Songs and Laughter, expertly handled by leading rider Eurico Rosa da Silva, made his first turf test a winning one with an impressive stalking performance to capture Saturday’s $125,000 Bold Ruckus Stakes, at Woodbine.

Trained by Robert Tiller for owner-breeder Rolph Davis, Songs and Laughter stalked a contested pace set by Beliveau and Aaronic Blessing, before angling off the rail for the stretch run en route to a two-length score in the six furlong sprint for Ontario-sired sophomores. Beliveau, with Luis Contreras up for trainer Mark Casse, held on for place by a neck over the rallying Ultraflame. Songs and Laughter covered six furlongs in 1:09.62.

“There was a lot of speed in the race. He broke really sharp and I just took him back. He’s a very easy horse to relax and he was running very relaxed. We turned for home and I had lots of horse. We just went by them,” said da Silva, who won four races on the nine-race card.

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