Soaring Empire, Tackleberry clash in Gulf Sprint Championship

Soaring Empire, Tackleberry clash in Gulf Sprint

Championship

Soaring Empire will attempt to conquer Gulfstream's Sprint Championship after taking the Hal's Hope (Guy Gustafson/Horsephotos.com) SOARING EMPIRE (Empire Maker) and TACKLEBERRY (Montbrook) have already generated headlines this season at Gulfstream Park and will seek to create more while turning back in distance for Saturday's $150,000 Gulfstream Park Sprint Championship (G2) over seven furlongs. Soaring Empire, who bested Rule (Roman Ruler) and Morning Line (Tiznow) in the one-mile Hal's Hope S. (G3) on the opening Saturday of the meeting, will use the Sprint Championship as a springboard to the March 12 Gulfstream Park H. (G2) over a mile. Trainer Cam Gambolati indicated after the Hal's Hope that Soaring Empire would be kept around one turn this season, with races like the Metropolitan H. (G1) and Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) likely on the colt's agenda. After experimenting around two turns last season, the four-year-old Soaring Empire is back to what he does best around a single bend. The dark bay's mark under such conditions is 6-4-0-1 and he'll be reunited with Jose Lezcano, who was aboard for the Hal's Hope, for the Sprint Championship. Tackleberry has won stakes in three of his past four starts. After a 5 1/4-length triumph in the six-furlong Jack Dudley Sprint H. in November, the gelding gutted out a win in the Fred W. Hooper H. (G3) by a nose. However, after bobbling at the start and chasing the pace, the Luis Olivares charge faded to fourth in the Hal's Hope. That only ensured a higher price for the January 29 Sunshine Millions Classic, a nine-furlong test that attracted some of the best Florida-breds in training.

Sent off at 27-1 in the field of nine, Tackleberry established an

easy, uncontested lead in the Classic. When challenged around the far

turn, Tackleberry held firm and turned back a challenge from Duke of

Mischief (Graeme Hall) in the stretch to win by 2 1/4 lengths. Though

Tackleberry returns in only two weeks, it's worth noting he won the Jack

Dudley off a one-week spell.

Trainer Marty Wolfson will saddle two in the Sprint Championship,

most notably COFFEE BOY (Yonaguska). A veteran of only five starts,

Coffee Boy has been sidelined since his one-length triumph in the July

10 Carry Back S. (G2) on Calder's Summit of Speed program. He captured

the local prep for that fixture, the Unbridled S., in his penultimate

start. GAUCHO (Ghostzapper), the other Wolfson entrant, makes his stakes

debut after passing his second allowance condition two back.

MANNINGTON (Delaware Township) has gone unplaced in three of four

outings since taking the Sunshine State S. versus Florida-breds over

this track and trip 11 months ago, while GUAM TYPHOON (Distorted Humor)

has been twice unplaced since running Musket Man to a half-length in

Tampa Bay Downs' Super S. 53 weeks ago. Though only sixth in the Hal's

Hope, CAIXA ELETRONICA (Arromanches) was sharp winning a one-mile

optional claimer in his latest and might present the biggest challenge

from the outsiders, a group that also includes the allowance-class MAD

FOR SMARTY (Smarty Jones).