Azam Set to Make Race Return Sunday at Gulfstream

Promising 3YO Colt Unraced Since G3 Peter Pan May 9
Sunday’s Rainbow 6 Jackpot Pool Estimated at $100,000
Jockey Miguel Vasquez Nets Natural Hat Trick Saturday

HALLANDALE BEACH, FL – SBS Global’s promising 3-year-old colt Azam, unraced since shipping to New York for his stakes debut in the May 9 Peter Pan (G3), will be back in familiar surroundings when he makes his return Sunday at Gulfstream Park.

Trained by Jose D’Angelo, who this week has won races at Gulfstream, Del Mar and Colonial Downs, Azam will be cutting back to a one-turn mile for his fifth career start and fourth over his home track in the Race 8 optional claiming allowance for sophomores.

Post time for the first of nine races Sunday is 12:20 p.m.

“He is doing well, and I think he’s going to be tough,” D’Angelo said. “He likes the track, so I think it is going to be a good spot for him. It is time to get him going again.”

Azam, a $165,000 son of three-time Grade 1-winning multimillionaire McKinzie, debuted last June at Gulfstream in a five-furlong maiden special weight where he finished first by a nose but was disqualified to second for drifting out late.

He did not race again until March 29, running third as the favorite in a six-furlong maiden spot, before graduating by two lengths in front-running fashion going one mile April 18 at odds of 12-1. The effort earned him a spot in the 1 1/8-mile Peter Pan at Aqueduct, his two-turn debut, where he tracked the pace on the inside before tiring to be last of five.

Of the horses that finished in front of him, winner Growth Equity was sixth in the Belmont (G1), runner-up Talk to Me Jimmy won the New York Derby and third-place finisher Trendsetter was third again in the Ohio Derby (G3).

“He won in a nice way at Gulfstream to break his maiden against what I thought was a competitive field, so we brought him to New York. It was a tough race and maybe too soon after the last one, so we decide to give him some time off and regroup,” D’Angelo said. “We wanted to give him some time off to let him recover and feel good, and we prepped him for this race.”

Azam has breezed eight times for his return, most recently going a half-mile in 49.65 seconds July 19 at Palm Meadows, Gulfstream’s satellite training facility in Palm Beach County.

Leonel Reyes, up for the maiden score, returns to ride from Post 2 in a field of six as the 2-1 program favorite.

“He has some speed, so he can get on the lead,” D’Angelo said. “The Peter Pan it was a tough spot, but we thought he deserved the chance. We were looking for a two-turn race for him. It’s never easy to ship that far and run so it was an experience for him. I would like to try him longer again.”

Hayden Remembered (June 28) and Moonstrocity (May 8) both have wins over older horses at the track and distance. Moonstrocity returns to the dirt and adds blinkers after finishing fourth in the 1 1/16-mile Not Surprising on the all-weather Tapeta course June 6. Move Jesse Move, seventh in the Not Surprising, was fifth in the seven-furlong Carry Back June 27 at Gulfstream.

D’Angelo was thrilled with the effort from Arindel’s Florida-bred Monster in the July 19 Quick Call (G3) at Saratoga, where he was third by two necks. Monster, whose two career wins came last spring and fall at Gulfstream, is being pointed to the Spa’s Aug. 16 Mahony (G3), also for 3-year-olds sprinting 5 ½ furlongs on the turf.

“It was tough to get beat but I think he ran his best race last Sunday. We were very happy with it,” D’Angelo said. “We made some changes with him and I think it was very easy to see how he improved. Hopefully we’ll have better luck in the next race.”

Sunday’s Rainbow 6 Jackpot Pool Estimated at $100,000

The 20-cent Rainbow 6 jackpot pool is expected to grow to an estimated $100,000 Sunday at Gulfstream Park, where the popular multi-race wager went unsolved Saturday for the first racing day following Monday’s mandatory payout that yielded multiple payoffs of $5,084.

Sunday’s Rainbow 6 sequence will span Races 4-9, featuring a $70,000 optional claiming allowance in Race 8, a one-turn mile test for 3-year-olds. Jose D’Angelo-trained Azam returns to Gulfstream, where the son of McKinzie graduated impressively at a mile before running fifth around two turns in the Peter Pan (G3) at Aqueduct last time out.

In the Rainbow 6, the jackpot pool is paid out only 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.

On mandatory payout days, the entire pool is disbursed to the bettor or bettors holding tickets with the most winners in the six-race sequence.

A mandatory payout of the Rainbow 6 jackpot pool is scheduled for every Monday through the end of the Royal Palm Meet Aug. 31.

Notes: Jockey Miguel Vasquez registered a natural hat trick Saturday aboard Das Ist Alles Alley ($12.40) in Race 5, Fourth and Central ($23) in Race 6 and Boot’s On the Moon ($) in Race 7 … Shadybrook Farm, Inc.’s Florida homebred gelding Fourth and Central dueled for the lead with Gold Perl before putting away the even-money favorite after a half-mile and drawing away to a 3 ¾-length victory in the optional claiming allowance for 3-year-olds sprinting five furlongs on the grass. The winning time was 54.88 seconds over a firm course. Owned and trained by Michael Yates, the son of Cajun Breeze was making his turf debut and second start off a 289-day layoff after winning last fall’s FSS Dr. Fager.