OLDSMAR, Fla. ( February 10, 2007 ) D’aragnan’sspirit captured the seventeenth renewal of the $75,000 Super Stakes today, beating twelve competitors in front of a crowd of 4,805. Wegelia and Above the Wind finished second and third, respectively. D’aragnan’sspirit, trained by Kirk Zaidie and jointly owned by Richard Averill and Stephen White, was ridden to victory today by jockey Jose Lezcano. This is Lezcano’s first stakes win at Tampa Bay Downs for the season. “I work with the horse every day” said Lezcano. “He was feeling really good today, and Kirk (D’aragnan’sspirit’s trainer) did a good job with the horse.”
Conditioner Kirk Zaidie said, “It was a different race from The Pelican. He went extremely wide that day. Today he had an extra furlong, so that helped. Jose rode a beautiful race. He saved ground and got through on the rail. I’ve got to give him the credit; I think he (Lezcano) won the race.” Zaidie added that D’aragnan’sspirit’s future plans include Tampa Bay Downs. “We’ll stick around and see what comes up. We’ll definitely run him back.”
D’aragnan’sspirit’s owner Richard Averill said he wasn’t fully sure his horse would win. “I knew the race really set up for us since there was so much speed. I knew it was a tough race, but if we got the trip, we’d be ok. I was confident- but I didn’t bet!” Averill added that he hopes to run D’aragnan’sspirit on Florida Cup Day on April 7.
The Super Stakes was the first half of reinsman Jose Lezcano’s late Daily Double sweep, which returned $24.20 for a $2 wager. Lezcano piloted Our Ryan’s Xpress, who is from the stable of Hall of Fame trainer Nicholas P. Zito and owned by Robert LaPenta, to victory in the day’s closer.
Finish Lines… Jockey of the Month Carlos Montalvo rode three winners home today. His first victory came in the second race aboard Spring Hall, a bay gelding owned by John Carlesimo and trained by Gerald Bennett. The fifth race brought Montalvo his next win with Deep Quest, a Florida-bred owned by Hickin Farms LLC and Frank W. Bemis and trained by Judi A. Hicklin. Montalvo scored back-to-back victories in the sixth race to round out his hat trick. Montalvo piloted the Anthony Granitz-trained Si Si Mon Amie home first. The three-year-old daughter of El Corredor, who is owned by John Loven and James Carfagno, scored her first win in her racing debut.
Live racing and poker continue on tomorrow, February 11,2007 . Post time is 12:25 PM , with gates opening at 11:00 AM . The Silks Card Room will open at 12:00 PM and close at 12:00 AM .