ACCELERATE, Breeders’ Cup Classic favourite, arrived at Churchill Downs from California on Sunday – Vanessa Ng photo – horse-races.net
BREEDERS’ CUP POST POSITION DRAW 4 P.M.
The 14 races of the Breeders’ Cup World Championships will be drawn at 4 p.m. Monday and Friday is Day 1, “Future Stars Friday” of the two day championships. Keep it on Thoroughblog later today for all the fields and updates.
WONDER GADOT, Canada’s top 3-year-old filly, will try to get past MONOMOY GIRL in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff – Vanessa Ng photo – horse-races.net
MONOMOY GIRL worked on Sunday morning and looked good doing it – Vanessa Ng photo
PRE-DRAW CANADIAN CONTENT IN BREEDERS’ CUP
SELCOURT – Co-Canadian-owned, Sandra Lazaruk of Alberta (co-owner of champion Pender Harbour) Filly/Mare Sprint
SERGEI PROKOFIEV – Canadian bred Scat Daddy 2-year-old colt in JUVENILE TURF SPRINT (new race) – bred by David Anderson
SHAMROCK ROSE — Penn-bred owned by Ontario owners Manfred and Penny Conrad, trained by Mark Casse; Filly & Mare Sprint
CONQUEST TSUNAMI – Canadian bred 6yo gelding owned by Gary Barber; bred by Josham Farms and Yvonne Schwabe; Turf Sprint
MY GAL BETTY – Kentucky bred 2yo filly raced at Woodbine for trainer Roger Attfield; owned by American William Werner; Juv Filly Turf
WONDER GADOT – Canadian-bred owned by Gary Barber; likely Horse of the Year in Canada; bred by David Anderson; Distaff
CHANNEL MAKER – Canadian-bred owned by Gary Barber and Wachtel Stable; bred by Ivan Dalos; BC Turf
VAN BEETHOVEN – Canadian-bred colt; bred by Ballycroy Training Centre; Juv Turf, also eligible
Also – Charles Fipke from British Columbia has SEEKING THE SOUL entered in Classic/Dirt Mile and Verve’s Tale in the Distaff; Reddam Racing has Mopotism in Distaff.
MY GAL BETTY galloped at Churchill Downs Monday morning for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Filly Turf – Michael Burns photo
A look at race day menus:
IVAN DALOS WINS 7TH STAKES RACE OF YEAR
SILENT SONET by Silent Name (Jpn) wins her first graded stakes race in the Ontario Fashion – Grade 3 Sunday – Michael Burns photo – Woodbine
Ivan Dalos’ Tall Oaks Farm continues to be a powerhouse of racing and breeding and the Toronto businessman is currently leading all owners with 7 stakes wins.
Sunday in the Grade 3 Ontario Fashion at Woodbine it was thought that his champion AMI’S MESA, who was 2nd by a nose in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint at this time last year, would be getting back on track after a slow start to her short season.
Instead it was his Ontario sired gal SILENT SONET, trained by Nick Gonzalez, who stole the show by edging clear of Code Warrior to win under David Moran. It was Moran’s first ride on the Silent Name (Jpn) – Dynasonet, Hussonet 4yo filly.
Silent Sonet had won the Zadracarta on turf earlier this year and the La Prevoyante on grass last year but had not had much luck on the Tapeta main track this year from three attempts.
The filly was bought back from the CTHS Ontario sale in 2015 for $34,000.
Race recap from Woodbine media:
Owner/breeder Ivan Dalos’s 2017 Breeder’s Cup runner-up Ami’s Mesa was the 5-2 favourite competing back at Woodbine for the first time this year in Sunday’s $125,000 Ontario Fashion Stakes (Grade 3), but it was his longshot that stole the show.
With jockey David Moran aboard, Dalos’ other homebred filly Silent Sonet pulled off a 56-1 upset in the six-furlong sprint after pressing the pace throughout.
“I was flabbergasted actually,” said Dalos, who dedicated the surprise victory to trainer Nicholas Gonzalez’s wife Martha who has been battling illness this year. “I certainly didn’t expect this to happen, but it couldn’t happen to a nicer trainer and a nicer family. This is for Martha.”
Silent Sonet took over command at the five-eighths pole and prevailed in 1:08.77 ahead of Jessica Krupnick and defending Ontario Fashion champion Moonlit Promise, who both rallied outside to hit the board after stalking along the rail.
Multiple graded stakes winner Code Warrior, who had led the field of a dozen distaffers through fractions of :22.83 and :45.15 in rein to Jesse Campbell, settled for fourth-place while Marquee Miss rounded out the top five finish order after racing three-wide most of the way. The Sovereign Award-winning mare Ami’s Mesa, trained by Josie Carroll, raced mid-pack and finished seventh.
“She broke good and I sat beside Jesse there,” said Moran of his winning trip. “Actually, I thought Jesse had a lot more horse turning for home, but when I asked my girl, she switched leads and she quickened up nice actually so it was great.”
Silent Sonet, who had previously won a pair of stakes on the turf, earned her first graded win and returned a whopping $114.80 for a $2 win ticket.
“This filly has been doing so great for us and the cool weather didn’t hurt,” said Gonzalez. “She really didn’t deserve to be 50-whatever-to-1 in my mind. I’m just so happy for Ivan. It’s a tribute to him and we’re so lucky here in Ontario that he just continues to do a great job owning and breeding and carrying on. He’s just great for us.”
Silent Sonet gave owner Dalos his meet-leading seventh stakes victory. The four-year-old Silent Name-Dynasonet filly is now five-for-12 in her career with more than $300,000 banked in purse earnings.
MORE WOODBINE RECAP – PINK LLOYD BLEEDS THROUGH LASIX
Thor’s Rocket and jockey Alan Garcia winning the $100,000 Overskate Stakes on Saturday, Oct. 27 at Woodbine Racetrack. (Michael Burns Photo)
Ami’s Mesa’s loss in the Ontario Fashion Stakes on Sunday was not the only tough race for a Canadian champion of 2017 this weekend. Horse of the Year PINK LLOYD was fourth in the Overskate Stakes on Saturday and bled through Lasix according to an AGCO ruling sent out Sunday morning.
Pink Lloyd, the brilliant sprinter with 5 wins already this season following his 8 for 8 campaign in 2017, suffered his first loss in 2 years in the July Shepperton Stakes and then was 5th in the Bold Venture on Sept. 15 two weeks after winning the Kenora.
The tough 6-year-old was on better behaviour at the gate, not breaking through or hopping up at the start and he seemed to have a good position tracking the speed of Sweet Grass Creek. While the pace fractions appeared to be slow, the track surface was slow and the speed crumbled in the late stages. The horses in last and next to last ran 1-2 – Thor’s Rocket, who had not won a race in more than 2 years, blew past to win the 7 furlong dash under Alan Garcia for Buttigieg Training Centre and Gus Vlahos. The 5-year-old by Old Forester – Glory Royale by Tethra was bred by Buttigieg.
It was the 5th win in 20 starts for the flashy chestnut who won the Vice Regent Stakes at 1 1/16 miles on the main track in 2016.
Red Cabarnet also came from far back and ran second in her first try against boys and first run on the Tapeta since the spring.
Pink Lloyd still remains the year’s top sprinter and he has 16 wins from 21 races and about $956,000 in earnings.
CEREMONIAL WORKOUTS ON NEW CENTURY MILE TRACK
Century Mile racetrack near the Edmonton airport had test training on Friday – Century Mile photo
On Friday Oct. 25, the Century Mile track, scheduled to open for racing on April 28 2019, opened for ceremonial testing by a couple of horses. Northlands Park held its final horse race, a standardbred race, on the weekend. Century Mile is a one-mile track. Trainer Tim Rycroft says the breeding program will have to change.
Story by Curtis Stock in Edmonton Sun
End of an era as Northlands Park shuts down, but another set to begin
WILD ABOUT WINX
29 straight, 4th Cox Plate, expected to race again
BRADLEY PHOTO – HORSE RACING NATION
LIFETIME PP’S FROM DAILY RACING FORM: AWINX
NICK NOCE WINS SOVEREIGN AWARD FOR HANDICAPPER OF THE YEAR
New York handicapper and fan’s 5th in the Woodbine Mile Contest nets him points lead in 4 Contests.
