Concrete Glory a Solid Contender in Big Drama Handicap

Rezasrolex Seeks Return to Old Winning Ways in Friday Feature

HALLANDALE BEACH, FL – When trainer Saffie Joseph Jr dropped a claim in on Concrete Glory Dec. 12, 2022, he bought more than a just another horse.

“I love him. He’s actually my favorite horse,” Joseph said. “We claimed him for $6,250 and to see what he’s achieved and what he does and [how he’s keeps] a high standard for a while, he’s a cool horse to be around.”

Concrete Glory, who has won 13 races since being claimed, has been installed as the 5-2 morning-line favorite in a field of seven entered in Saturday’s $125,000 Big Drama Handicap at Gulfstream Park. The 7-year-old Bodemeister, who has won a total of 18 races, will be ridden by Micah Husbands..

“He’s a tough, tough horse. He’s good at seven furlongs. I feel like he’s going to run well,” Joseph said. “He’s drawn [the] one [post], so he has to break. Hopefully, he breaks well and he can go forward.”

Concrete Glory, who has won five of his six starts at seven furlongs, is a horse with high early speed who’s always ready for a fight when challenged. He’ll share highweight honors with Gerald Bennett-trained Chrome Ghost (7-2), who is coming off a seven-furlong handicap win at Tampa Bay Downs, and will concede between one and six pounds to the other five.

Concrete Glory has certainly exceeded his trainer’s expectations.

“They dropped him and we took a shot and claimed him. After that he just got better and better,” Joseph said. “We claimed him to be a starter horse, and he obviously became much better than a starter horse.”

Joseph will be at Saratoga Saturday to saddle Solitude Dude for a start in the seven-furlong Woody Stephens (G1) on the Belmont Stakes (G1) undercard. Solitude Dude has won four of five career races, his only loss coming around two turns in the Feb. 28 Coolmore Fountain of Youth (G2) at Gulfstream.

“The first time he had to lay it all down was in the Fountain of Youth. That was the first time I ever saw him get really tired, because he did more than he wants to do at a distance that he’s probably not his best at,” Joseph said. “This time he’s going to have to lay it down again and hopefully, when he does, he’s good enough.”

Flavien Prat has the call on the son of Yaupon.

Rezasrolex Seeks Return to Old Winning Ways in Friday Feature

Robert Cotran’s Rezasrolex will seek to return to his old winning ways Friday when live racing resumes at Gulfstream Park.

The Joe Orseno-trained 5-year-old gelding, who has won 13 of 20 career starts, has been tabbed as the 1-2 morning-line favorite in a field of six gathered for Race 6, a 5 ½-furlong optional claiming allowance on Tapeta. The Joe Orseno-trained son of Bucchero, who produced a nine-race winning streak before his three recent stakes appearances, has won 10 of 13 starts on the all-weather surface. Rezasrolex most recently finished off the board in the Shakertown (G2) at Keeneland following a pair of runner-up stakes finishes on turf.

Rezasrolex’s return from a two-month freshening will be featured in the 20-cent Rainbow 6 sequence that will Races 4-9.

The popular multi-race wager will start anew Friday following last Sunday’s mandatory payout that yielded multiple payoffs.

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