GULFSTREAM Tequilita at favorite venue for Royal Delta

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Breeding season dovetails with the Gulfstream Park championship meet, which partly explains why plans for Tequilita are fluid. The 5-yearold mare has fared particularly well at Gulfstream, leading trainer Michael Matz to make out her schedule in pencil, not ink.

Matz said Tequilita will run Saturday in the Grade 3, $150,000 Royal Delta at Gulfstream and then March 16 in the Inside Information.

“After that, whether or not we go any further depends on how she does in those two races,” he said.

Tequilita is the pride and joy of Matz’s wife, Dorothy Matz, who bred and owns the daughter of Union Rags. From three starts at Gulfstream, Tequilita has a win in the Forward Gal, a second in the Gulfstream Oaks, and, most recently, a win in the Grade 3 Rampart in December. In all, the mare shows five wins, four seconds, and earnings of $666,100 from 19 starts.

“She seems to like Gulfstream so much that we’ve had these two races in mind for quite some time,” said Matz. “She’s booked to Street Sense, so, yes, she’ll be retiring soon, but we’d love to make her a Grade 1 winner if possible.”

Toward that end, the Grade 1 Humana Distaff on the May 4 Kentucky Derby card would be her swan song, “but only if she tells us we should try that,” said Matz.

Tequilita, with John Velazquez to ride, is one of about seven fillies and mares expected for the one-mile Royal Delta. She figures to vie for favoritism with Blamed, who will be looking to rebound off a subpar effort in the Hurricane Bertie on the Jan. 26 Pegasus card.

The Royal Delta is named for the three-time Eclipse Award champion who died at age 9 on Feb. 10, 2017, from foaling complications. It’s the lone graded event here this coming weekend.

The next major date at Gulfstream is March 2, when the Fountain of Youth will be one of nine stakes.

Kentucky Wildcat has surgery

Kentucky Wildcat, the promising colt who was vanned off following a runner-up finish last Saturday in the Sam F. Davis Stakes at Tampa Bay Downs, underwent surgery Monday in Ocala, Fla., to repair a condylar fracture to his right foreleg, according to Jimmy Bell, president of U.S. operations for Godolphin, the colt’s owner-breeder.

Bell said Wednesday that Kentucky Wildcat will be shipped to Kentucky “in due course for rehabilitation and further assessment” and declined to provide further detail. It remains to be seen when or if the 3-yearold Tapit colt will be able to resume his racing career.

Based recently at the Palm Meadows training center with trainer Tom Albertrani, Kentucky Wildcat was the 5-2 second choice when he finished second behind Well Defined in the Davis. In his previous start, a Dec. 1 maiden race at Aqueduct, he won by a half-length over the highly regarded Country House, who runs Saturday in the Risen Star at Fair Grounds.

Kentucky Wildcat is the first foal to race from his 10-yearold dam, Better Lucky, a twotime Grade 1 winner and $1.2 million earner for Godolphin and Albertrani.

Maragh starts his rehab

Romero Maragh was scheduled to begin rehabilitation therapy Wednesday as the 18-year-old apprentice rider continues to recover from thoracic fusion surgery made necessary by a Jan. 31 spill at Gulfstream.

Maragh posted this week on his Twitter account that “everything has come along nicely” since he was released from Aventura Hospital nearly a week after his Feb. 1 surgery. Hundreds of friends, fans, and riding colleagues have contributed to an outpouring of heartfelt support for Maragh in the aftermath of the incident.

Meanwhile, Carlos Montalvo, who was injured in the same spill, is expected back in about a month after badly spraining his thumbs and breaking a bone in his foot.

Jockey Paco Lopez was suspended 30 days for his role in the incident and will be eligible to return in mid-March. He most recently rode Feb. 3.

Ortiz with open window

When Luis Saez rode here Sunday for the last time in a while, his name was still atop the jockey standings at the championship meet. But when he returns, there could very well be a new leader: Irad Ortiz Jr., the reigning Eclipse Awardwinning rider.

Into Wednesday, when Saez began serving two suspensions for recent riding infractions for a total of 10 days, Saez led Ortiz, 84-71. Moreover, Saez will be away at least one additional date because he will be riding Saturday at Fair Grounds in accordance with a Florida exemption that permits a suspended jockey to fulfill stakes engagements during a suspension.

◗ With racing to be held here Monday because of Presidents Day, there will be only one dark day (Feb. 19) at Gulfstream during a 12-day stretch ending Feb. 24.