R t Ky D tomorrow: Sam F. Davis Stakes at Tampa, R11 at 5.20 pm

In the Sam F. Davis Stakes at Tampa tomorrow,a Gr III dirt route for 3YO held each winter at Tampa Bay Downs racetrack in Oldsmar, Florida, the only track on Florida’s west coast. It is run at a distance of 1 1⁄16 miles (8.5 furlongs) on dirt and currently offers a purse of $250,000.it's a field of 12, so a good betting race but a pretty weak field with not a lot of obvious pace, possibly #2 Royal Son for there successful JRV/TAP combo. My selections are #3 from #2,5,6 and 11. #3 Ami's Flatter is a lightly raced but stakes placed Ontario-bred. I'd be wanting him to be paying $6.00 ($11 on the ML).

For the history buffs, the Sam F. Davis Stakes which headlines Tampa Bay Downs' Festival Preview Day was inaugurated in 1981 and elevated to Grade III status in 2009. The race is named for the man who was president of the track from 1972 to 1980, when it was owned by a group of Tampa sportsmen and known as Florida Downs (1965-1980). It is not named for the Rat Pack’s Sammy Davis jnr, nor the Steelers player nor the Civil war “boy hero of the Confederacy”. It is a prep race for the Grade II Tampa Bay Derby next month and also serves as an early prep for the Kentucky Derby in 3 months time, producing at least one starter in the 'Run for the Roses' most years. For example, in 2006 Bluegrass Cat won the Davis then went on to be runner up in both the TB Derby and the KY Derby (to Barbaro). Five winners of the race have gone on to win the Tampa Bay Derby: Phantom Jet (1987), Speedy Cure (1991), Marco Bay (1993), Thundering Storm (1996) and Burning Roma (2001). Here's Barbaro's 2006 KY derby, shortly before his injury in the Preakness.