tampa bay downs

Kaleem Shah Inc.’s Closer Look ($6.80), favored at 2-1 in a field of 12, cruised to a 4 ¾-length triumph in Race 7 Saturday to give journeyman Feargal Lynch his first win since returning to the Maryland circuit with Friday’s opening of the 43-day summer meet at Laurel. Lynch, a two-time meet titlist in Maryland […]

From a distance, English Secret looks like any other horse on the track, but a few steps closer reveals a definite disfigurement. The now four-year-old Indiana bred son of English Channel suffered severe frostbite as a baby, but has not let that stop him from achieving his path to the racetrack. Owned by breeder Ken […]

Ronnie Allen, Jr., believes his experience and physical condition, honed during more than three decades of race-riding, will help him continue to win races for the next several years. “I feel good. I feel strong,” said Allen, who turned 55 on April 24. “If I get the mounts, I’ll be OK. The older guys (a […]

Veteran runner and fan favorite El Grande Rojo (Bowman’s Band – Theheartofdixie, by Crafty Prospector) has been retired from racing by his owners, Neil and Laura Barrish, and donated to Thoroughbred Retirement of Tampa (TROT) to be retrained and adopted out. He arrived at the facility on Easter morning, which was also his 11th birthday […]

A coalition of leading Thoroughbred racing associations and organizations announced today a new horse racing initiative committed to phasing out the use of the medication Furosemide (Lasix) beginning in 2020 and eliminating the use of Lasix in stakes races held at their racetracks beginning in 2021.  Coalition racetracks that have signed on to this initiative […]

His mahogany-hued coat glistening in the bright sunshine, the still-sturdy Thoroughbred broke into a light jog as owner-trainer John Pimental attempted to pose him for a picture. “He still has it in him,” Pimental murmured, breaking into a grin at the 34-year-old pensioner’s willingness to strut his stuff for visitors. In about three weeks, the […]

By mid-afternoon Monday, less than 24 hours after winning Sunday’s seventh race with his 6-year-old Florida-bred mare, Imperial Sea, Kent Sweezey was on the road to Lexington, Ky., looking to add key pieces to his barn from the offerings at the Keeneland April Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training and Horses of Racing Age. Traveling long […]

Tyler Rotstein was trying to keep his emotions under control after his 4-year-old gelding Togie won Saturday’s fifth race at Tampa Bay Downs, the 23-year-old trainer’s first career victory in only three tries. “It’s probably the most thrilling experience I’ve had in a long, long time,” said Rotstein, a former strong safety-linebacker for the Bluffton […]

Tampa Bay Downs jockey Raul Mena was 19 when his mount failed to negotiate the turn in a race at Valparaiso Sporting Club in Chile, throwing him to the ground like a rag doll and placing his budding career in jeopardy. Mena spent the next six weeks in a comatose state, while doctors and family […]

Today’s sixth race at Tampa Bay Downs in Oldsmar, Fla., was declared a “no-contest” after 3-year-old filly Crystaleigh stumbled and fell shortly after the start, throwing jockey Jorge Urdaneta to the turf. Urdaneta, a 37-year-old rider from Venezuela, was transported from the racetrack to Mease Countryside Hospital in nearby Safety Harbor and remained under observation […]