Unchained Elaine Flaunts Experience in Any Limit

Neoequos Sizzles in Sunday Work for G1 Florida Derby
Mandatory Rainbow 6 Yields Multiple $28,442 Payouts
Championship Meet Resumes with Nine Races Wednesday

HALLANDALE BEACH, FL – Amy Dunne and Patrick Biancone Racing’s Unchained Elaine flaunted a wide edge in experience over her less seasoned rivals Sunday at Gulfstream Park while rolling to a two-length victory in the $115,000 Any Limit.

Making only her third start, Kamil Ozhan’s Rojo Rita, the even-money favorite in a field of seven 3-year-old fillies in the six-furlong stakes, withstood heavy pressure early but was unable to hold off Unchained Elaine, who was making her 10th career start.

Unchained Elaine ($9.80) was coming off a fourth-place finish in the Feb. 1 Forward Gal (G3), in which she was bumped early and blocked during the closing stages.

“The last time she ran very well. I didn’t have the greatest trip. Even though I broke very well I got bumped going through the chute and after that I couldn’t get her into a normal rhythm again and she was hesitating,” winning jockey Junior Alvarado said. “Today, I’ve been working her, so I knew what I was dealing with. I just had to trust her. We left the gate running and I put her in a good spot, let her catch her breath by the half-mile pole and when I started picking it up she was there for me the whole way.”

Unchained Elaine got the perfect set-up Sunday, saving ground in fourth off a hot pace set by Rojo Rita, who posted fractions of 21.62 and 44.75 seconds while under constant pressure from Hold Your Breath and Magnolia Prime. Unchained Elaine leveled off on the turn into the homestretch, where she was taken outside for the stretch drive. Rojo Rita shook off her early challengers but was no match for Unchained Elaine.

“Last time she got unlucky,” winning trainer and co-owner Patrick Biancone said. “She improved today. She’s a sprinter.”

The daughter of 2015 Triple Crown champion American Pharoah ran six furlongs in 1:10.96 while winning her first stakes. Rojo Rita, who finished off the board in the Forward Gal after winning her debut by 16 ¼ lengths, finished 6 ¾ lengths clear of stablemate R Morning Brew.

Unchained Elaine, who had run three times on turf without success, entered the Any Limit with two victories, one at seven furlongs and one at six furlongs on dirt.

“We’ve tried her on everything, but she’s much better on dirt,” Biancone said. “She’s really coming on.”

Neoequos Sizzles in Sunday Work for G1 Florida Derby

Ian Parsard, Shining Stables and Stefania Farms’ Neoequos, exiting a third to Sovereignty in the Coolmore Fountain of Youth (G2) March 1, returned to the work tab with a bullet five-furlong breeze Sunday at Gulfstream Park.

Trained by Championship Meet leader Saffie Joseph Jr., Neoequos went five furlongs in 58.90 seconds over the main track, fastest of 20 horses at the distance. He is being pointed to a return in the $1 million Curlin Florida Derby (G1) March 29, which offers Kentucky Derby (G1) qualifying points to the top five finishers on a 100-50-25-15-10 basis.

A bay son of multimillionaire Neolithic, twice Grade 1-placed including the inaugural $12 million Pegasus World Cup (G1) in 2017 at Gulfstream, Neoequos has raced exclusively over his home track with two wins, two seconds and a third in six starts. Last fall hee was runner-up in two legs of the Florida Sire Series for 2-year-olds, the Dr. Fager and Affirmed.

“He worked good. He worked in company, he took some dirt early and finished up well. He beat his workmate pretty handily,” Joseph said. “All things being well he’s going to run in the Florida Derby.”

Other horses working Sunday and under consideration for the Florida Derby were Cool Intentions, five furlongs in 1:02.45 at Palm Meadows, Gulfstream’s satellite training facility in Palm Beach County; Smoken Boy, a half-mile in 48.06 seconds at Gulfstream, ranking fourth of 59 horses; and Rebel (G2) runner-up Madaket Road, four furlongs in a bullet 46.40 seconds at Santa Anita, fastest of 81 horses.

Also working Sunday at Gulfstream was White Abarrio, five furlongs in 1:00.20, ranking third of 20 horses. The four-time Grade 1-winning millionaire, who captured the Jan. 25 Pegasus World Cup last out, is being pointed to the $150,000 Ghostzapper (G3) on the Florida Derby undercard.

“He went well. He sat off his workmate and went on strong in his gallop out. It was a good work,” Joseph said. “It was a good work, so he’s going to the Ghostzapper in good order.”

Mandatory Rainbow 6 Yields Multiple $28,442 Payouts

A mandatory payout of the 20-cent Rainbow 6 jackpot pool yielded multiple payoffs of $28,442 Sunday at Gulfstream Park.

It was the second racing day since the popular multi-race wager was solved for a life-changing $298,604.24 payout March 13.

Stay Classy ($12.60) captured the Race 10 finale Sunday to complete the winning 2-6-5-6-3-4 combination. A total of $1,393,409 was wagered into the Rainbow 6 on top of an $80,017.29 carryover from Saturday’s program.

Other winners in the sequence were Dry Powder ($6.60) in Race 5, O Captain ($12) in Race 6, Down the Islands ($23.20) in Race 7, Smart Spending ($15.60) in Race 8 and Unchained Elaine ($9.80) in Race 9, the $115,000 Any Limit.

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.

However, on mandatory payout days the entire Rainbow 6 jackpot pool is paid out to the bettor or bettors with the most winners in the six-race sequence. There have been five mandatory payouts at the 2024-2025 Championship Meet dating back to Jan. 5.

The Rainbow 6 begins anew when live racing resumes Wednesday starting at 12:50 p.m. The sequence spans Races 4-9 and includes featured Race 7, a $94,000 maiden special weight for 3-year-olds and up sprinting seven furlongs on the main track. Prominent in the field of seven is Sansone, a $1.35 million yearling son of Uncle Mo trained by Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey that is unraced since finishing last of nine in debut last summer at Saratoga.

Who’s Hot: Jockey Luis Saez rode back-to-back winners Sunday, Shred the Gnar ($2.80) in Race 3 and Fulanito ($6.60) in Race 4.