Will Mother’s Day be 'Pink' at Woodbine in the New Providence Stakes?

Canada’s reigning Horse of the Year Pink Lloyd aims for 10th straight win

All eyes will be on Entourage Stable’s star Pink Lloyd in Sunday’s $100,000 New Providence Stakes at Woodbine Racetrack as he looks to extend his stakes win streak into the double-digits for Hall of Fame trainer Robert Tiller.

Just three horses have entered to take on the reigning Horse of the Year in the season’s first Ontario Sired Stakes event over six furlongs for horses three years old and up.

With regular reinsman Eurico Rosa Da Silva taking back the reins for Sunday’s outing, Pink Lloyd will attempt to repeat in the New Providence coming off a track record victory in the season opener’s Jacques Cartier Stakes.

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“All seems well, he came out of the race well and we’ve basically just carried on with him the way we’ve always trained him,” reported Tiller. “He’s happy out on the training track and he’s going into this race, I think, in real good shape – probably a little more relaxed, he just breezed a nice easy half. We’re basically following the same schedule as last year.”

The six-year-old Old Forester-Gladiator Queen gelding will put his nine-race win streak on the line in the afternoon’s third race facing his stablemate Goodoldhockeygame, a supplemental entry who was a runner-up in the New Providence two years ago, along with three-time sprint stakes winner Lokinforpursemonee for trainer John Ross, and Marten River from the David Bell barn.

“I’m really surprised it came up this short,” said Tiller of the four-horse field. “The other horse [Goodoldhockeygame] is actually doing very well and there’s no reason not to run him. There’s money available for everybody in there. If we could win our 10th stake in a row, that would really be something. Obviously, Pink Lloyd is the guy that we want to win with. Ten stakes in a row, like I said, that’s never been done that I know of. We’ll see what happens, he’s in good order. It’s a horse race though, you never know.”

A little ‘Pink’ on Mother’s Day would be a nice touch for the longtime horseman and his family who adore Woodbine’s resident rockstar.

“He’s in our hearts and our minds all the time and we absolutely love him,” said Tiller of the horse that has captivated racing fans. “I’m hoping he can do it, not just for us, but for Woodbine and for Canadian racing.”

Saturday’s card also features the $125,000 Marine Stakes (Grade 3), a 1-1/16 mile prep for next month’s Queen’s Plate with half of the eight-horse field among the 57 horses eligible to the first jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown.

Inge, Aheadbyacentury and Eskiminzin will run back after opening weekend stakes starts at Woodbine. The former inherited the Wando Stakes win for trainer Norm McKnight and owner Bruno Schickedanz while the latter two kicked off their sophomore seasons in the seven-furlong Queenston.

Trainer/co-owner John Ross has opted to run last year’s Coronation Futurity champ Aheadbyacentury back at a more favourable distance – he has a two-for-two record going two turns – before the Plate Trial Stakes with Gary Boulanger picking up the mount for this prep as Rafael Hernandez has the mount here on another Queen’s Plate eligible, Rose’s Vision, for trainer Simon Stuart and Chiefswood Stables.

The field also includes the disqualified Wando winner Machtree, graded stakes champion Archaggelos, and supplemental entries O’Kratos and Tale of Vienna.

Here is a look at the complete fields for the New Providence Stakes and Marine Stakes (Grade 3):

$100,000 New Providence Stakes (Race 3)
Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer – Weight
1. Marten River – Chantel Sutherland – David Bell – 117
2. Lokinforpursemonee – Rafael Hernandez – John Ross – 119
3. Pink Lloyd – Eurico Rosa Da Silva – Robert Tiller – 124
4. Goodoldhockeygame (S) – Patrick Husbands – Robert Tiller – 117

$125,000 Marine Stakes (Race 8)
Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer – Weight
1. Machtree – Patrick Husbands – Mark Casse – 117
2. O’Kratos (S) – Eurico Rosa Da Silva – Darwin Banach – 117
3. Archaggelos – Luis Contreras – Michael Dickinson – 121
4. Rose’s Vision – Rafael Hernandez – Stuart Simon – 119
5. Inge – Chantal Sutherland – Norm McKnight – 121
6. Eskiminzin – Jeffrey Alderson – Carlos Grant – 117
7. Aheadbyacentury – Gary Boulanger – John Ross – 121
8. Tale of Vienna (S) – Omar Moreno – Laurie Silvera – 117

Post time for Sunday’s nine-race card is 1 p.m.