Cotillion Festival Day at Tampa Bay Downs

After an off-day Thursday, Tampa Bay Downs will return to action Friday and Saturday, with Saturday's Cotillion Festival Day card featuring a full slate of two-year-old racing, including the $100,000 Inaugural and the $100,000 Sandpiper, which kick off a banner stakes schedule worth more than $2.7 million.

Lambholm South Cotillion Festival Day includes a pair of six-furlong stakes races each worth a guaranteed $100,000 – the 29th annual Inaugural Stakes for colts and geldings and the 34th renewal of the Sandpiper Stakes for fillies. The two races have drawn a total of 43 nominations from the barns of such top trainers as Todd Pletcher, Edward Plesa, Jr., Christophe Clement, Wayne Catalano and Kathleen O’Connell, along with Dale Bennett and his father, Gerald Bennett.

Among the top prospects for the Inaugural is Savoy Stable, LLC’s colt Cool Cowboy, trained by Dale Bennett. In his previous start, an allowance/$75,000 optional claiming race at Hawthorne in Illinois, Cool Cowboy sped six furlongs in 1:08.78 while romping to a wire-to-wire, three-length victory.

First post on Saturday at Tampa is set for 12:35pm ET.

Handicapping Tampa Bay Downs

Daily Selections full-card analysis is available for Aqueduct, Hawthorne, and Tampa Bay Downs not only Wednesday but also throughout their entire meetings. Tampa runs through Kentucky Derby day, Saturday, May 3, 2014, and features 15% takeout on its daily Pick 5 and 18% takeout on two Pick 4s daily.

Of course, Ultimate Past Performances and data files are available every day for all tracks.

Tampa Bay Downs 2013-2014 Meet Information

Dates: December 4, 2013 - May 4, 2014

Tampa Bay Downs horse racing schedule: Tampa Bay Downs will conduct racing on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays during the month (with the exception of Dec. 25, when the track is closed); as well as Sunday, Dec. 22, Thursday, Dec. 26 and Sunday, Dec. 29.

Post Times: post time for the first race is 12:25 p.m. ET, unless otherwise noted

Tampa Bay Downs Racetrack Information

Main track (dirt): 1 mile, oval with 3/8 and 7/8 mile chutes
Width of stretch: 75 feet
Composition: Sand and clay composition

Turf: 7/8 mile in circumference with a 1/4 mile chute
Width of stretch: 80 feet
Composition: Tifton #419 Bermuda turf

For more Tampa Bay 2013-2014 Winter Meet information click here