Shotgun Wedding, recently bought back from a digital sale for $115,000, held off the late charge of Tiz Her Money to win the $125,000 Ontario Damsel for three-year-old fillies at 1 1/16 miles over the Woodbine main Tapeta track.
After the Mark Casse-trained pair of Woodbine Oaks winner NO TIME and SOUPER ZONDA dueled on the lead for half the race, through splits of :23.21, :47.12, No Time sped clear and was still leading into the stretch run. But Shotgun Wedding, at 7-1 under Keveh Nicholls, had bided her time on the golden rail path, glided up to the pacesetter around the turn for home, then burst to the lead early stretch en route to a three-quarter of a length score in a time of 1:44.23. Tiz Her Money rallied to finish second, a neck in front of stablemate No Time. Cue the Duckboats was fourth.
“She relaxed really good for me today,” said Nicholls. “I always wanted to get her to the outside – she loves to be on the outside. Once I got down the back and approaching the three-eighths pole, I saw a nice gap, and she just rolled up there nicely and went on with it.
“She just kind of idled a bit once she got the lead. Once she heard them coming back, she kind of kicked back on again.”
Trained by James Begg, who co-owns (Begg Racing) with his father Jeff’s Windways Farm and Upland Flats Racing, the daughter of Mendelssohn out of the Speightstown mare Reluctant Bride is now 3-3-3 from 12 starts with $185,966 in earnings.
“I have always really liked this filly,” said Begg, who celebrated his first Woodbine stakes triumph. “I thought she wanted two turns all along. When horses are doing well, I like to run them. This spot came up and it worked out.”
Bred in Kentucky by Deron Pearson and Patrick Biacone LLC, Shotgun Wedding, who finished third in last year’s Catch a Glimpse Stakes and fourth in this year’s Ruling Angel, is the first foal of two-time winner Reluctant Bride, a half-sister to one other winner. Third dam Ideal Image is the dam of Grade 1 sprint winner Sassy Image.
Begg purchased Shotgun Wedding for $50,000 at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales March two-year sale in 2024.
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