Fresh off a one-two finish in last month’s Niagara Stakes, stablemates English Actor and Side Street will meet again in Saturday’s running of the $175,000 HPIbet Singspiel Stakes (G3T) at Woodbine.
The E.P. Taylor turf will play host to the 1 3/8-mile Singspiel, a race for three-year-olds and up that has drawn 10 starters.
English Actor, a five-year-old son of English Channel out of the Storm Cat mare Ambitious Cat, emerged victorious in the Aug. 8 running of the 1 3/8-mile Niagara, edging Side Street by 1 ¾ lengths on the inner turf.
“Everything worked out for him that day,” said trainer Rachel Halden. “He looked good doing it. The Singspiel was the logical next place to aim with him.”
A consistent producer for Halden, English Actor had shown an affinity for the turf leading into the Niagara.
“We were looking forward to giving him that opportunity to run a route of ground again. He ended up getting a comfortable lead, got left alone and that’s how he seems to build confidence. It was just one of those races where everything worked out well for him.”
Standing at 3-4-2 with $225,519 in purse earnings across 13 lifetime starts, the Chiefswood Stables’ homebred enters the Singspiel on an upward trajectory. Ahead of the chestnut gelding’s second bout with graded competition – he was seventh in last year’s Canadian International (G1T) – Halden is excited to see how English Actor will adapt to a new setting.
“You hope for him to reproduce his Niagara effort, but I think it [the Singspiel] offers a different dynamic being on the E. P. Taylor as opposed to the inner turf.”
David Ward is the groom.
Side Street, runner-up to his fellow Halden trainee in the Niagara, kept English Actor honest as their conditioner watched her two pupils go head-to-head.
“It’s a unique position to be in,” said Halden. “At one point, all three (Roscar was the other) of our horses were one, two, three turning for home and I didn’t know who to watch. How can you be disappointed when you’ve finished one-two in a race like that?”
Proud of the game effort from Side Street, who “relishes the extra ground,” Halden viewed the Singspiel as a natural landing spot for the five-year-old gelding.
“I think this horse might prefer the E. P. Taylor. With his closing style, he’s going to have the long stretch to do that this time around.”
The Kitten’s Joy chestnut, out of the Street Cry (IRE) mare Tara Street, has remained in good form through his last two works.
“He’s quite a stout horse. He’s a big, strong horse and an easy keeper. He always keeps his condition very well.”
Remaining in close proximity on Saturday, such as another one-two finish, would certainly do the trick for Halden.
“You can never complain about that, can you?”
Emmanuelle Hoyau is the groom.
Among those joining the Halden duo in the Singspiel is surging sophomore Coburg. The bay, trained by Sean Smullen, is coming off a commanding 7 ¼-length score on Aug. 2 at Woodbine.
“He was really dominant in that race,” praised Smullen, who won the inaugural running of the Singspiel in 2005 with Daddy Cool. “He’s got a big free-flowing stride, and he likes to get into that rhythm.”
While the 1 ¼-mile allowance contest was originally scheduled to travel 1 3/8 miles over the inner turf, Smullen is confident in Coburg’s capacity to handle the Singspiel’s added distance.
“I believe he’s an out and out stayer, so I think the further he goes, the better he will perform. For that reason, I think the mile and 3/8 will really benefit him. The main thing with him is to get into his natural stride and not get interrupted in any way – just a nice clear run, and I think he’ll stay well.”
The conditioner is also looking forward to the change in surface.
“I really think that course [E. P. Taylor] will suit him a lot better,” continued Smullen. “I wouldn’t be a fan of running him on the inner turf, just because he’s such a big, long-striding horse, it’d be too sharp for him. Whereas the outer turf, there’s no excuses. It’s a big, fair track and it’ll suit a galloping horse.”
For Coburg, a three-year-old son of Uncle Mo–Flowering Peach (IRE), the key to excelling at a greater distance may already be in his DNA.
“I think a lot of the stamina will come from the Galileo (IRE) dam,” said Smullen. “Hopefully, he likes the turf as much as he does the Tapeta.”
Amid a two-race unbeaten streak, which started with a three-quarter length triumph on July 4 at Woodbine, Coburg’s last two works have come at 5 furlongs over the dirt training track – a maintenance breeze in 1:04.20 on Aug. 22 and a 1:00.40 move on Aug. 29.
Pietro Moran, who will pilot Dancin in Da’nile in the Singspiel, manned Coburg for the maintenance work. Ryan Munger, who took the reins in Coburg’s most recent work, will remain aboard the Chiefswood Stables gelding in the Singspiel.
“Ryan sat on him on Saturday morning [August 29] and he worked outstanding. It was a very even work and he galloped out well. Ryan was impressed by him.”
Smullen is equally enthused about Munger’s talents.
“He’s a good lad. He rides very well. He’s got lovely hands.”
Having proven himself worthy of a promotion ahead of his stakes debut, Coburg has the full backing of Smullen.
“He deserves a shot at this stage,” said Smullen. “The distance is key, and there’s some lovely horses going in there, so it’ll be a good test for him.”
Justin Lane is the groom.
Recent works: English Actor and Side Street worked in tandem on Aug. 28, when the pair covered 5 furlongs on the turf training track in 1:01.60.
“They have a similar work style and did what I needed them to do,” lauded Halden. “I knew it was going to work out, working them together, and it was the kind of work that I was looking for.”
Fast facts: Trainer Roger Attfield won five consecutive editions of the Singspiel, and a record nine overall. The race is named after the Irish-bred son of In the Wings (GB), whose nine victories in 20 lifetime starts included the 1996 Canadian International Stakes.
Wagering menu for the Singspiel: Includes Rolling Double / Exacta / 0.20 Trifecta / 0.20 Superfecta / $1 Swinger.
Field for the HPIbet Singspiel Stakes (G3T)
Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer
1 – Jokestar – Eswan Flores – Kevin Attard
2 – Mesero – Rafael Hernandez – Dale Romans
3 – Junipero Serra – Jalon Samuel – Audrey Cheung
4 – Tomasello – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Mark Casse
5 – Magna Time – Luis Reyes – Kevin Attard
6 – Side Street – Jose Campos – Rachel Halden
7 – Swift Delivery – Romero Ramsay Maragh – Mark Casse
8 – Dancin in Da’nile – Pietro Moran – Gail Cox
9 – English Actor – Fraser Aebly – Rachel Halden
10 – Coburg – Ryan Munger – Sean Smullen
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