doug Bredar said. “We take it to mean that we’re going to have a lot of good racing here at Gulfstream Park this year.”
The field, in post-position order, with (sire), jockey, weight, and trainer:
1. Cuba (Not For Love), Kent J. Desormeaux, 120, Bobby S. Dibona;
2. True Resurgence (Yes It's True), Cornelio H. Velasquez, 118, John P. Terranova, II;
3. Fearless Vision (Vision and Verse), Eibar Coa, 118, Patrick L. Reynolds;
4. Delightful Kiss (Kissin Kris), Calvin H. Borel, 122, Pete D. Anderson;
5. Famous Patriot (Repent), Javier Castellano, 120, Timothy A. Hills;
6. It's a Bird (Birdonthewire), Jermaine V. Bridgmohan, 122, Martin D. Wolfson;
7. Rexson's Rose (Suave Prospect), Jose Alberto Rivera II, 118, Barry R. Rose;
8. Now a Victor (Yankee Victor), John R. Velazquez, 118, Michael J. Trombetta;
9. National Pride (Macho Uno), Elvis Trujillo, 120, Kiaran P. McLaughlin;
10. Finallymadeit (Concerto), Eduardo O. Nunez, 120, Javier Negrete;
11. Anak Nakal (Victory Gallop), Joe Bravo, 122, Nicholas P. Zito;
12. Bribon [FR] (Mark of Esteem [IRE]), Alan Garcia, 118, Robert Ribaudo;
13. Bullsbay (Tiznow), Julien R. Leparoux, 118, H. Graham Motion; and
14. Storm in May (Tiger Ridge), Jose Lezcano, 120, William A. Kaplan.
