Pletcher duo back on familiar turf in Tropical Park Oaks

Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher will be represented in Saturday’s $125,000 Tropical Park Oaks by a pair of fillies who will be back on familiar footing on Gulfstream Park’s turf course.

Cairo Consort was a multiple-stakes winner last season at Gulfstream Park after being purchased by Repole Stable and Town and Country Racing LLC for $875,000 at the 2022 Keeneland November sale. Grade 1 stakes-placed in the Natalma at Woodbine and in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf for her former owners, Cairo Consort won at first asking in mile Ginger Brew Jan. 7. The daughter of Cairo Prince came right back to win the 1 1/16-mile Sweetest Chant (G3) Feb. 4 with an impressive stretch rally that followed a terrible start.

“She seemed to do well at Gulfstream. She had one really remarkable race in the Sweetest Chant where she threw her head at the start and seemed like she blew any chance of being successful at that stage,” Pletcher said. “She made a remarkable run to get up to win.”

Cairo Consort ran out of ground in the March 4 Herecomesthebride (G3) at Gulfstream, in which she was beaten by a head by next-out stakes winners Danse Macabre and Papilio. The gray Kentucky-bred filly went on to finish second, a neck behind Papilio in the Appalachian (G2) at Keeneland before finishing off the board in the Edgewood (F2) at Churchill Downs on the Kentucky Derby (G1) undercard.

“She really ran well four of five times. She didn’t seem to fire in the Edgewood. We decided to give her a break at that point with the idea that we’d have her ready for Gulfstream where she seemed to like it,” Pletcher said. “She looks good. She’s filled out a bit. She’s grown up. She’s been training well. We’d expect her to run well off the layoff.”

Irad Ortiz Jr., who was aboard for all three of Cairo Consort’s Gulfstream starts, returns for the Tropical Park Oaks.