Incanto. (Lauren King)
A.P. Kid Goes Dirt to Turf to Graduate in Saturday Finale
Sunday’s Rainbow 6 Jackpot Pool Estimated at $125,000
Gulfstream Today
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – David Bernsen LLC and Leon King Stable Corp.’s Incanto rallied from far back to save the day for trainer Jose D’Angelo while eking out a 9-1 victory in Saturday’s $115,000 Texas Glitter at Gulfstream Park.
D’Angelo-trained Gabaldon was more highly regarded at 2-1 in the five-furlong turf dash for 3-year-olds on the strength of his impressive second-place finish in the Windsor Castle Stakes at Royal Ascot last June. Making his first start since falling just a length short in England, Soldi Stable LLC and Qatar Racing LLC’s Gabaldon showed impressive early speed while setting fast fractions Saturday but would give way to 3-2 favorite No Evidence in mid-stretch.
Incanto, who bumped with a rival out of the starting gate, suddenly appeared on the outside with a late surge under Jorge Ruiz to put D’Angelo in the winner’s circle following his neck decision over No Evidence. Gabaldon finished a length back in third.
“I wanted to win with both of my horses. When I enter a horse in a race, I want to have a winner. I knew both of my horses would be tough,” D’Angelo said. “But Gabaldon brought me for the first time to Royal Ascot and almost make a magic moment over there. It was like a dream. I pray that Gabaldon comes back good and goes on to better races”
Incanto ran five furlongs on a firm course in 55.16 seconds while picking up his second win from three starts and his first stakes victory since joining D’Angelo’s stable.
“Incanto got the best of it, because he got the perfect pace for him,” D’Angelo said.
Gabaldon set fractions of 21.64 and 43.73 seconds for the first half-mile of the Texas Glitter, setting up the late heroics of his stablemate.
“The horse broke good, but there was a lot of speed in the race and my horse likes to close,” Ruiz said. “I waited to the three-eighths pole but there was no room, and when I took him outside and he saw the clear, he exploded, and he ran hard to win the race. It was close but I could tell he won.”
A.P. Kid Goes Dirt to Turf to Graduate in Sunday Finale
Donegal Racing’s 3-year-old colt A.P. Kid, making his second career start, forged a short lead midway around the far turn and opened up down the stretch to graduate in Saturday’s Race 11 finale at Gulfstream Park.
Ridden by Emisael Jaramillo for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher, Triple Crown-nominated A.P. Kid ($7.60) completed 1 1/16 miles over a firm turf course in 1:39.42.
Unlike his debut, when he set the pace before tiring to sixth in his unveiling going one mile on the dirt Feb. 15 at Gulfstream, A.P. Kid rated in second as Hope’s Alive took the early initiative through splits of 22.50 and 45.89 seconds. A.P. Kid, a $275,000 yearling, maintained his clear course on the outside coming into the stretch and continued on strongly to the wire.
St. Elias Stable and ARM Racing’s Joyful Lass took the lead once straightened for home and dug in late to pull off a 25-1 upset in Race 9, an optional claiming allowance for older fillies and mares. Fifth in a similar spot Feb. 22, her first race in nearly a year, 4-year-old Joyful Lass ($52.20) covered the distance in 1:38.93 over a firm course.
Sunday’s Rainbow 6 Jackpot Pool Estimated at $125,000
The 20-cent Rainbow 6 will have an estimated jackpot pool of $125,000 when live racing resumes Sunday at Gulfstream Park.
Post time for the first of 10 races is 12:50 p.m.
Sunday’s sequence spans Races 5-10 and is highlighted by the 10th running of the $115,000 Melody of Colors for 3-year-old fillies sprinting five furlongs on the grass in Race 8. Stakes winner Me Governor is the narrow 7-2 program favorite in her 2025 debut against nine rivals including the pair of Grade 3 winner Abientot and stakes-placed Dare to Breeze from Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse.
Race 5 is an optional claiming allowance for older horses going five furlongs on the turf led by Cruzin Man, beaten a neck when second last out at the course and distance Feb. 22; and Chess Master, unraced since a runner-up finish last August at Saratoga. Starship Melody goes for her second straight win in Race 9, a one-mile, 70-yard Florida-bred allowance for 3-year-old fillies on the all-weather Tapeta course.
The sequence wraps up with a maiden special weight for 3-year-olds and up scheduled for 7 ½ furlongs on the grass that drew an overflow field of 13 including Repole Stable’s French-bred Battle Drum, beaten a head when second in a similar spot going one mile Feb. 8. Beach Gold also cuts back after running second by a neck going 1 1/16 miles Feb. 23.
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.
The Rainbow 6 has been solved 10 times during the 2024-2025 Championship Meet, eight times in the new year and five of those mandatory payouts. It was most recently hit for a $121,198.50 payout March 21, and has a final mandatory payout scheduled for closing day, Marach 30.
Sunday’s second race, a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight on the turf for 3-year-old fillies, drew a full field including Serendipity, a $250,000 daughter of Street Sense making her debut for trainer Brad Cox; Unlimited Spending, a daughter of the Grade 2-winning dam Unlimited Budget trained by Hall of Famer Todd Pletcher who finished fifth in her debut; and Sassari, out of the graded stakes-placed dam Cherry Lodge. Princess Attitude, a $400,000 daughter of Frankel, is the first of three also-eligibles.
Who’s Hot ~ ~ ~
Jockey Renzo Rojas and trainer Ken McPeek combined for a pair of winners Saturday with Warrior Wayne ($38.40) in Race 2 and United Forever ($3.60) in Race 4 …
Junior Alvarado visited the winner’s circle twice, aboard Vino Frizzante ($3.80) in Race 1 and Runnin’ Rocket ($4) in Race 10 …
Jorge Ruiz also doubled, on Incanto ($21) in the $115,000 Texas Glitter and Joyful Lass ($52.20) in Race 9 …
Both Joyful Lass and Bel Pensiero ($6.80) in Race 5 are trained by Anthony Margotta.
