Stronach Stables’ homebred Intanga Rose shoots for the stars in Sunday’s $100,000 Star Shoot Stakes during opening weekend at Woodbine.

A daughter of 2011 Kentucky Derby winner and 2013 Dubai World Cup champ Animal Kingdom, Intanga Rose was a perfect two-for two in her 2018 freshman campaign.

The Sid Attard trainee impressed in her career bow on August 11 at the Toronto oval. Bumped by a rival at the start of the five-furlong main track race, Intanga Rose shrugged off the thorny beginning and went on to notch a 1 ¾-length win as the 3-5 choice.

She followed that effort up with another strong showing on September 14. Sent on her way as the 2-5 favourite, Intanga Rose didn’t disappoint her backers, crossing the wire a confident 2 ¼-length winner over six panels on the Woodbine main.

The win was extra meaningful for champion jockey Eurico Rosa da Silva, who notched his 2,000th career score courtesy of the dark bay.

“The filly ran a good race,” said da Silva. “She made me relax because I had so much horse in the turn, I knew it was over. When I moved, she just opened up.”

Now, the three-year-old will look to keep her unblemished record intact in the six-furlong Star Shoot.

“She’s a really nice filly,” said Attard, the Hall of Fame conditioner who has averaged 44 wins over the past four campaigns. “We liked her right away. With her two races, it’s hard to pick which one was the best. I thought she was very good in both. We were really happy with the way she raced. She was training really well heading into the first one and showed some class.”

Intanga Rose, who had a series of four-furlong works on the Gulfstream Park main track, recorded a pair of five-furlong works on April 7 and April 14 over the Woodbine Tapeta.

“She’s very nice to be around and she’s very good in the barn,” praised Attard, who eclipsed the 2,000-win mark in 2018. “She’s coming into this race in good shape. Eurico (recently) worked her twice and he was very happy with her. He loves her. We had lots of time in Florida with her as well and she had some nice works there. We’re hoping she can run another big race on Sunday.”

Last year, conditioner Mark Casse swept the top two spots in the Star Shoot when Sly Beauty and Closer Still grabbed the win and place awards, respectively.

The Star Shoot is slated as Race 6 on Sunday’s eight-race card. First post time is 1 p.m. Fans can watch and wager on all the action via HPIbet.com.

$100,000 Star Shoot Stakes

Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer

1 – Speedy Soul – Kazushi Kimura – Mark Casse

2 – Missmizz – Rafael Hernandez – Michael Stidham

3 – Power Gal – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Mark Casse

4 – My Gal Betty – Gary Boulanger – Roger Attfield

5 – Sister Peacock – Jesse Campbell – Stuart Simon

6 – Si Si Tequila – Jerome Lermyte – Mark Casse

7 – Special for You – Davy Moran – Michael De Paulo

8 – Kettle Valley – Luis Contreras – Pat Parente

9 – Intanga Rose – Eurico Rosa da Silva – Sid Attard

10 – Malibu Dawn – Alan Garcia – Gail Cox