The first racehorse onto the Woodbine Tapeta for 2025 was also the first horse to win on opening day of the 70th season at the Rexdale track.
On a cold and quite windy April 26, BOB AND JULES, owned by Carrie Russiani, who also trains, and David Grant, was quickly into a speed duel at the outset of the five-furlong opening dash and under Woodbine newcomer Brooke Bays and held on to win by a head in 1:00.14. Several rivals trying to close on the gelding hit a wall of wind and stalled in the stretch.
A four-year-old son of Old Forester – Askeaton by Tethra, Bob and Jules was making just his second career start and first since a smart debut May 10, 2024. Russiani bought Bob and Jules for $17,000 from the 2022 CTHS Ontario yearling sale from agent Sarah Campese for breeders  John and Breeda Hayes.
Russiani, who won her first race as a trainer in 2010, has only raced two horses in the last few years and this was her first win since 2022. She collected $29,520 for her gelding’s win in the maiden optional claiming event ($25,000).
Bays, who is from Indiana, is trying out Woodbine for her second full year as an apprentice rider. She is represented by Tony ‘Hollywood’ Micallef.
Racing fans were happy to see the horses back on the track and crowded around the saddling enclosure before each race to get a glimpse of the stars.
The 70th STAR SHOOT STAKES, worth $125,000, was the feature and race eight on a small nine-race card. An open race at 6 furlongs for three-year-old fillies, the Star Shoot was dominated by two gals in from Kentucky for trainer KELSEY DANNER. Coming off a career season in 2024, Danner recently finished second in the 2025 Turfway meeting to Mike Maker. Two of her winners this year, BRINDI (IRE) and LISTEN AND LEARN were meeting two Mark Casse-trained fillies including favoured Winterberry, the only Canadian-bred in the field.
Brindi was supplemented to the field at a cost of $2,500 and the two-time winner was coming off a fourth-place finish in the Serena’s Song Stakes at Turfway. Listen and Learn won her maiden on March 22 in her fourth start.
Riding the ‘wind’ bias, jockey Sofia Vives hustled Brindi from post one to the lead, soon to be joined by Winterberry and Patrick Husbands. The pair opened up the field and went head-to-head through 22.36 and 44.80.
Winterberry gave way in mid-stretch and while the others appeared to be out of the running, the front-runner began to tire in the late stages. Her stablemate Listen and Learn, under Rafael Hernandez, had dropped back to last on the turn, but drew closer by the finish to get second with Charlotte’s Heart third.
Brindi was 4-to-1 and raced the distance in 1:10.75. It was the filly’s third win in seven races.
Sofia Vives guides Brindi (IRE) to victory in the $125,000 Star Shoot Stakes. Brindi is owned by Robert Evans and trained by Kelsey Danner. (Woodbine/ Michael Burns Photo)
Robert M. Evans (not Robert S. Evans) owns the filly, having bought her at the Keeneland November Sale in 2024 for $75,000 as a racing or broodmare prospect. The daughter of No Nay Never – Salamah (Ire) by Shamardal had been a $195,000 yearling purchase by Madaket Group from the Arqana Deauville August 2023 sale. She was bred by Framont Ltd.
More Opening Day:
Newly-crowned Sovereign Award winning trainer KEVIN ATTARD brought two fillies off layoffs to win sprints. PARTY ON (Twirling Candy) won her debut in July 2023 over colts, but disappeared. She sped to an allowance/optional claiming win under Petro Moran in race 6 for X-Men III and Madaket Stables. In the day’s finale, the Canuck Racing Club’s SINCLAIRITY (Souper Speedy), making her first start since her debut win in May 2024, battled hard to win an optional claiming dash, also with Moran riding.
Race 2 – WHISKEY N ICE, a problematic filly who was disqualified three times in 2024, finally won her maiden, racing with the wind under Leo Salles to take the $10,000 claiming race for Sek-Yuen Cheung and trainer Danny Yu.
First time starter BUFF BAY, by Reload, was well prepared to win her debut, also on the pace, for Radcliffe Racing and Barrington Siddo. The filly, bred by Brett and Kyle Anderson, was ridden by Affrie Ward, who was winning his first race in Canada since 2011. He had been riding in Barbados since a stint in Alberta.
Owner and trainer DEVON GITTENS has quite a few horses at Woodbine and his owner filly HARD TO CAPTURE was a rare winner from just off the pace, taking race 4 for $7,500 claiming. Skye Chernetz rode.
Vives was back in the winners’ circle on GO KART MOZART, a Frank DiGiulio Jr. homebred by Souper Speedy who won the maiden optional race ($40,000), race 5. Bob Tiller trains.
And apprentice Austin Adams guided LITTLE TEDDY, owned by York Tech Stable, to an upset win in race 7, an allowance/optional ($32,000) over a pair of well-bet Martin Drexler runners. Trained by Santino DiPaola, Little Teddy is by Frac Daddy and was bred by Susan Rasmussen and H. Lothian.
* The small card, just 57 horses raced, resulted in wagering of $3,630,699, down from opening day in 2024 when 71 horses raced and betting was $4,546,218 (about 20 percent).
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