Toronto, ON – The richest card in Woodbine’s thoroughbred history (excluding the 1996 Breeders’ Cup) is set for Saturday, October 4, highlighted by the $2 million, Grade 1 Pattison Canadian International.
Not only will the Pattison, which drew a field of 10 turf specialists, be contested, so will three other turf stakes – the $1 million E.P. Taylor for fillies and mares, the $500,000 Nearctic for sprinters, and the $300,000 Summer for two-year-olds. All four events are Breeders’ Cup ‘Win and You’re In’ races, meaning the winners also earn berths into their respective Breeders’ Cup races, slated for October 24 and 25 at Santa Anita in California.
The 71st edition of the mile and one-half Pattison, Canada’s richest horse race, over the E.P. Taylor Turf Course, is slated for 5:48 pm ET.
ESPN will provide special two-hour live coverage of the four-race extravaganza, with The Score carrying the presentation across Canada from 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm ET.
This marks the sixth year that Pattison Outdoor, Canada’s largest outdoor advertising company, has sponsored Woodbine’s turf classic, which rewards the winner with $1.2 million. Pattison recently renewed its title sponsorship agreement of the race through 2009.
Eric Lamaze, Canada’s gold medallist in show-jumping at the recent 2008 Beijing Olympics, was the guest drawmaster when the post positions were determined on Wednesday.
Heading the Pattison is the world-travelling French-bred Doctor Dino (PP3, 2-1), the field’s leading money winner with over $2.7 million and the 2-1 morning line favourite. To be ridden for the first time by Frankie Dettori, who has won two previous Internationals aboard Mutafaweq (2000) and Sulamani (2004), Doctor Dino counts the Group 1 Hong Kong Vase last December in Sha Tin and the Grade 1 Man O’ War at Belmont Park in September of 2007 as his two biggest triumphs, in a 27-race career which has seen the six-year-old son of Muhtathir visit the winner’s circle on eight occasions.
Trained by Richard Gibson for Spanish owner Javier Martinez Salmean, Doctor Dino enters the Pattison off a second-place finish to Getaway in the Group 2 Grand Prix de Deauville on August 31. “He was up against a horse (Getaway) who was, at one stage, the highest-rated turf horse in Europe earlier in the year,” said Gibson. “The track was very soft and very tired after a long Deauville month. The good news is he didn’t have a hard race that day. We feel we have him in good shape for his autumn campaign. He’s a remarkable athlete in that he can put out of the box every day with a big smile on his face. He loves his work.”
Only two French-breds have won the International, the last being champion All Along in 1983.
Juddmonte Farms’ Champs Elysees (PP5, 7-2), to be ridden by Garrett Gomez, will also attract plenty of support, off his thrilling nose triumph in the Grade 1, Northern Dancer here at Woodbine on September 7, which made him racing’s newest millionaire. Earlier in the year, the British homebred five-year-old son of Danehill took the Grade 2 San Marcos at Santa Anita, also with Gomez aboard.
Trained by Hall of Famer Bobby Frankel, Champs Elysees, out of the dam Hasili, is a full-brother to Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf winners Banks Hill and Intercontinental, and another Group 1 winner, Cacique. He’s also a half-brother to Group 1 winner Heat Haze. Juddmonte has won two previous Internationals, with French Glory in 1990 and with stakes record-holder Raintrap in 1994, their last entrant in the turf classic. British-breds have won six Internationals, the latest by Collier Hill in 2006. “He came out of the race good,” said Frankel. “He’s very good right now. He’s doing everything perfectly. Sometimes they don’t run well (after a big effort) but I think he’s going to run an even better race (in the PCI, than in the Northern Dancer).”
German-bred Quijano (PP4, 4-1), trained by Peter Schiergen, makes his third appearance at Woodbine and a second consecutive start in the
International. Last year, Quijano closed well on the outside to finish third, just a length behind Cloudy’s Knight and Ask in the Pattison. This year, the six-year-old gelded son of former German star Acatenango won the Group 1 Gran Premio di Milano on June 15, and most recently was beaten a nose by Pattison rival Champs Elysees in the Northern Dancer. In fact, the first five finishers in the Northern Dancer, separated by only one length, are coming back for another round in the Pattison.
Overall, Quijano has won 13 of 23 career starts and over $1.9 million for his owner-breeder Stiftung Gestuet Fahrhof. Andrasch Starke climbs aboard for the 14th consecutive time. “Quijano is doing well. He likes the (Woodbine) course,” said Ilke Hildebrand, assistant to Peter Schiergen. “He’s very relaxed here. I think he will run a good race. I think he’s the same (as good) as last year. But all the times (we’ve met), we finish after (behind) Doctor Dino.”
Gustav Schickedanz’s Ontario homebred Marlang (PP2, 15-1) is the only three-year-old in the Pattison, who will carry 119 pounds versus the 126 pounds carried by each of his nine rivals. Trained by Debbie England, Marlang enters off a two-race win streak, having taken the Breeders’
Stakes, the third leg of the Canadian Triple Crown on August 3 at the same distance, and most recently the mile and three-sixteenths Grade 3 Saranac at Saratoga on August 31.
Marlang will try to become the first Canadian-bred to win the International since Thornfield in 1999, who, coincidentally, was trained by England’s husband Phil, and ridden by Richard Dos Ramos, who will also be aboard on Saturday. The other Canadian-breds to win were Chief Bearhart (1997), Sky Classic (1991), He’s A Smoothie (1967) and George Royal (1965 and 1966). Since 1958, 12 three-year-olds have won the International, the last being Phoenix Reach in 2003.
Augustin Stable’s Lucarno (PP9, 8-1), a Pennsylvania homebred four-year-old son of Dynaformer, arrives from his base in England for trainer John Gosden. Lucarno enjoyed a banner three-year-old season, winning the Group 1 St. Leger at Doncaster and the Group 2 Great Voltigeur at York, en route to earning just over $1 million. This year, Lucarno has a single win (Group 2 Princess of Wales’s Stakes) in five outings. Gosden previously saddled International favourites Presenting (1995), owned by Augustin, and Mashaallah (1992), but both were unplaced. He’ll be ridden by Jimmy Fortune, who finished third to Thornfield while aboard Courteous in the 1999 International.
Seaside Retreat (PP8, 10-1), owned by William Farish Jr., has won three of his seven 2008 outings, including the Grade 2 Nijinsky Stakes at Woodbine on August 4 in track-record time for the mile and one-quarter turf event. The five-year-old gelded son of King Cugat raced only once in 2007, but has seven career wins in 20 starts and is approaching the $1 million mark after his third-place finish in the Northern Dancer.
Trained by the reigning two-time Sovereign Award winner Mark Casse, who will be saddling his first Pattison entrant, Seaside Retreat will be ridden by Patrick Husbands, a five-time Sovereign Award winner as Canada’s outstanding jockey. Husbands finished second to Mutafaweq aboard Williams News in the 2000 International, beaten a nose on the wire.
Harlequin Ranches’ British-bred Spice Route (PP10, 20-1), to be ridden by Jim McAleney, was most recently fifth but only one length behind Champs Elysees in the Northern Dancer. The four-year-old gelded son of King’s Best, a winner in three of 14 career outings, is trained by Hall of Famer Roger Attfield, who is still seeking his first International win, after second-place finishes with Alywow in 1994 and Steady Power in 1989.
Irish-bred Mourilyan (PP1, 15-1), trained by Herman Brown for owner Ramzan Kadyrov, the President of Chechen Republic, is a four-time winner in 10 career starts. The four-year-old son of Desert Prince, most recently third in the Group 3 September Stakes at Kempton, England, will try to become the 10th Irish-bred to win the International and will be ridden for the first time by John Egan.
German homebred Lauro (PP7, 20-1), trained by Andreas Wohler for Gestut Ittlingen, will, amazingly, be making his first start in 18 months, after recovering from a pelvic injury. The five-year-old son of Monsun, with only seven career starts, will be ridden by Eduardo Pedroza. As a three-year-old in 2006, though, Lauro defeated Rail Link, who would go on to win the prestigious Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe that year. Wohler has saddled two second-place finishers in past Internationals, Paolini in 2001 and Simonas in 2004.
Completing the field is Marsh Side (PP6, 15-1), trained by Neil Drysdale for owner-breeder Robert Evans. The strapping five-year-old Kentucky-bred son of Gone West hasn’t won since taking the Valedictory Stakes at Woodbine in December of 2006, but had his best effort in some time when fourth in the Northern Dancer, just three-quarters of a length back of Champs Elysees. Javier Castellano rides.
The stakes record for the mile and one-half over the E.P. Taylor Turf Course is 2:25 3/5 seconds, set by Juddmonte Farms’ Raintrap in 1994.
The largest winning margin still belongs to the incomparable Secretariat, when ‘Big Red’ coasted home by six and one-half lengths in his farewell appearance in 1973. He is also the shortest-priced winner in history, paying $2.40.
Favourites have won the International 20 out of 50 times (40%) since 1958, with the last to do so being Sulamani, the 4-5 choice in 2004 and before him, Chief Bearhart in 1997.
The Grade 1, $1 million E.P. Taylor Stakes, for fillies and mares at one and one-quarter miles on the turf, will go postward at 5:16 pm. It has drawn a well-matched field of nine, including the 5-2 morning line favourite J’ray (PP2, Joe Bravo), winner of the Grade 2 Canadian on September 7 at Woodbine, Gary Tanaka’s Toque de Queda (PP5, Garrett Gomez, 7-2), Godolphin’s Irish-bred Group 2 winner Folk Opera (PP4, Frankie Dettori, 4-1) and Canada’s 2007 Horse of the Year Sealy Hill (PP1, Patrick Husbands, 8-1), who was runner-up to Mrs. Lindsay in last year’s E.P. Taylor.
The Grade 2, six furlong $500,000 Nearctic Stakes, at 4:35 pm, drew a field of 12, headed by defending champion Heros Reward (PP8, Javier Castellano), the 5-2 morning line choice, followed by recent Woodbine Mile third-place finisher, Just Rushing (PP1, Emma-Jayne Wilson), at 4-1.
The one mile, Grade 3 $300,000 Summer Stakes for two-year-olds, slated for 4:04 pm, has eight entrants, with Jim Dandy Stable’s Utterly Cool (PP7, Richard Dos Ramos) established as the 7-5 morning line favourite, while stakes-placed Skipadate (PP1, Patrick Husbands), co-owned and trained by Mark Casse, is next at 5-2.
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