Tampa Bay Derby set for early March

By: SPORTS NETWORK

Oldsmar, FL (SportsNetwork.com) - The 2015 running of the $350,000 Tampa Bay Derby will continue to highlight Tampa Bay Downs' stakes series on the road to the Kentucky Derby.

The 2014-15 racing season gets underway Saturday, Nov. 29 and runs through June 30.

Won this year by 14-1 longshot Ring Weekend, the 1 1/16-mile Tampa Bay Derby will culminate the track's 3-year-old stakes on Saturday, March 7 and is part of the Road to the Kentucky Derby Championship Series points system. The first four finishers will earn 50, 20, 10 and 5 points, repsectively, toward a starting gate berth in the Run for the Roses on the first Saturday in May.

"The Kentucky Derby victories by our 2007 Tampa Bay Derby winner, Street Sense, and our 2010 third-place finisher, Super Saver, have elevated our showcase race to national prominence and made it a significant Triple Crown prep," said Peter Berube, Vice President and General Manager of Tampa Bay Downs.

Beginning Tampa Bay's 3-year-old stakes series will be the $250,000 Sam F. Davis Stakes at 1 1/16 miles on Saturday, Jan. 31. The $100,000 Pasco Stakes, formerly run in January for 3-year-olds, has been moved to Dec, 27 for 2-year-olds.