Encino Chasing Fifth Straight Win in G2 Gulfstream Park Mile

Zayas, Burnham Square Take Win Streak into Fountain of Youth
Keep It Easy Seeking Fresh Start in G2 Fountain of Youth
Pletcher Sends Out Two in Search of Elusive Mac Diarmida (G2)
Herecomesthebride (G3) Marks Stakes Debut for Grade A

HALLANDALE BEACH, FL – Godolphin’s Grade 3-winning homebred Encino will put his four-race win streak on the line when he returns to stakes company for Saturday’s 81st running of the $215,000 Gulfstream Park Mile (G2).

The Gulfstream Park Mile for 4-year-olds and up is the sixth of nine stakes, eight graded, worth $2.15 million in purses on a blockbuster 14-race program headlined by the $415,000 Coolmore Fountain of Youth (G2) for 3-year-olds.

Encino will be making his second start as a 4-year-old after ending a 289-day gap between starts with a popular front-running one-length optional claiming allowance victory going 1 1/16 miles Jan. 16 at Fair Grounds. The final time was 1:45.59 over a main track rated good.

“He did everything we wanted him to do last time, and [trainer] Brad [Cox] was pleased with him going into that race,” said Godolphin’s director of bloodstock Michael Banahan, who oversees all its U.S.-based runners. “He was able to keep his [four race] win streak alive, and I think this is a good spot for him.

“He has plenty of speed himself, so I think Gulfstream will probably suit him. We’re not really 100 percent what distance he wants, but I think a mile, mile and a sixteenth will suit him. The shorter distance might really be in his wheelhouse,” he added. “We’re looking forward to the race.”

Encino has not lost since being beaten a neck when second in his December 2023 unveiling at Turfway Park. Each of his first three starts came over its all-weather surface, capped by a one-length triumph in the John Battaglia Memorial last March.

“The only reason he was on the synthetic really was situational. He was down here at the training center [and] it just made sense to get him up to Brad’s string at Turfway and see what we had. He jumped up each time after his first start and kept progressing,” Banahan said. “I suppose with a 3-year-old at that time of the year we wanted to see what he could do on dirt and whether he could get on the Derby trail even though it was a little bit of a late start.”

Encino made his main track debut last April in the 1 1/16-mile Lexington (G3), the last points qualifying race for the Kentucky Derby (G1) three weeks later. He was withdrawn from contention when a soft tissue injury flared up the Tuesday before the race and forced him to the sidelines for the rest of the year.

“When he won the Battaglia we were keen to see what he would do in the Lexington. It was a nice field, and he won it well, and we were on the verge of getting into the Derby when he came up with that little injury and we had to give him the rest of the year off,” Banahan said. “It’s good to have him back. I think he’s got plenty of talent but we’re not too sure what his ceiling is.”

Encino, rated as the 9-2 third choice on the morning line, will break from Post 3 of nine with jockey Luis Saez.

“We missed the second half of last year with him and we’re glad that he’s doing well and getting back on track again,” Banahan said. “This will be a big race for him to see what our future goals will be with him that he might be able to reach.”

Zayas, Burnham Square Take Streak into Fountain of Youth

Undefeated in their two starts together, jockey Edgard Zayas and Whitham Thoroughbreds’ impressive Holy Bull (G3) winner Burnham Square chase a third straight victory in Saturday’s $415,000 Coolmore Fountain of Youth (G2) at Gulfstream Park.

Zayas, a formidable year-round presence in South Florida, has been aboard Burnham Square for a nine-length maiden triumph Dec. 28 as well as a 1 ¾-length score in the Holy Bull, his third straight attempt around two turns.

“It meant a lot. I think it’s the first time I really had a legit shot in that kind of race on the road to the Kentucky Derby and we made it work,” Zayas said. “The horse was great. I’m super thankful to get the opportunity to ride him and I’m really excited for what’s to come.”

Zayas has been aboard for each of Burnham Square’s two works following the Holy Bull, going four furlongs in 50.05 seconds Feb. 15 and five furlongs in 1:01.05 Feb. 23, the latter ranking second of 13 horses at Palm Meadows, Gulfstream’s satellite training facility in Palm Beach County.

“He’s been working great. He’s just getting better and better through racing,” Zayas said. “His last work was five furlongs, he worked really good and his gallop-out was amazing. The best part of his works is always his gallop-out. It looks like he has a really long stride and he just keeps on going.”

Burnham Square drew Post 3 and is the 5-2 second choice behind 2-1 program favorite River Thames. The Liam’s Map gelding broke from outermost Post 7 in the Holy Bull.

“[I’m] just going to let him break out of there. It looks like he’s a pretty versatile horse,” Zayas said. “In his maiden [win] he was right there on the pace and then last time I think the post position didn’t help for where he was, because he’s really not the fastest out of the gate but he’s not that slow, either. I think the post position dropped him back a little bit farther than he should have been. Hopefully we’re a little bit closer this time and see what he can do. I know that he can run all day. He has a lot of stamina, so I know he’s ready to go.”

Keep It Easy Seeking Fresh Start in G2 Fountain of Youth

St. Elias Stable and West Point Thoroughbreds’ Keep It Easy, who established himself as a stakes winner around one turn last year, is scheduled to seek two-turn stakes credentials in Saturday’s $415,000 Coolmore Fountain of Youth (G2) at Gulfstream Park.

“It’s that time of year. I think everybody’s in the same boat with the stretching out and finding out who’s going to be comfortable doing it and who are the one-turn horses going forward,” West Point Thoroughbreds executive vice president Tom Bellhouse said.

The Dale Romans-trained son of Hard Spun is unraced since capturing the 6 ½-furlong Ed Brown Nov. 30 at Churchill Downs, where he settled into stride a few lengths off the pace before kicking in through the stretch to score by 5 ¼ lengths.

“He hasn’t really missed a beat since he’s been down in Florida. Dale remains extremely bullish on him,” Bellhouse said. “He didn’t get lulled into going in the [Feb. 1] Holy Bull. He said, ‘I’m just going to stick to my plan.’ ”

Keep It Easy graduated in his second career start with a sharp front-running four-length victory June 27 at Churchill Downs before stumbling badly and finishing far back in the Aug. 10 Saratoga Special (G2).

“It was a bad enough gate experience that they definitely wanted to give him time and school him,” Bellhouse said. He didn’t exactly fly out of there in his next race. He kind of was a little apprehensive but I think we’ve got that all behind us.”

Out of action for nearly four months, Keep It Easy was a tad slow leaving the starting gate in the Brown but would prove much the best while making a wide sweep to the lead and drawing off.

Pletcher Sends Out Two in Search of Elusive Mac Diarmida (G2)

The $215,000 Mac Diarmida (G2) for 4-year-olds and up scheduled for 1 3/8 miles on the grass is one of the few graded-stakes to elude Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher, winner of an unprecedented 18 consecutive Championship Meet titles from 2004-2021.

Pletcher looks to remedy that Saturday by saddling a pair, 5-year-old Capture the Flag and 6-year-old multimillionaire Grand Sonata. Joseph Allen, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, Westerberg Limited and Jonathan Poulin’s Capture the Flag will be making his 11th start, seventh for Pletcher and first in a stakes in the Mac Diarmida.

Capture the Flag cuts back after finishing second as the favorite in an optional claiming allowance going 1 ½ miles on the all-weather Tapeta course Feb. 5. John Velazquez, up for that race, returns to ride from Post 3 in a full field of 12.

“He’s a horse that’s always shown promise,” Pletcher said. “We were excited about getting him stretched out last time. We were hoping to do that on the turf. He ended up running pretty well on synthetic, but we’re looking forward to getting him a start going three turns on the turf. [He’s a] big, strong horse and has got a long, galloping stride to him that usually suits these types of races well.”

Whisper Hill Farm homebred Grand Sonata takes a much different resume into the Mac Diarmida. He owns five wins, two in graded stakes, and $2.079 million in purse earnings from 26 starts. He has placed in four other graded-stakes and comes in having run eighth, beaten just four lengths, in the $1 million Pegasus World Cup Turf (G1) Jan. 25.

Overall Grand Sonata has two wins from five starts on the Gulfstream turf, also finishing fourth by 1 ½ lengths in the Pegasus Turf prep, the Dec. 28 Fort Lauderdale. Each of his last two races came at 1 1/8 miles.

“He didn’t disgrace himself at all last time. He put in a bit of a late run and we’re happy to get him stretched back out,” Pletcher said. “He’s put together a pretty strong resume, over $2 million in earnings and been just a consistent campaigner. We tried shortening him up a little in the Fort Lauderdale and the Pegasus Turf, but we feel like he’s better suited at a longer distance like we’re getting here.”

Irad Ortiz Jr. will be aboard Grand Sonata from Post 9.

Herecomesthebride (G3) Marks Stakes Debut for Grade A

Howling Pigeon Farms and High Schticking Thoroughbreds’ Grade A, a dominant maiden winner against Florida-breds last time out, faces open company for the first time in her stakes debut, the $215,000 Herecomesthebride (G3) for 3-year-old fillies going one mile on the Gulfstream Park turf course.

It will be the second straight try on grass for Grade A, whose sire, Army Mule, was undefeated in his only three starts, all on dirt, including the 2018 Carter (G1). Grade A will be making her fifth start of the Championship Meet, beginning her career on the main track in November before finishing second in back-to-back sprints on the all-weather Tapeta course.

“We started her out sprinting and she always breezed really good on the dirt. When we started I thought she was kind of a decent filly. We ran her on the dirt first time out and she kind of disappointed me so we switched her to the Tapeta. We sprinted her, and she ran a huge race first time,” trainer Jerry O’Dwyer said.

“I always felt she wanted to go long but because she ran so good first time I said we’ll give her another go sprinting. Again, she ran another good race,” he added. “It was time to stretch her out and we found an opportunity on the turf going the mile. She jumped out on the front end and just went around there and won fairly easy.”

Grade A set the pace along the rail in the Feb. 6 maiden special weight, drew off approaching the quarter pole and held clear while under a drive from Irish jockey David Egan, who has returned to Europe after winning 18 races and $707,450 in purse earnings at the Championship Meet.

“We’re taking a shot. She came out of her last race really well. She looks fantastic, so why not? She has experience. She has four races under her belt, so she’s hardened up now. We’ll see how it goes,” O’Dwyer said. “I do think she’s a nice filly and she stepped forward last time.

“We’re going to run her in the Herecomesthebride just because of how she came out of the race, and the timing,” he added. “I would have liked to go in an a-other-than Florida-bred, but it’s out there, it’s a Grade 3. There’s plenty of fillies in there, too, that have just broken their maiden. There are some nice ones in there that are multiple winners, as well.”