Shakespeare brilliant in Woodbine Mile

Toronto, Ontario – Favoured Shakespeare, ridden by Garrett Gomez, saved all the drama for the final sixteenth of a mile, as he powered his way along the rail to win the Grade 1, $1 million Woodbine Mile on Sunday.

When the curtain came down at the finish of the turf classic, Shakespeare, trained by Kiaran McLaughlin, proved a handy one-length winner over Kip Deville. Longshot Galantas was third, another length and one-half further back, with a final time for the Mile of 1:33.58, over a firm E.P. Taylor Turf Course.

Today was Act II for Shakespeare, since it was just his second start in the last 23 months, as the six-year-old son of 1987 Breeders’ Cup Turf winner Theatrical recovered from a tendon injury in 2006.

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He had only returned to the races on August 2, brilliantly winning a one mile allowance contest at Saratoga with Gomez aboard, after not racing since the Breeders’ Cup Turf in October of 2005. There, he went postward as the undefeated second choice, but finished a distant 12th, while under the care of trainer Bill Mott. A few months later, the tendon injury surfaced, necessitating the lengthy layoff.

Now, he’s ready for Act III this season, which will likely be his appearance in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, October 27 at Monmouth Park, where he’ll certainly be one of the favourites.

The Mile script unfolded as expected, as Remarkable News and jockey Ramon Dominguez went immediately to the front, taking the field through a :23.82 opening quarter, then the half in :46.71.

But stalking him was 21-1 Galantas and jockey Todd Kabel, while Kip Deville, the second choice at 5-1 with Cornelio Velasquez, was also well positioned in third, just a length off the pace, as the field turned into the lengthy stretch.

Meanwhile, regally-bred Shakespeare was well back on the inside, as Gomez looked for a seam on the fence. The opening came when last year’s Mile winner Becrux drifted and Shakespeare set sail for the leaders.

Up front, Remarkable News, who hung on for fourth, was joined by Galantas and Kip Deville, who eventually edged to the front, only to be collared by Shakespeare, flashing a tremendous turn of foot, in the closing strides.

Shakespeare is co-owned by his breeder, Frank Justice’s Dell Ridge Farm and William Schettine. His win capped a great weekend for McLaughlin, who also saddled Lear’s Princess to victory in Saturday’s Gazelle Handicap at Belmont Park, upsetting Rags to Riches in the process.

“He showed me a little bit more speed early on in the race than I expected him to,” said Gomez, who also rode Shakespeare’s dam, Lady Shirl, to victory in the 1991 E.P. Taylor Stakes at Woodbine. “I just tried to get him in behind a couple of them, getting in a little coverage. But as the race progressed, he was there for me.

“Throughout the whole trip, I was very satisfied with what was going on underneath me. I was very impressed with him the first time I was able to sit on his back. It’s a real honour to be able to touch a horse like this. Hopefully, he keeps progressing.

“He’s a true professional, got a lot of heart, a beautiful animal.

When I turned for home, I was just hoping to find a way through. Becrux came off the fence a little bit and gave me a chance to get through there. Once he saw the daylight, he got us home. He ran a really good race. I thought the mile might be a little short for him but he proved me wrong. He’s just a very talented horse.”

“Never had a horse this good before. It’s just incredible,” added co-owner and breeder Justice. “He’s just a fantastic horse. We’ve had him off for a year and nine months and made sure he was well before we brought him back. That’s a tremendous ride, a wonderful ride. I’ve never seen anybody ride a horse that good.”

“He’s a very, very classy horse,” said Art Magnuson, an assistant to McLaughlin. “We’re very lucky to have him in the barn. We could tell early he was very special. Mr. Justice gets all the credit for all the time off and bringing him back slowly. It seems to have paid off. I think he went into this race about the same as Saratoga. He always trains well. We were surprised he ran as well as he did (first time out).”

For the win, Shakespeare deposited $600,000 into his career bankroll, as he became racing latest millionaire, now with over $1.3 million.

The best finish by a locally-based runner was Awesome Action, who wound up seventh. Meanwhile, Sky Conqueror, last year’s Male Turf Horse in Canada, was eighth, while the filly Arravale, the 2006 Horse of the Year, was 10th.