Carlo d’Amato and Stacey Van Camp’s SECRET RESERVE, trained by Mike Mattine, benefitted from a sharp ride by Leo Salles to win the $100,000 Steady Growth Stakes at Woodbine on Dec. 10, the final stakes race of the season. The 1 1/16 mile race on Tapeta for Ontario-sired three-year-olds and up had a rash of scratches including favoured Artie’s Storm and thus a field of eight went postward with Cruden Bay, in his first stakes start, made the tepid favourite at 2-to-1.
It was longshot Dun Drum who went to the lead and set a solid pace while Secret Reserve tracked in second in his first route race attempt since 2021 when he was sixth in the Steady Growth Stakes. Jockey Salles kept the five-year-old by Giant Gizmo – Smart Suzie by Smart Strike close to the rail and waited to make his move turning into the stretch. By then, the tough gelding Ron’s Gizmo had swooped the field on his way to a brief lead but he did not hold it as Secret Reserve angled out for the win, holding longshot Grandson safe by half a length. The time was :43.91 for an 86 Beyer Speed Figure.
“He’s a nice, honest horse and this year we had a lot of tough results,” said Mattine. “But he finally came through today. The inside was really good the last week or so and he had a good post. He stayed on the rail and saved ground.”
In fact, this was the first win for Secret Reserve in his last 11 races, dating back to his victory in the Bold Venture Stakes (G3) last August. This year the gelding was third in the Bold Venture and Vigil Stakes (G3).
Bred by Dr. Brian Van Arem in Loretto, ON, Secret Reserve was a $9,000 CTHS yearling purchase and his career record stands at six wins in 21 races and earnings of over $362,000.
D’Amato and Van Camp also race stakes-placed three-year-old Silent Reserve, a son of Silent Name (Jpn) who is from a half-sister to Secret Reserve’s dam Smart Suzie, Siddona.
The dam of Smart Suzie and Siddona, MUSKRAT SUZIE (by Vice Regent and bred by Richard Lister), is the dam of Grade 1 winner Jambalaya, winner of the Arlington Million, and With Approval stakes winner Riley Ripasso.
Secret Reserve is the fourth foal to race of Smart Suzie, whose last named foal is four-year-old winner Golden Suzie.
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With four racing days left in the 2023 Woodbine season, jockey Kazushi Kimura has 155 wins, leading Sahin Civaci who burst onto the top rider scene this year with 129 wins so far. Rafael Hernandez has 114 and apprentice Sophia Vives has 84.
Patrick Husbands has 16 stakes wins to lead the meeting.
New to Woodbine this year, Ryan Munger won the late Double on Sunday and now has 47 wins in his first season since coming from South Africa. That places him in seventh place.
MARK CASSE is well on his way to another training title with 110 wins while Martin Drexler, who recently won his 100th race of the year (all tracks), has 84 wins at Woodbine for second place, ahead of Kevin Attard’s 69 wins.
BRUNO SCHICKEDANZ leads owners with 58 wins and purses of over $1.7 million but GARY BARBER, who has started one-quarter the number of horses as Schickedanz, has 22 wins at a 23 percent rate and has had a litany of stakes winners this year.
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