Tutto Bene translates to “everything’s okay” in English, and that’s exactly how Jessie Pacheco feels about his pacing colt by that name going into this week’s first round of California Sire Stakes for the three-year-olds on Friday, Feb. 21 at Cal Expo.

A homebred son of Karpathian Kid out of Drink Me Pretty who carries the banner of Ronald Rettig-Zucchi, Tutto Bene won three of his 12 starts last year, including a 1:57 career-best tour over the five-eighths-mile Running Aces oval.

Following a pair of qualifiers at Cal Expo in recent weeks, he showed good speed in his seasonal debut last week and is now nice and tight for this richer assignment.

“He’s a stud, but for the most part he’s pretty gentle,” said Pacheco. “He was a quick learner and has a very good attitude. He does whatever you ask him.

“I broke him and then my dad had him in Minnesota last year. He raced against the best two-year-olds there and did pretty well.”

Pacheco noted that it was the plan all along to get a couple of qualifiers into Tutto Bene and then a race before diving into the stakes schedule at this meet.

“I wasn’t thinking about leaving with him last week, but nobody was going and I let him roll. He got a real nice tightener from that mile and I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do in these stakes races.”

Pancheco will drive Tutto Bene from post seven in the first California Sire Stakes of the season for the three-year-old male pacers, which is the main attraction on Friday night at Cal Expo with a field of eight lining up for the $20,000 USD contest.

The Minnesota Kid looms a major player in the Sire Stakes when the son of Karpathian Kid-Docdor Libby makes his seasonal debut for trainer Jose Castillo and owner Stephanie Longo, with Luke Plano listed to drive the 2-1 morning line favourite from post two.

He showed plenty of potential last summer at Running Aces, winning three of his five starts including a dead heat with Tutto Bene, and has a couple of solid qualifiers under his belt to prepare for this assignment.

Blazin For Life is another who displayed promise as a two-year-old in Minnesota and scored a solid victory over this course two weeks ago for trainer Nick Roland and owners Alan and Cheryl Sandbulte.

That barn will also be represented by Set The Pacing Racing's JK Cache Meoutside, who just missed a maiden win in his local debut last week to another major player in Dougs Moonshine -- that one goes about his business for trainer Rick Bertrand and his co-owners Doug Flores and Amy Fichtner.

Completing the field are Night Train Lane, Yerderntootin and Aint No Uppy Man.

Watch and Wager LLC will present 10 races on Friday night with first post set for 6:45 p.m. The co-features are an Open Handicap Pace headed by Alilthundadownunda and a Filly & Mare Open Handicap Pace featuring Graceful Horizon. 

(With files from Cal Expo)