Sunday racing at Woodbine was a big day for Woodbine’s leading rider KAZUSHI KIMURA, who rode four winners and completed a nine-win week. ‘KK’ continues to dominate the large Woodbine rider’s colony and he is nearing his 700th career win in his fifth year of riding.
Three of his wins on May 28 came for trainer KEVIN ATTARD, who had four-win week and now sits third on the trainer standings with 10 wins behind Mark Casse (14) and Martin Drexler (12).
Both Kimura and Attard were at their best with Lanni Bloodstock’s KEROUAC, a big, long-striding gelding by Uncle Mo who had not raced in 13 months. Originally trained by Bob Baffert at Santa Anita, Kerouac, a $410,000 yearling, was bought by Donato Lanni at the 2022 Fasig Tipton Horses of Racing Age sale for $21,000. The gelding had a couple of workouts in Kentucky before the sale but he went on the shelf. Returning as a gelding and without blinkers on Sunday, the four-year-old and Kimura loped on the lead through very slow fractions and galloped to a big win by 5 1/4 lengths in 1:45.12.
Kevin and Kazushi were back in the winner’s circle after race 8 when GASTON posted a mild upset in an allowance/optional claiming race at 1 1/16 miles. The four-year-old was making his first start since December when he dead-heated for a win. Owned by X-Men Racing and Madaket Stables, the son of Hard Spun – Bola de Cristal (Ire) by Galileo (Ire) saved ground around the turn for home and nabbed the speedy Malibu Edge in time for the win in a snappy 1:44.21. His Beyer Figure was 85.
Gaston was bred by Jay and Christine Hayden’s Saintsbury Farm.
The third winner for ‘Team K’ was yet another horse owned in part by Donato Lanni. ENJOYTHESILENT (Silent Name (Jpn), an Ontario-bred three-year-old dark bay, returned as a gelding after a long layoff (he raced once last year, in July), and flew around other maidens to win easily in 1:23.91 for 7 furlongs. He posted a 77 Beyer Figure. Enjoythesilent is co-owned by Daniel Plouffe.
A $37,000 weanling purchase at the 2020 Keeneland November sale, Enjoythesilent had a lot of workouts last spring and summer but never started. He was bred by Adena Springs and is the fourth foal of the unraced Hard Spun mare Spun Lace. Spun Lace, herself a half-sister to five winners, produced Zestina, a two-time stakes winner, and winners Vivid Vixen and Awesome Tiger.
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KEITH NICHOLSON, owner and breeder (Double R Racing), lost his mare Mi’an Mar (Mister Jolie) this past winter but she gave him another winner. RELOAD’S REBEL, a son of Reload and a five-year-old gelding making his first career start for trainer Michelle Love, went to the lead early in a 6 furlong $40,000 maiden optional race, smoothly glided along under Patrick Husbands and coasted to the wire in front in 1:11.07. This guy’s younger full brother RELOAD’S RASCAL did the same thing last year for Nicholson and Love and that gelding is two-for-two and recently had a sizzling workout at Woodbine.
Trainer LAYNE GILIFORTE had a busy day with his Chiefswood Stable horses on Sunday and it was surely of great relief when the four-year-old filly INDY CHAMPAGNE won her maiden by a nose in race 3 after the consecutive second-place finishes. Kazushi Kimura got the filly to the wire in front right on time, edging younger rival Aha Moment in 1:45.82 for the 1 1/16 miles.
It was the 905th training win for Giliforte, who was a leading trainer at Fort Erie when he had a public stable. He has been the Chiefswood Training Centre Manager since 2017. Gilforte sent out War Court and Causin Mayhem to second-place finishes later on Sunday.
NANCY GUEST celebrated a win with BEAU GUEST in race 4, a turf sprint for $40,000 claiming and it was the second straight win for the grey son of Tapiture who won his maiden in his 2022 finale. Well prepared by the Mark Casse team in Ocala and then Woodbine, the five-year-old tracked the speed and pounced on the leaders into the stretch to win in 1:15.17 for 6 1/2 furlongs. Rafael Hernandez was the winning rider.
ARGENTIUM, owned and bred by Dr. Judy Pottins and Howie Pottins, took race one Sunday at Woodbine despite losing his path in mid-stretch. The eight-year-old Badge of Silver gelding, competing in a non-winners of three lifetime, was given a deft ride by talented apprentice Amanda Vandermeersch to save ground early in the 1 1/16 mile race before beginning a rally between horses in the stretch run. But when rival Big Investment drifted out in front of Argentium, Vandermeersch had to check her horse at a crucial moment. But both Argentium and his rider kept on and once the path cleared, they charged through to win the $25,000 claiming race.
It was the first win for Argentium since October 2020 and that win was also the last time he picked up a top-three placing. He has earned over $153,000 for the Pottins family.
Trainer DON MACRAE not only got the win-shy SIR SAHIB to win last year in his first race off the claim, but the trainer had La Huerta’s eight-year-old gelding ready off the long layoff to win on Sunday. The Fort Larned gelding and jockey Declan Carroll parked themselves on the rail and well back of a modest early pace in the turf route and then motored up the inside in the stretch run. At 10-to-1, Sir Sahib was not considered a contender in a good field that included graded stakes placed Homer Screen. In deep stretch, Tecumseh’s War, who had not raced since 2021, sped to a clear lead and looked a winner with Homer Screen closing, but Sir Sahib split those two and was up for his fourth career win.
NICK NOSOWENKO’S SCOOT DADDY is now two-for-two in 2023 as he darted away to a big win in a turf sprint, race 9, despite a slow start from the rail. The four-year-old by We Miss Artie was well prepared by Nosowenko to win off a very long layoff on May 13 (Nov. 2021) and then he doubled up with Declan Carroll riding. The time was a sharp 1:14.91.
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NICK SAMPOGNA and trainer PAT PARENTE celebrated a win from SPANISH PRINCE, a Kentucky-bred by Cairo Prince who won a maiden turf sprint in front-running style. Making his first start for Parente after six races with trainer Dominic Polsinelli, Spanish Prince had shown promise in his season debut last May in a sprint and his only other turf attempts came in route races. Bet down to 2-to-1 on Sunday, the four-year-old romped home under Leo Salles, who had a very good week in the saddle.
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