AMALFI COAST took an immediate liking to Woodbine’s E.P. Taylor Turf Course, making her grass debut a winning one in the $125,000 Ontario Damsel Stakes for Ontario-bred three-year-old fillies on Sunday afternoon.
It is not every day you get 9 to 1 on a horse in a stakes race ridden by Eurico Da Silva but that was the case in the Damsel.
Owned and bred by Terra Racing table of Dom Romeo, son Frank and grandson Mike, Amalfi Coast gave that family its first stakes win in some time. Terra Racing is one of a few big name stables left from decades ago. Its biggest win came in 2010 with Big Red Mike who won the Queen’s Plate.
The Kevin Attard trainee settled off the pace, second-to-last in the one-mile turf test, and took the inside route to victory for jockey Eurico Rosa Da Silva. As the stalkers fanned out turning for home, Amalfi Coast progressed along the rail and came through in the two-path outside of longshot leader Miss Ariel, who had set fractions of :24.25, :48.03 and 1:10.98. She struck the front with a furlong to go and won by 2-1/2 lengths in 1:34.67. Intanga Rose rallied gamely behind the winner, closing from the back of the seven-horse field to snag the runner-up honours three-quarters of a length in front of Miss Ariel.
Unraced as a two-year-old, the chestnut daughter of Tapizar out of Include Katherine entered her first stakes engagement with a record reading 1-2-1 from five starts this year. She recorded her first win on August 2 going seven furlongs over the Tapeta.
“We had a few setbacks with her as a juvenile but got to the races this year and she was impressive from the first start,” said Attard. “She’s really kind of put things together and we’re hoping for a good future from her next year as well.”
With the move to the turf, Amalfi Coast has proven her versatility while adding the status of stakes winner to her resume.
“We were looking to get her on the turf. Her family on the dam side, we’ve had success with them on the turf. A half-sister Why Katherine, who was an accomplished turf runner, kind of always found the E.P. Taylor stretch a little long for her liking, but this filly here kind of has a different running style than she does and it suited her well today.
“It’s nice to have these options with her and she’s very versatile. Obviously, with this time of year coming around, the turf is going to be limited, so we’ll see what comes up next and take it from there.”
RED GIVEAWAY newest stakes winner for Signature Red
Red Giveaway took all the spoils in the co-featured $100,000 Bull Page Stakes, defeating the favoured Simcoe Stakes champion Rockcrest in Sunday’s six-furlong sprint for Ontario-sired two-year-old colts at Woodbine Racetrack.
Red Giveaway, the 5-2 third choice in a field of five, refused to give way to his main opponent Rockcrest through fractions of :21.95 and :44.29 and drew off by 4-1/4 lengths down the stretch to secure the victory in 1:09.10 over the Toronto Tapeta.
“It looked very easy but he’s a game horse, I like him so much. I got a perfect trip, he broke running and I was just a pilot,” said winning jockey Luis Contreras. “I broke on top and my horse just saw the other horse beside me, and he was very brave in front of the other one, so I just let him be. Turning for home, I just asked him, and he just kept running. It’s very windy today, but this horse handled it pretty good so far.”
The Signature Red colt out of the Philanthropist mare Giving Mood was also a winner at first asking over 5-1/2 furlongs on July 28 at Woodbine and is now perfect in two starts for trainer Sid Attard.
“The dam is a half-sister to Maritimer …he’s a nice colt,” noted Attard, referencing the 2011 Sovereign Award Champion Two-Year-Old Colt. “I’ll think he’ll go farther no problem, at least to seven-eighths. We’ll start from there and then we’ll take it a step at a time.”
Red Giveaway was bred and is owned by Norseman Racing Stable, which also sent out third-place finisher Red Fiction, conditioned by Attard’s son Jamie.
Meyer and Dealmaker complete the order of finish.
~ with files from Woodbine media
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