Trainer William Armata’s confidence in his trainee IRONSTONE (Mr. Speaker – Casey’s Dreamin’ by Unbridled’s Song) paid off at Woodbine on October 23 when the steel-grey colt won his first stakes race of the year, and first graded stake, in the Ontario Derby (G3).
Sunday’s race card at Woodbine, held on a gloriously sunny afternoon, once again featured a very favourable rail path that led to many longshots winning.
Ironstone, an Ontario-bred 3-year-old who danced all of the sophomore dances this year with third-place finishes in the Grade 3 Marine, Queenston and Woodstock, a fourth in the Queen’s Plate, and a second in the Prince of Wales Stakes, bounded to a well-deserved victory in the 1 1/8 mile Derby.
Meeting four rivals, Ironstone, owned by Adrian Meli’s Tequesta Racing Inc. and Jupiter Leasing, and jockey Kazushi Kimura was made the favourite in the Ontario Derby and, as his style, he was quite eager in the early furlongs of the race. Even more eager was a returning The Minkster, who had been idle since the Plate when he was in a duel with Ironstone on the last turn of the Canadian classic before fading.
The Minkster, trained by Dan Vella for Sea Glass Stable, dragged jockey David Moran through an opening quarter in :24.47, as Kimura kept close tabs on the leader, with Bringer of Rain, Mannix (IRE) and late-closing Luckman rounding out the early order.
The race changed dramatically down the backstretch when Toronto Cup Stakes winner Luckman was suddenly let loose by jockey Daisuke Fukumoto and roared up wide to get close to The Minkster. After half a mile in 48.67, Ironstone remained nestled along the golden rail in fourth place.
Still on top as the field straightened for home, The Minkster was soon confronted by the presence of Ironstone, who eventually wore down his rival just past the furlong marker to earn a 2 ¾-length victory in a time of 1:49.15 on the Tapeta. Bringer of Rain was third and Mannix (IRE) was fourth.
A two-time sprinting stakes winner as a juvenile and second in the Grade 3 Grey Stakes at a route distance, Ironstone was winning for the third time in his career from 12 starts.
Purchased for just $7,000 at the 2020 CTHS Ontario September Yearling Sale from Richard Day’s Kingview Farms, Ironstone earned $108,000 for the Derby win, boosting his earnings to an impressive $483,768.
“This win is very special for me,” said William Armata, who has 207 career wins as a trainer. “This horse has taken me places I’ve never been in my career, the Queen’s Plate, and the Prince of Wales. It was just a phenomenal run. I was very happy with both performances. Unfortunately, we couldn’t win, but we were in the big dance. He showed today he was the boss.”
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In any other year, SOUPER HOITY TOITY would likely be a slam dunk for Champion 3-year-Old Filly in Canada, but this talented Uncle Mo miss races in the year of Moira. But no matter, Souper Hoity Toity won her third stakes race of the 2022 campaign in Sunday’s $125,000 Ontario Damsel and probably should have been undefeated in four races as she had bad luck in the Oct. 1 Duchess Stakes.
Trained by Mark Casse for Live Oak Plantation, Souper Hoity Toity, a $550,000 2-year-old-in-training purchase, reeled in stablemate Love to Run, a $640,000 2-year-old-in-training purchase, to grab the win in the 1 1/16 mile Damsel.
Jockey Patrick Husbands had Souper Hoity Toity in a good stalking position early in the Damsel while Presque Isle invader Crystal Ship sailed away to a long early lead.
“I was getting the perfect trip,” said Husbands. “I put her in the clear by the three-eighths pole and she flattened right out on me by the three-eighths pole, going into the quarter-pole and down the lane, but she’s all class and she just fought to win. She’s all class from day one.”
Souper Hoity Toity finished fourth in her career bow at Ellis Park last August before reeling off two straight scores at Woodbine. She launched her sophomore campaign with back-to-back Grade 3 victories, taking the Selene on July 2 and the Ontario Colleen on August 6.
She arrived at the Ontario Damsel off a troubled trip in the Duchess Stakes, where she was checked sharply at the quarter-pole but still came running to secure the runner-up prize.
Now 5-1-0 from eight starts, with earnings of over $307,000, Souper Hoity Toity was bred in Kentucky by Dr. Richard Holder and Coolmore.
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Woodbine’s Tapeta track has experienced some very noticeable biases in the last month, starting with a strong outside bias in late September.
In mid-October, an inside bias began to arise and in the last week, the rail path has simply been golden.
COMMANDER JOE (Giant Gizmo), owned by JC Stable and trained by John Ross, rode the rail to victory in race 6 at over 29-to-1 odds. The colt won the $111,400 allowance/optional race under Eswan Flores and it was his third win from 11 career races. Old Chestnut rallied up the rail to be third.
In race 7, RED RIVER REBEL (Reload) flew up the rail for Denny Andrews and Northern Dawn Stable to win a very difficult 6 1/2 furlong allowance/optional claiming race worth $123,800. Trained by Kevin Attard, Red River Rebel was 14-to-1 and he started from post two under David Moran, his fifth straight different rider, and he won by more than 3 lengths in a fast time of 1:15.17. Longshot Told It All also rallied up the rail to be second.
Most of the other winners on Sunday in the Tapeta races rode the rail at some point although it is the higher level races that will give a handicapper the best idea of any possible bias.
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EPILOGUE became the first 5-time winner at the Woodbine meeting with his dominating win on the grass in race 4. The Ontario-bred 7-year-old won his first 3 races of 2022, two for Richard Morden and one for Robert Tiller. He won again on Sept. 30 for Tiller when the gelded son of Smooth Bid was dropped in for $10,000 claiming. On Sunday he won for $25,000 claiming for new owner Oh Em Gee Stable and trained Harold Ladouceur.
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