Zedan Racing’s TAIBA – a $1.7 million juvenile at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Gulfstream Sale – made his long-awaited debut March 5th, and showed he’s all talent to earn “TDN Rising Star” honors.
The overwhelming 1-2 favorite broke well, but had to settle for a pressing spot in between rivals early. Jockey John Velazquez tapped on the gas entering the bend and TAIBA took a narrow lead at that point. After a :45.69 half, it quickly became a one-horse affair as TAIBA leveled off and exploded with efficient strides to run up the score to 7 1/2 lengths. He stopped the clock in 1:09.97.
The son of Gun Runner earned an impressive 103 Beyer speed figure for his breakout performance.
There are no upcoming entries at this time.
HORSE | RACE | PLACE | DATE |
---|---|---|---|
Arabian Knight | Southwest S. [G3] | 1st | 01/28/23 |
Hejazi | MSW | 1st | 01/15/23 |
Taiba | RUNHAPPY Malibu S. [G1] | 1st | 12/26/22 |
Country Grammer | San Antonio S. [G2] | 1st | 12/26/22 |
Arabian Lion | Los Alamitos Futurity [G2] | 5th | 12/17/22 |