A couple of races for runners bred in the Sunshine State, together with the opening day feature from Churchill Downs, and a Black Type contest at Oaklawn Park, make up a fascinating foursome of punting puzzles today.
Gulfstream Park 10
FTHBPA Sprint Stakes – Florida bred Fillies and mares 4 year olds and upwards – Six and a half furlongs – Dirt
Damon’s Mound (8) won a G3 at Aqueduct at the beginning of October, with Hurricane Nelson (3) finishing 7th of the eight runners, 6¾ lengths behind. Then, after a break of eleven weeks, the victor pitched up here to add a score in a Florida bred Stake in the middle of January, a race he also won in 2025. Going six furlongs, he led all the way to take that by 2½ lengths, with Nothingsubtle (4) a neck further back in 3rd, followed by Neshume (7) in 5th, another 8 lengths adrift. Damons’s Mound (8) tackled open company over the same strip and trip the following month, finishing 3 lengths 2nd after missing the break. Back against local lads in one of these at Tampa Bay at the end of last month, again over six furlongs, he battled to a ½ a length victory after duelling on a hot pace. Flood Zone (6) kept on to finish 3rd, another 1½ lengths behind, but a head in front of the closing Classic of Course (1) in 4th, with Nothingsubtle (4) another 2¼ lengths back, 5th of the six runners.
Classic of Course (1) is a decent sort over further in this sort of grade and the extra 110 yards here may help him get closer today. However, that victory took Damon’s Mound (8) past the $1million barrier in earnings and it would be no surprise to see the winner’s share of the purse here enhance his bank balance further.
Selection: Damon’s Mound (8)
Churchill Downs 9
Roxelana Stakes (Listed) – Fillies and mares 4 year olds – Six furlongs – Dirt
One Magic Philly (1) finished on the board in five of her six starts last year, with her only victory coming over six and a half furlongs in a third level Allowance Optional Claimer at Keeneland in the middle of October. That was her fourth win overall, with all four coming at that stretched sprint trip. The following month she finished 2¾ lengths 2nd in a G3 here, when stepped up to a mile. She has only gone this short twice, finishing 2nd on debut at Santa Anita in June 2024, then 3rd in a Listed Stake at Pimlico in the middle of May last year, when she was 2 lengths behind the winner Zeitlos (6).
Zeitlos (6) contested stronger races in her six starts after that, including the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint G1. Her best run in that sequence came in her prep for the big one, over this trip in the TCA Stakes G2 at Keeneland, where she finished 2¼ lengths 3rd, after getting steadied early. Her return run at the end of last month saw her finish 4th in a similar contest to this at Oaklawn Park, when she flattened out late. I think that may have set her up nicely for today.
Mink’s Palace (3) won this in 2025 and added another score on her final start last year, when taking a Black Type Stake at Turfway Park in December. She has been away for four months since that win but that was the pattern last year, before she annexed this contest. In between those wins, she finished behind Jersey Pearl (2), Zeitlos (6) and Asternia (8) in three of her races, but with four of her five wins coming over this course and distance, she cannot be ruled out.
Selection: Zeitlos (6)
Gulfstream Park 11
FTHBPA Fillies and mares Turf Stakes – Florida bred Fillies and mares 4 year olds and upwards – One mile – Turf
In early January, Souper Zonda (9) won a Florida bred Stake over this course and distance, taking that by ½ a length, with a closing Ashima (1), who won the 2025 running of that race, 3 lengths back in 3rd. Miss Mary Nell (7) was 1¾ lengths further behind in 7th. On her next start, seven weeks later, Souper Zonda (9) was given a go in a G3 over the same course and distance. she finished at the tail there, after a rough trip.
Souper Zonda (9) regrouped and, at the end of March, she was sent off at 6-4 for one of these going, eight and a half furlongs at Tampa Bay Downs. Pressing the pace set by longshot Lets Go Koko (2), they had a right tussle but Souper Zonda (9) got on top in the closing stages to win by ½ a length from her determined rival. Dreaming of Abba (4) was 2 lengths further back in 4th, with Notable Exchange (6), Charlie’s Wish (3) and Miss Mary Nell (7) filling the last three places in the eight runner field.
Although Souper Zonda (9) clearly has a lot going for her, I am drawn to Ashima (1) here. She got well back when the pair met in January and probably did well to get as close as she did. I think she may do better today in a grade where she is a class fit, with a stalking trip a bonus.
Selection: Ashima (1)
Oaklawn Park 10
Dig A Diamond Sakes (Black Type) – Fillies and mares 4 year olds and upwards – One mile – Dirt
Standout Sensation (1) may be a bit overblown to describe this mare, but five wins and three 2nd placings last year, mean she deserves a little hyperbole. It was certainly a marked improvement on 2025, when she finished 2nd in half of her ten races, without securing a single victory. However, it all fell into place last year, as she worked her way through three Allowance grades, before picking up Listed Stake at Aqueduct at the beginning of November. She added another on Boxing Day here, before finishing ½ a length 2nd in a G3 at Sam Houston in Texas. An attempt at the Azeri G2, back here in early March, looked optimistic but she was not disgraced in a very strong field, finishing 4th beaten 6¼ lengths. There are no distaffers of the calibre of the three who finished ahead of her there in this field.
Runamileinmyshoes (7) has had twenty-one races but only four of them have been run on dirt. However, she has won all of them. She was claimed out of her last turf start, which made it three consecutive races where she had attracted a buyer’s interest. That was just before the turn of the year, when she finished 1¾ lengths 5th in an Allowance Optional Claimer for California breds, going a mile at Santa Anita. Now with Peter Miller, she has won both her starts this year, starting with a victory in that same grade, going a mile on the main track there in early February. A month later, over 110 yards further, she won a second level Allowance Optional Claimer here, running without a tag. Leading all the way, she took both those comfortably, when allowed to dominate and set her own pace.
The battle between the two front enders on either flank of starting gate looks fascinating and if they do get involved in a speed war, there is a chance that the unexposed Pronghorn (5) could benefit. However, in a battle of the sluggers. I am going with the mare that I think will emerge as the speed of the speed here, Standout Sensation (1)
Selection: Standout Sensation (1)
