Saturday, January 19, 2019
Live Oak Plantation's flashy homebred 3-year-old colt Win Win Win turned in a dynamic performance in Saturday's $125,000 Pasco S. at Tampa Bay Downs, drawing off to score by 7 1/4-lengths in 1:20.89 for the seven furlongs, breaking the track record by nearly a half-second (
VIDEO).
The nearly black colt has now won three of four starts for his connections, with earnings of $127,300. Win Win Win is out of Miss Smarty Pants, who unfortunately passed away in 2017. She was a half-sister to graded stakes winner Unbridled Humor and is from the same family as Grade 1 winner Ops Smile.
Away last in the field of five sophomores, Win Win Win was unhurried for the backstretch run, giving pacesetter Gladiator King some eight lengths in the first quarter mile. Midway around the turn, Julian Pimentel took Win Win Win four-wide, sweeping to the lead entering the stretch, then drawing away at will to score the triumphant victory.
“I didn’t panic (at the start) because he did the same thing last time,” Pimentel said of Win Win Win’s awkward start in a runner-up effort in the Heft Stakes at Laurel on Dec. 29. “He’s very quick, so I just took my time and let him do his thing.”
Trained by Michael Trombetta, Win Win Win's performance could put the colt on the Triple Crown trail, and depending on his schedule, he could run over the Tampa surface again in the Feb. 9 Sam F. Davis S. (G3) or wait for the March 9 Tampa Bay Derby (G2).