Race of the Week: No. 8 at Gulfstream Park on March 2
by Bodog Racebook | Mar 1 2011
Gulfstream Park will host Bodog's Race of the Week on March 2. It is Race No. 8, a claiming race for turf-running 3-year-olds with a purse of $31,000. Gospel Lesson, And I Like It Too and Itouch are the top contenders for this 1 mile race.
The morning line favorite at 5-2 odds is Gospel Lesson, a Kentucky-bred 3-year-old trained by Bill Mott for WinStar Farm. Gospel Lesson began his career as a 2-year-old at Saratoga Racecourse on Aug. 7, needing four tries to break his maiden; he was finally victorious at Churchill Downs on Oct. 31 with a consistent pace-setting victory. Kent Desormeaux was aboard this son of Pulpit for the victory and will again be in the irons for Wednesday’s race. Gospel Lesson has two races under his belt in 2011: an allowance race at Gulfstream Park on Jan. 23 that resulted in a seventh-place finish and an overnight stakes race at Tampa Bay Downs on Feb. 5 that ended in a fourth-place result. His career record currently stands at 6-1-0-0 with earnings of $35,489.
At 3-1 odds is And I Like It Too, a Florida-bred son of Mr. Livingston. Trained by William Kaplan for Ione and Herbert Elkins, And I Like It Too raced exclusively at Calder Racecourse in 2010, where he started nine times; he was victorious just once, breaking his maiden at Calder on Aug. 28 with a late rally. He began his 2011 campaign at Calder in the Tropical Park Derby on Jan. 1 but finished seventh; in his latest outing, an allowance race at Gulfstream Park, he finished sixth but ahead of Gospel Lesson. Juan Leyva will be aboard on Wednesday, looking to improve his mount’s career earnings of $43,955 from 11 starts and his record of 1-0-3.
At 5-1 odds is Itouch, an Edward Plesa, Jr., trainee. This lightly raced son of Dixie Union needed just two tries to break his maiden in 2010, doing so at Calder Racecourse on Nov. 19; he faded in his next outing, an allowance race at 1 1/16 miles on Dec. 10. Two subsequent races at 1 1/16 miles in 2011 also ended in defeat; Itouch will be back at 1 mile for Wednesday’s race and ridden by Elvis Trujillo. Itouch has earned $22,740 from five career starts for owner Vincent Rizzuto, Jr., and has a record of 1-0-2.
Andysun, Easy Over, Lesson Learned, Mr. Mojito, Brecon, Score One For Rose, Just for Frank and Halo Brave have also been entered.
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