Woodbine: Grand Slam+ One: Apprentice Vives, Sabatini Smashing

Opening day of the 2024 Woodbine Thoroughbred season, the 69th, was a showcase for Sovereign Award-winning apprentice jockey SOFIA VIVES, who won half of the 10-race card including her first stakes win. Vives guided the maiden filly SABATINI (Uncle Mo) to a 13-to-1 upset win in the $125,000 Star Shoot Stakes for three-year-old fillies at 6 furlongs for owners LNJ Foxwoods and NK Stable and trainer Josie Carroll.

Two of Vives’ wins were for 2024’s Outstanding Trainer MARK CASSE and his team, which won four races on the day. Sovereign Award-nominated jockey SAHIN CIVACI won three races and Hall of Fame trainer JOSIE CARROLL won two, including the stake.

Opening day began on the rainy side but that didn’t slow down bettors worldwide. Handle of $4.5 million set a record for the first day of a Woodbine meeting, according to Woodbine Entertainment.

Scroll to continue with content

Vives, from Walterboro, South Carolina, is a few months away from becoming a journeyman rider and no doubt is making the most of her apprentice rides. She gave the lightly-raced Sabatini a nice ride to win the Star Shoot as she allowed the Florida-bred to settle behind a speed duel between heavily favoured Mystic Lake and Casse-trained Dancing Duchess, both stakes winners.

Dancing Duchess, an Ontario-bred, edged away from Mystic Lake late on the turn but the latter battled back. Meanwhile, Sabatini, who was making just her second career start after a third-place finish in a maiden race at Turfway Park in Kentucky, began to rally on the outside while racing on the wrong lead.

Sabatini, named for the famous tennis player Gabriela Sabatini, motored to a 2 1/4 length win, switching to her correct lead late. Mystic Lake held second over Dancing Duchess. The time was 1:10.02 on the Tapeta.

Carroll, who went two-for-two on the day with a win by Birthday Munnings in a maiden dash, was understandably pleasantly surprised.

“I loved her first race at Turfway – she ran up into some trouble,” noted Carroll. “For a first-timer, she had every reason to back out and instead she dug in and ran on to be third. I was so proud of her there. It’s early in the year and this filly was training extremely well and with her pedigree, it would mean a lot if she got a piece of it, and I really believed in her that she could get a piece of it. Did I expect that explosive performance? Probably not, but I believe she’s that kind of horse. I just didn’t know that she was ready to do that much already.”

Sabatini was purchased for a hefty $625,000 from the Fasig-Tipton Eastern two-year-old sale in Maryland by the Roth family’s LNJ Foxwoods and NK Stable. Bred by Bridlewood Farm, she is the second foal to race for her dam Gabriellestoblame, a winner once in three races. Gabriellastoblame is a half-sister to 2016 Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Nyquist.

As for Vives, she won three straight races beginning in race 2. The first one came on heavily-favoured speedster SUMMER SNOW (Flatter), trained and co-owned by Tony Gattellaro. Birthday Munnings also went gate-to-wire when he won race 3 at even money and Gary Barber’s ROCK TO FAME led all the way to win a maiden optional race, also at even money. All three races were at 5 furlongs.

In race 6, Vives guided Irish-bred LADY ONYX, making her first start in North America and first start since September, out of a crowd and from just off the pace to win an allowance/optional claiming race at 5 1/2 furlongs for Casse. Lady Onyx, owned by Team Valor and Steven Rocco, is by Kodi Bear (Ire) and she had won one of five races overseas.

“I was super excited all winter,” said Vives. “We worked very hard, we were diligent at the gym every day and getting on horses every day. We knew when we came back that we wanted to rock it and God willing, we did. It’s a very good day.”

***

King’s Plate eligible ESSEX SERPENT won his career debut for owners/breeders Manfred and Penny Conrad on Saturday. The chunky bay gelding by Honor Code – Eileen’s Girl by Medaglia D’Oro is from two-time winner Eileen’s Girl, who was a route winner, and he has two siblings to race, both winners. Civaci rode the gelding and they chased front-runner Happy Quad and then powered to the lead into the stretch, winning by 3 1/2 lengths in 1:04.31 for 5 1/2 furlongs.

The Conrads bought Eileen’s Girl carrying Essex Serpent (presumably named for the book/mini series by Sarah Perry) for $55,000 at the 2021 January Keeneland sale.

***

Trainer TED HOLDER and jockey JASON HOYTE went into the record books as they won the first race of the new season. Florida-wintered HOBBIE CLASS, an Ontario-bred by Ontario’s top sire reload, led all the way to win the $10,000 maiden claiming race at 5 furlongs for Holder and co-owner David Bloom.

Holder and Hoyte were greeted in the winner’s circle by Premier Doug Ford and Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow, who were on hand to re-open the important Woodbine Community Garden.

Winner of the first race at Woodbine in 2024, Hobbie Class, with jockey Jason Hoyte, trainer Tedston Holder (R) Premier Doug Ford, Mayor of Toronto Olivia Chow, Etobicoke North councilor Vincent Crisanti, Minister of Infrastructure of Ontario Kinga Surma, Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism Michael Ford, Michael Copeland Woodbine Entertainment CEO, Jim Lawson Executive Chair Woodbine Entertainment. (Woodbine/ Michael Burns Photo)

Civaci’s other two wins were on MYSS VYVYANNE (Rainbow Heir), who led all the way to win an optional claiming race for Lighting Bolt Stable and trainer Julia Carey and he won the last race on Darwin Banach’s CLARAYOUTHEBEST (Ami’s Holiday) with a strong finish from well off the pace. The three-year-old filly was last in her debut in November for $40,000 optional claiming for Vandyke Sunny Stables but was in for just $15,000 in her return.

Patrick Husbands, recently inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame, guided Live Oak Plantation’s STAR CANDY, trained by Casse, to a nice win the 9th race, a $50,000 optional claiming dash. It was the third win in 10 races for the Florida-bred by Candy Ride (Arg).