King’s Plate winner MANSETTI had his final tune up for the Prince of Wales, the second jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown on September 2 when he was sent to Fort Erie to work over the dirt.
Prepping 4 furlongs with stablemate and fellow Prince of Wales starter FABER, Mansetti and jockey Pietro Moran went head-to-head with their mate in 48.80.
Trainer Kevin Attard also worked DEWOLF at Fort Erie for a planned start in the Prince of Wales which is next Tuesday, Sept. 9.
Rafael Hernandez will be riding Dewolf (Silent Name (Jpn)) in the ‘Wales. He has never won the race.
Eight three-year-olds were nominated to the border oval’s signature race which is slightly shorter than the King’s Plate at 1 3 1/6 miles, but present a trick for the Plate runners since they have to adjust from all weather Tapeta to tradition dirt.
Just two of the nominees for this year’s race has run on the dirt. Mansetti tried dirt in New York during the winter but the surface at Aqueduct at that time was very deep and slow.
ASHLEY’S ARCHER is the other ‘Wales’ nominee to try dirt and he was second in a seven furlong race at Tampa Bay Downs in March with a 70 Beyer Figure. He then finished fifth on the dirt at Keeneland. Ashley’s Archer runs his best races when he is near the early pace so expect him to be on the early lead.
Workout video on X courtesy Al and Bill Ulwelling here. :
Who Will Like the Dirt?
Mansetti should handle the dirt since his sire Collected was a Grade 1 winner on dirt and he has sired more than a dozen stakes winners from his first three drops (through 2024), many on the main track. Mansetti’s female family is a bit more for grass but there is Argentina breeding deep in his pedigree and that is dirt lineage.
SCORCHING is arguably the best bred for the dirt and he had many workouts on the main track at Belmont this past winter. His sire Mo Town is by Uncle Mo, and he was a graded stakes winner at 9 furlongs in New York as a juvenile. Scorching’s dam Samsal won on dirt as did the second dam Willow Rush.
Faber, by the late Improbable, will get a love of dirt from his sire, the Champion Dirt Older Male in 2020 in America. Faber’s dam Disobedient was an impressive winner at Fair Grounds on dirt with an 80 Beyer Figure.
Notorious Gangster has every reason to enjoy dirt as his sire was a champion 2-year-old in the US on dirt and the Plate 3rd place finisher has dirt breeding on his dam’s sire.
The newcomer to the Canadian Triple Crown, HUMBER RIVER, is by a good dirt sire in Frac Daddy although Humber River’s dam, Miss Sea,was a grass horse. Miss Sea does have a half brother, Oblivion, who won many dirt races.
There are many examples of ‘Wales winners who simply did not care for the all weather track further north at Woodbine first installed in 2006) or were much better on a dirt track.
Duke of Love, Cool Catomine, Coltimus Prime and Harlem Rocker were among the dirt loving Wales winners. It takes a special horse to be able to win both various surfaces.
Haddassah, like Mansetti owned by Al and Bill Ulwelling, was a star as he won on dirt, turf and all weather. Tome Broke was third in the Plate, won the Prince of Wales and won the Breeders on the grass.
Weird facts: Of the last 20 Prince of Wales winners, just 6 winning jockeys are still active today.
Kevin Attard and Josie Carroll have trained five of the last 9 Wales winners.
Prince of Wales winners since 2000
2024 Vitality Jose Campos Harold Ladouceur Adena Springs 1:55.72
2023 Velocitor Justin Stein Kevin Attard Al & Bill Ulwelling 1:55.24
2022 Duke of Love Justin Stein Josie Carroll MyRaceHorse Stable 1:58.07
2021 Haddassah Gary Boulanger Kevin Attard Al and Bill Ulwelling 1:56.15
2020 Mighty Heart Daisuke Fukumoto Josie Carroll Lawrence P. Cordes 1:55.59
2019 Tone Broke Ricardo Santana Jr. Steve Asmussen L and N Racing 1:56.56
2018 Wonder Gadot John Velazquez Mark E. Casse Gary Barber 1:58.71
2017 Cool Catomine Luis Contreras John Ross Jack of Hearts Racing / J.R. Racing Stable Inc. 1:55.63
2016 Amis Gizmo Luis Contreras Josie Carroll Ivan Dalos 1:56.76
2015 Breaking Lucky James S. McAleney Reade Baker Gunpowder Farms 1:56.59
2014 Coltimus Prime Eurico Rosa da Silva Justin J. Nixon Cabernet Racing Stables 1:54.58
2013 Uncaptured Miguel Mena Mark E. Casse John C. Oxley 1:55.49
2012 Dixie Strike Patrick Husbands Mark E. Casse John C. Oxley 1:57.54
2011 Pender Harbour Luis Contreras Mike De Paulo Denny Andrews & Robert Giffin 1:55.74
2010 Golden Moka Anthony Stephen Brian A. Lynch Good Friends Stable 1:56.45
2009 Gallant Corey Fraser Mark E. Casse Woodford Racing LLC 1:56.74
2008 Harlem Rocker Eibar Coa Todd Pletcher Adena Racing Venture 1:56.46
2007 Alezzandro Todd Kabel Kevin Attard Knob Hill Stable 1:55.04
2006 Shillelagh Slew Dino Luciani Michael P. DePaulo David H. T. James 1:55.87
2005 Ablo Gerry Olguin Roger Attfield Michael & Phyllis Canino 1:56.90
2004 A Bit O’Gold Jono Jones Catherine Day Phillips Kingfield Racing Stables 1:57.69
2003 Wando † Patrick Husbands Mike Keogh Gus Schickedanz 1:55.84
2002 Le Cinquieme Essai Brian Bochinski Paul Nielsen William A. Scott 1:56.53
2001 Win City Constant Montpellier Robert P. Tiller Frank Di Giulio Jr. 1:56.14
2000 Scatter the Gold Todd Kabel Mark Frostad Sam-Son Farm 1:56.01
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