Three-year-olds will do battle Saturday at Woodbine in the Grade 3 Ontario Derby for $135,000 and while the title for Canada’s Champion three-year-old colt or gelding is likely already captured by MY BOY PRINCE, there is money on the table for some other good ones.
Speaking of My Boy Prince, the grey colt is headed to the Grade 3 Bryan Station Stakes at one mile on the grass at Keeneland on Oct. 26 and that $600,000 race should be right in the wheelhouse for the 2023 Champion two-year-old.
My Boy Prince has had a good year, with stakes wins in the King Corrie (5 1/2 furlongs), Queenston (7 furlongs) and Plate Trial (1 1/8 miles). He looked like he was long gone in the King’s Plate on the final turn, but got pipped right on the money by the filly Caitlinhergrtness. He then came back in a very difficult spot, the Grade 1 Woodbine Mile against older turf stars, and he finished sixth. albeit with a 93 Beyer Figure.
The Ontario Derby contenders are Breeders’ Stakes winner ROSCAR, Grade 3 Durham Cup winner DRESDEN ROW and the much-hyped SWIFT DELIVERY, second in the Toronto Cup on Aug. 31.
Adding to the intrigue in the 1 1/8 mile Tapeta race is the $700,000 two-year-old purchase from last year, BAIL US OUT, who won at Woodbine on the grass last time, his second outing in Canada.
Roscar, owned by Chiefswood Stables and trained by Rachel Halden, was easy to like in the Breeders’ as the bay gelding was showing signs of improvement in his third race with Lasix. The son of Oscar Performance won his maiden on the Tapeta at seven furlongs, so he should have no trouble shortening from 1 1/2 miles on grass to this distance on Tapeta.
Dresden Row ran a huge race to beat older horses in the Durham Cup on Sept. 28. The flashy chestnut by Lord Nelson had been third in the Toronto Cup on turf and upset the Durham with a stalking trip under Ryan Munger. It was a tough race as he fought to win by a head after getting quite sweaty from pre-race antics, so he must avoid the bounce.
Swift Delivery, a 16 1/2 length maiden winner on Tapeta in June soon after being gelded, was all the rage when a share of him was purchased by NFL’er Travis Kelce, boyfriend of Taylor Swift, before his last race, the Toronto Cup. The gelding was a decent second under Patrick Husbands.
Grade 3 winner Two Ghosts, last year’s Coronation Futurity winner Babbo and the turf filly Miss Roberts (GB) complete the field.
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