HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – The 3-year-old males were all the rage here this winter and spring as four horses based at Gulfstream Park ran in the Kentucky Derby (Simplification, Smile Happy, Tiz the Bomb, and White Abarrio) and three (Simplification, Creative Minister, and Skippylongstocking) competed in the Preakness. But now it’s time for a couple of 3-year-old fillies, stablemates Spirit Wind and Rachel’s Rock, to get a chance to bask in the local spotlight. Both of them reside under the shed of trainer Ralph Nicks. Spirit Wind caught everybody’s attention with her five-length victory in Saturday’s Musical Romance Stakes, drawing away readily from a strong group of older rivals in the six-furlong dash restricted to Florida-breds. The field included odds-on favorite and Group 3 winner R Jersey Girl. The win was the third in as many starts this season for the lightly raced Spirit Wind, who earned a career best 91 Beyer Figure. Although Spirit Wind was training superbly coming into the race, even Nicks himself was a bit apprehensive and not sure what to expect when he sent her up against older horses for the first time in the Musical Romance, which was named in honor of the 2011 filly and mare sprint champion. “I’m always concerned going against older horses with a 3-year-old, especially this time of year,” Nicks admitted. “I believed she’d run exceptionally well the way she had been training and thought she was very, very impressive the way she won that race on Saturday.” :: Want to start playing with a $510 bankroll and have access to free Formulator? Learn more Although both her previous victories had come in wire-to-wire fashion, Spirit Wind was able to rate off of the speedy R Jersey Girl before engaging and easily pulling away from that rival once settling into the stretch. “She relaxes and can sit off horses in the morning, so I was confident she could do it in the afternoon if need be,” Nicks said. “She got outrun early by the favorite, but then eyeballed a more experienced and accomplished older mare and pretty much just toyed with her until it was time to go. And by showing she’s got the ability to do that in a race, to have that kind of versatility, it’s only going to make her a better horse moving forward.” Spirit Wind is a Jacks or Better Farm homebred owned by Fred Brei, who likes to keep his horses running in South Florida whenever possible. “Fred likes to stay home, that’s one reason we didn’t take her to Pimlico over the weekend for the Miss Preakness,” Nicks explained, “and likely why we’ll stay right here and wait for the Princess Rooney next.” :: Get Daily Racing Form Past Performances – the exclusive home of Beyer Speed Figures The Grade 2, $250,000 Princess Rooney, which is a Win and You’re In race for the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint, will be decided at seven furlongs here on July 2. Rachel’s Rock, by Jess’s Dream, is also a Jacks or Better homebred and a half to Grade 3 winner C. Zee. She made only a single start at 2 for Nicks, that coming in the seven-furlong Susan’s Girl Stakes when she was fractious before the start, broke awkwardly and was eased to the wire far back. Rachel’s Rock did most of her preparations for her return on the farm in Ocala, Fla., before being sent to Nicks last month at Gulfstream where she worked just once, four furlongs in 47.80 on May 11, prior to launching her 3-year-old campaign Sunday with an easy 3 1/4-length victory while completing six furlongs in 1:10.38, as timed by Daily Racing Form. “She was fast-tracked last year and ended up with an injury,” Nicks said, “which might have been a blessing with the little idiosyncrasies she had at 2. We trained her a little differently for her return. They did a great job on the farm before sending her to me and I gave her a lot of two-minute clips rather than speed works, and she was mentally prepared a lot better for this last start. I also think she’s going to be a lot better horse going longer, and maybe on the turf, too, with her pedigree.”