As a racehorse, Amethyst was virtually unbeatable against Florida-bred competition and the divisional champion at both two and three years old. As a mare, she proved her worth outside of Florida winning the Damsel Series at Woodbine Racetrack
as a four-year-old while setting her lifetime mark of 1:51.4 and earning more than $200,000.
Just three years later, she is already the proud mom of a stakes winning freshman.
Saturday night at the Isle of Capri at Pompano Park, Diamond Howard, the two-year-old gelded son of Mannart Howard, out of the Miami Mogul mare Amethyst, took the first step toward the $100,000 championship bonus as he held off half-brother Red Hot Howard to capture the $12,000 final of the Sunshine State Stakes for freshman colts and geldings.
Both freshman pacers are trained by Michele Lorenzo and owned by her husband Rod. Diamond Howard is also owned by longtime Lorenzo partner Souren Hovsepian while Red Hot Howard is owned by Michele.
“I told Bruce [Ranger] before the race, I thought he had the better horse [Red Hot Howard] and he actually raced the better of the two. But Wally [Walter Ross, Jr.] got great early position and got the much better trip.”
The margin of victory between the half-brothers was just a length with Cracker Pullet a half-length back in third.
“He does not know how fast he really is,” Wally Ross, Jr. said after the race. “When you ask him to go, he goes into another gear. We got a great trip and he made the beast of it.”
Just 20 minutes later, an older brother of the pair of two-year-olds continued his dominance of the sophomore class.
Storming Howard, the three-year-old gelded son of Mannart Howard out of the Walton Hanover mare Keriann Hanover, scored his eighth victory and fifth in a row in 2009 with a convincing three and a quarter length win with a 1:53.2 new lifetime mark as he captured the $12,000 Sunshine State Stakes for three-year-olds.
“He has filled out and gotten a bit bigger,” Rod Lorenzo said. “Right now he is on cruise control.”
Another son of the hot sire Famously took a step toward the $100,000 bonus earlier on the card.
Be Famous, a two-year-old colt by Famously, out of the Malabar Man mare Celebrity Descent, scored an impressive victory in the $12,000 two-year-old colt and gelding trot. Ill Muscle Yall was second while Ron Stoppable was third.
Be Famous’ half-sister, Pocohontas Fame, won the freshman filly trot final Friday night. Both are owned by Amante Standardbreds.
In the $12,000 Sunshine State Stakes sophomore colt and gelding trot, trainer Linda Kakaley and Sophia Valkanoff’s Whosgoinwhosstayin won his 19th race in 26 life starts with a 1:58.2 easy win despite making a break at the gate.
Dead Heat Night In South Florida
With the photo finish camera already working overtime due to a succession of close finishes, the very rare situation of a pair of win dead heats played out on the Saturday evening, October 3 program at The Isle Pompano Park.
Under another postcard calm setting with a fast track and temperature of 82 degrees, the tone for the evening was set early as East Coast Girl with Wally Hennessey and Stoke driven by Walt Ross, Jr. were inseparable at the wire in the third race in 1:56.3. East Coast Girl, a three-year-old Totally Western-Goldstar Valentine filly is trained and owned by Dan Hennessey. Stoke is a three-year-old House Of Fun-Financiere Stena colt co-owned and trained by Jean Beaulieu. An ownership share on Stoke is held by Harvey Weiner of Quebec.
Wally Hennessey and his training brother Dan were also involved in the card’s other win deadheat in the eighth race with Seeyall Later. The eight-year-old Northern Luck-Seeyall gelding was leading into the stretch when Andy Santeramo brought Doctor Gates out of the pocket for a thrilling stretch long duel. The photo finish camera couldn’t separate this pair either as they stopped the clock together in 1:54. Seeyall Later is owned by Vince Deni of Hillsboro Beach, Florida while Doctor Gates, a nine year old Island Fantasy-Brunette Bay gelding is owned and trained by Joe Gravagna of Parkland, Florida.
They’ve Tripled Up
Object Of Art made it three straight in The Isle Pompano Park’s top class on Saturday night as he romped home in 1:51.4 in the $13,000 Open Pace. It was the fastest mile of the Fall Meet to date in South Florida. Trainer-driver Ray Vizzi landed third in the early stages from the assigned outside eight post and quarter pole moved to the lead. From there it was all over as Object Of Art began to pull away on the final turn after passing three-quarters in 1:24. Cape Karuna closed next best for second in rein to Fern Paquet, Jr. with Power Park and Walt Ross, Jr. up for third. Object Of Art is a six-year-old Camluck-Artful Angel gelding campaigning for the New Jenneration Corporation of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
The other undefeated performer after three starts in the new meet is Mighty Midas. The Blissful Hall-Betterthanmidas seven-year-old gelding sat in the pocket all the way until the closing strides in the Open-2 Pace and was then angled out by Andy Santeramo to take a close decision in 1:52.3 over the pacemaking Touch Of Steel with Bruce Ranger up. Eleven A M, a new ship-in from Tioga Downs for the Paul Bernardo outfit, closed for third. Mighty Midas is trained by Donna Richardson for owner Marie Erenstoft of Margate, Florida.
(Florida Harness Racing & Pompano Park)