HorseRacingNation.com NewsWire

Time for a 'Reliable' run in the International?

Sun, 14 Oct 2012 12:43:46 GMT

Reliable Man heads a field of 10 in Sunday’s $1.5 million Pattison Canadian International over the E.P. Taylor Turf Course at Woodbine Racetrack on Sunday. Even though the son of Dalakhani hasn’t won a race since last September, he will take some beating in the 1 ½-mile turf contest, which shines the spotlight on the Toronto racing scene and capture the attention of an international audience.

Trained by Alain DeRoyer-Dupre, the four-year-old grey colt has been keeping company with the best distance runners in Europe. The trio of Danedream, Nathaniel and St. Nicholas Abbbey finished in front of Reliable Man in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes on July 21 at Ascot. Any of the three would be a heavy favorite in this weekend’s Pattison Canadian International and Reliable Man was only 1 ¾ lengths behind, earning a lofty Racing Post Rating of 124 over a course rated good to soft.

One race earlier, in the Prince of Wales Stakes at 1 ¼ miles over good terrain, Reliable Man finished closing fourth to the globetrotting multiple Group 1 winner So You Think – ano

Limited pace may make for limitless stretch drama in Woodbine Mile

Fri, 14 Sep 2012 19:05:33 GMT

A group of nine will vie for the $600,000 winner’s share of the Woodbine Mile purse on Sunday. A win by the heavily favored Wise Dan in the 16^th edition of the Grade 1 event would make Charles Lopresti the first trainer ever to win back-to-back editions of the one-mile turf contest on the E.P. Taylor Turf Course.

Last year, Lopresti had Turallure in prime condition for a dramatic rally from well off the pace to take the event last year at odds of 6-1. You never know, but it’s probably safe to say a repeat of last year thriller won’t be in the cards since Wise Dan does his best running from in relatively close contact to the pace.

That said, he isn’t exactly a crack sprinter. And most years, when the Mile field is bulky, a talented route horse like Wise Dan must work out a smart trip to avoid getting singed in a blistering early half. What helps him this year is that there is a serious shortage of front-running types.

For starters, three of the nine in the field have travelled to Toronto from parts of Europe, giving this race the international feel for which it had always be

Breeders' Stakes attracts 14 for final jewel in Canadian Triple Crown

Sun, 05 Aug 2012 12:34:46 GMT

An equine Strait flush has resulted in a big bulky field for Sunday’s $500,000 Breeders’ Stakes at Woodbine Racetrack.

After not bothering to even consider the second jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown, Queen’s Plate winner Strait of Dover was declared from the 1 ½-mile third jewel earlier in the week due to a suspensory injury.

As a result, if anyone was shy about entering the turf event last week, they weren’t on entry day. A total of 13 three-year-olds, foaled in Canada, are slated to contest the contest, which consists of one complete lap of the E.P. Taylor Turf Course.

For those that questioned Strait of Dover’s chances to go that far off such a long gap between starts, his absence will be disappointing since every other horse in the race will now be a few points lower.

However, all that is required to assure a decent Breeders’ payday is the defeat of the Prince of Wales Stakes winner Dixie Strike. At first blush, the John Oxley charge’s resume would be enough to call that a tall order. The Mark Casse trainee is 3-for-7 this seas

Dance Smartly Stakes features return of Marketing Mix

Fri, 06 Jul 2012 14:04:20 GMT

Sunday’s Grade 2 Dance Smartly Stakes didn’t lure a great deal of talent for the $300,000 purse being offered, but at the very least it does feature the return of the ultra-consistent Ontario-bred Marketing Mix, who seeks to build on a 6-for-12 lifetime record.

After a win and a fourth to kick off her four-year-old campaign, the Glen Hill Farm charge took the Woodbine season’s first local turf event for fillies and mares by 1 ¼ lengths on June 2 over soft terrain. She earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 93, which wasn’t unlike the number she earned in her first performance of the year.

Once again, trainer Tom Proctor has given jockey Julien Leparoux the call aboard the daughter of Medaglia d’Oro. The Dance Smartly will be Leparoux’s fifth consecutive mount on Marketing Mix.

Winless over the Woodbine polytrack, Leparoux is looking for his fifth career victory over the E.P. Taylor Turf Course. Last year, he guided Turallure to a dramatic score in the Grade 1 Woodbine Mile.

Among Marketing Mix’s six competitors are Zadracarta winner Moment of Majesty, as well as Indian Pond an

Analysis of the 2012 Queen's Plate Contenders

Sat, 23 Jun 2012 12:53:54 GMT

Obviously the next horse in line after Strait of Doverquee, in reality and on the toteboard, is the Stronach Stable homebred River Rush. The son of Orientate broke out in style, and in a hurry, with a track record performance in just his third career start, the Plate Trial Stakes. It was a bit of a breakout race for his jockey, Jim McAleney, who is off to arguably the slowest start of his career. The River Rush win was visually impressive, but perhaps a touch illusionary when you consider the dynamics of the race. It’s also important to note that it was a significant peak for a lightly-raced horse and even his trainer is worried about regression. The Plate’s history is littered with examples of Plate Trial winners that were disappointments. The easiest one to remember is last year is Check Your Soul, who was nowhere in the Plate or the Prince of Wales after his overwhelming performance in the Plate Trial.

Nonetheless, let’s review how River Rush was able to take a stranglehold on the Plate Trial. He was unhurried and back about nine lengths early. McAleney said after

Strait of Dover one to deny in Queen's Plate

Fri, 22 Jun 2012 15:52:24 GMT

Named for the narrowest point between France and Great Britain in the English Channel, Strait of Dover appears to have the talent to become the widest Queen’s Plate winner in recent memory. The Dan Vella trainee hasn’t failed to finish first in four straight Polytrack events, going back to last year.

He’s a son of English Channel out of Bahrain’s Star, a daughter of Danzig, himself a productive Northern Dancer descendant. Dredge a bit deeper in the female side of his pedigree and you perhaps find the significance of his name. Bahrain Star hails from a strong family that yielded the French three-year-old filly champion Roseliere (Strait of Dover’s fourth dam). Not sure if it was by accident, but it’s only fitting with English Channel on top and a significant French equine heritage on the bottom, that he be named for a crossing point between the two countries.

Strait of Dover, a British Columbian, enters the Queen’s Plate off a convincing victory over Incredicat in the Marine Stakes several weeks ago. While Incredicat didn’t hit th

Wide open Zadracarta the race to play

Sat, 16 Jun 2012 11:31:01 GMT

Saturday’s feature is the $150,000 Victoria Stakes for open two-year-old colts and geldings, but the added-money contest of the afternoon is the $100,000 Zadracarta for fillies and mares, travelling seven furlongs over the E.P. Taylor Turf Course.

One of the first indicators that the Zadracarta will be an exciting race is the difficulty that exists in identifying who the public will land on as the favorite. The Morning Line oddsmaker has selected the Melnyk Racing homebred Barracks Road as the early choice, but it’s hard to fathom an individual that hasn’t hit the board since 2010 being the one.

Firstly, Barracks Road, a five-year-old daughter of Elusive Quality, was awful on the Polytrack in her first race of the season, finishing fourth of five with a mediocre speed figure. Some will make the case that she needed the effort because it was her first start in 16 months. Granted, but trainer Mark Casse doesn’t send out very many short horses, especially ones with this class. Barracks Road was drilling with authority in the morning in advance of her comeback

Wide open Plate Trial at Woodbine

Sun, 03 Jun 2012 12:41:06 GMT

The Plate Trial is by far the better race on today’s Woodbine Plate Prep Day program. If somebody comes up to me in the grandstand and wants to tout me on any of the 11 horses, I will stop and seriously listen. It’s that contentious. How it will impact the Queen’s Plate picture is anyone’s guess, but that’s a question for another day.

While it’s important to realize that it is a prep for the 1 ¼-mile feature in three weeks, at this point in time, none of the 11 in this field are even in the current top-two picture when it comes to the big race. Strait of Dover is the current number one contender – he opted to skip the Plate Trial and train right to the Plate on June 24. The other main contender, pending her Oaks performance, is the brilliant Dixie Strike off her Grade 2 win in the Selene Stakes.

So, the Plate Trial is more than a prep for the simple reason that the winner of this race can’t just eke out the victory. The winner of today’s Plate Trial has to show something fairly significant to be spoken of in the same breath as Strait of Dover and Dixie Strike.

That aside, the Plate

Woodbine Oaks is Dixie Strike's to lose

Sat, 02 Jun 2012 11:21:41 GMT

Sunday’s $500,000 Woodbine Oaks drew a field of nine Canadian-bred three-year-old fillies, prompting many to wonder if the race sponsor was now Bud Light as opposed to Budweiser. In any event, there’s nothing light about the top contender for the 1 1/8-mile feature, John Oxley’s Dixie Strike, who will be looking to show that she’s even more of a powerhouse than her Oaks and Plate-winning half-sister Inglorious.

It wouldn’t be a surprise. Dixie Strike has already provided glimpses of the wow factor.

Look back at her first stakes score, the 1 1/16-mile Ontario Lassie Stakes. She closed from her position in the middle of a 12-horse field to defeat her nearest pursuer by 5 ½ lengths. Her final five-sixteenths of a mile in a strong :29 4/5 over the Polytrack.

Sent to Florida for the Winter, she wowed them again at Tampa Bay Downs in the Florida Oaks at 1 1/16-miles on the turf. Racing in sixth early behind fractions of :50 3/5 and 1:15-flat, it appeared as though she would have trouble hitting the board. Under Jose Lezcano, she closed like a freight train in the stretch to win t

Artic Fern returns to turf in Connaught Cup

Sat, 26 May 2012 13:15:33 GMT

It’s still hard to get used to the abbreviated nature of the Connaught Cup, but nonetheless the seven-furlong event marks the first stakes event of the year over the E.P. Taylor Turf Course.

The Grade 2 event has attracted a cast of 11, including the winner of last year’s event, Stormy Lord. The five-year-old son of Stormy Atlantic is 7-2 in the morning line, but a case could certainly have been made to make him the program favorite.

No horse in the field has won more turf races at Woodbine than the Ian Black trainee, who is 7-for-13 over the course. Last year, he compiled a 4-for-7 record with over $400,000 in earnings. He enters the Connaught with just one start, which came in a Keeneland allowance at a distance of 1 1/8 miles. Stormy Lord was aggressive early, but managed to establish a clear lead for six furlongs before tiring, finishing 5 ½ lengths behind Al Khali.

Having been absent from the races since December, it would be safe to say that the Ontario-bred needed a race to kick off the year. Unlike last year, when his first dash of the season was in the Connaught, Stormy Lo