Seven hopefuls including Powell River will vie for top prize in the $125,000 Toronto Cup Stakes Presented by Crown Royal, Saturday at Woodbine.
Trained by multiple graded stakes winner Katerina Vassilieva for owner and breeder Chiefswood Stables, the son of Justify out of Niigon’s Eclipse, a mare by Chiefswood’s 2004 King’s Plate winner Niigon, will make his fifth career start and first over the Toronto oval’s inner turf in the 1-mile test for three-year-olds.
“I was very excited to train a Justify,” noted Vassilieva. “He’s very well-bred like so many of the Chiefswood horses, so it was an opportunity I was very much looking forward to. In the mornings, early on, he was just an okay work horse, but as soon as he got to the races and got that experience, he started to show more competitiveness in his works and in his races. He got better and better as he went along.”
Unraced at 2, Powell River made his career debut on the turf at Gulfstream in early March and finished second at 34-1 in the 7 ½-furlong test.
One race later, on May 1, this time over a mile on the Churchill Downs turf, he posted another runner-up performance, at 22-1.
“The first time out, at Gulfstream, he pleasantly surprised us that day with a very nice second,” said Vassilieva. “He had a throat issue at two and we weren’t sure how that would impact him in that first effort. He faced some high-calibre horses and ran extremely well.
“He ran another very nice race at Churchill following the race in Florida. It was on Oaks day and he really showed up at a big price. That effort, and his first one, further boosted our confidence in his abilities.”
Powell River headed to Woodbine for his next engagement, a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight race on the main track on June 14. He took a narrow advantage in the seven-horse field into the first turn and was still on top along the backstretch. After surrendering the lead briefly, the chestnut colt, who had been under pressure throughout, reclaimed the lead and went on to post a 1 ½-length victory in 1:45.04.
His first try at the stakes level came in the Plate Trial, a key prep on the road to The King’s Plate, on July 19, where he finished off the board.
Vassilieva, who owns a 14-8-5 mark from 53 starts in 2026, expects Powell River will appreciate a return to the grass.
“We see that he has an affinity for the turf. Being a 3-year-old in Canada, we felt we had to follow the King’s Plate trail, which we did. Although he has won on the Tapeta here, inevitably, I think he will appreciate a return to the grass, and especially at the mile distance, which suits him.”
Jamar “Fly” Goddard is the groom.
Recent works: Powell River breezed 4 furlongs in :49.00 over the main track on Aug. 22.
“He’s in good shape and he’s fit from the races he’s had,” said Vassilieva. “He worked alone and had an easy half-mile to keep him happy and did it well within himself. He gave us the type of work we were looking for.”
Fast facts: Jockey Todd Kabel, who passed away in 2021, won seven editions of the Toronto Cup, including five straight from 2003-07. Trainer Mark Casse has sent out six winners, the most recent coming in 2020 with Proven Strategies.
Wagering menu for the Toronto Cup: Includes Rolling Double / Exacta / 0.20 Trifecta / 0.20 Superfecta / $1 Swinger.
Field for the Toronto Cup
Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer
1 – Teleport (IRE) – Pietro Moran – Kevin Attard
2 – Aces Honor – Reylu Gutierrez – Ethan West
3 – Powell River – Ryan Munger – Katerina Vassilieva
4 – Chaos Agent – Rafael Hernandez – Josie Carroll
5 – Aretha – Fraser Aebly – Kevin Attard
6 – Running On Time – Eswan Flores – Mike De Paulo
7 – Final Score – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Kevin Attard
Zadracarta Stakes: Alpha Gamma Girl looks to join winning fraternity
Alpha Gamma Girl will look to break her maiden in style in Saturday’s $150,000 Zadracarta Stakes at Woodbine.
Sporting a mark of 0-4-2 from eight starts, Alpha Gamma Girl will take on six rivals in the 5-furlong event for Ontario-bred fillies, three-year-olds and up, to be run on the Toronto oval’s inner turf.
Alpha Gamma Girl at Woodbine.
Trained by Darren Glennon, the daughter of Souper Speedy out of the unraced Bold Executive mare Firey Grill (bred by Glennon, the bay has produced four runners, including two who are stakes-placed, and is from the family of multiple stakes winner Poulin in O T and stakes winner Zazinga) has finished second in her past three starts – all at five panels on the inner turf – including two narrow misses, by a neck and a head, respectively, in her last two races.
“She always showed talent,” said Glennon. “I was a little disappointed with her not knuckling down in some of her earlier races, but that is what I have seen from her in the last few races, that she is putting it together and knuckling down.”
Despite the tough losses, Glennon is pleased with the fight his charge has displayed.
“It was unfortunate that she lost in head bob in her latest race, but she grabbed a hold of the bridle and galloped out with her ears pricked. She is also showing a little diversity in her running style. She can be on the front or she can sit off the pace and stalk and then run a horse down. We didn’t see that last year, but we are happy she is figuring it out this year.”
Bred and owned by Ronald House, Alpha Gamma Girl debuted on July 20, 2024, finishing third in a 5-furlong maiden optional claimer contested on the Woodbine’s inner turf.
It would be her only start of the year after. She returned to racing 469 days later and finished second in a maiden special weight, again at 5 furlongs over the inner turf.
“She had some setbacks and the key was taking our time with her. That’s all. Her sister [Trading Bay] got better as she got older, so it was simply a question of being patient and knowing that she would get better with age. I just raced Alpha Gamma Girl’s half-brother, Named Firey, for the first time this year and he finished second. He developed nicely over the winter, which again shows how the dam’s runners are getting better as they go along.”
In four starts this year, Alpha Gamma Girl has posted a trio of seconds and a third, the latter coming at 5 furlongs over the Woodbine main track in her seasonal debut.
The Zadracarta marks the lightly-raced five-year-old’s first stakes test, a task Glennon believes Alpha Gamma Girl is up to.
“I am not saying that five furlongs is her absolute best distance – I think five-and-a-half or six would make her speed even more deadly – but she has a couple of things going for her. She has run extremely well at this distance and on that course. She knows how to get around it very fast. I took a shot with her sister, Trading Bay, and got her stakes-placed [in the 2022 Ballade]. This race comes around once a year, so we are going to take a shot. We are going in the gate and giving it everything we’ve got.”
Serge Hurtado is the groom.
Recent works: Alpha Gamma Girl covered 4 furlongs in a bullet :48.00 over the turf training track on Aug. 21.
“She was on her own. We were just looking for a maintenance work. She did it in a very quick time, but she has come out of it great, and everything is lining up, hopefully, for a big run on Saturday.”
Fast facts: The race is named after the multiple stakes-winning daughter of Bold Ruckus, who went 8-7-3 from 27 starts and recorded $385,363 in purse earnings. Her stakes successes include the 1987 Fanfreluche and 1988 Star Shoot. Heyahohowdy won the inaugural running in 2004. Little Teddy won last year’s edition.
Wagering menu for the Zadracarta: Includes Rolling Double / Exacta / 0.20 Trifecta / 0.20 Superfecta / 0.20 Pick 3 (Races 7-8-9) / 0.20 Pick 4 (Races 7-8-9-10) / $1 Swinger
Field for the $150,000 Zadracarta
Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer
1 – Olivia Rose – Rafael Hernandez – Mark Casse
2 – Little Teddy – Austin Adams – Santino Di Paola
3 – Foresters Exec – Fraser Aebly – Patrick Dixon
4 – Alpha Gamma Girl – Romero Ramsay Maragh – Darren Glennon
5 – Dolce Fortuna – Ryan Munger – Josie Carroll
6 – Home for a Rest – Daisuke Fukumoto – Robert Tiller
7 – Sinclairity – Pietro Moran – Kevin Attard
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