Woodbine Saturday: Longer Autumn Stakes Take 2, and Patches

Older distance horses are back in action at Woodbine on Saturday, November 16 in the re-scheduled HPIBET AUTUMN STAKES (G2). The race was one of two events cancelled last Saturday when racing was halted due to a few fatal breakdowns on the Tapeta surface. Racing was also canceled last Sunday while track maintenance and representatives of Tapeta worked on the surface.

The Autumn, inaugurated in 1902, has had its distance changed for this year from 1 1/16 miles to 1 1/8 miles. The current leader of the Older Male Main Track category, PARAMOUNT PRINCE, the 2023 King’s Plate winner, is looking to rebound from a dull run in the Durham Cup (G3). ‘Prince’ has two graded stakes wins this year. Paramount Prince is trained by Mark Casse and Patrick Husbands will ride.

The competition in the Autumn, however, is stern. Three-year-old DRESDEN ROW, who won the Durham Cup and has since won the Ontario Derby, is going for Champion three-year-old in Canada as he crams another start into his busy fall campaign.

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A pair of Kevin Attard trainees for Repole Stable, NEVER SURPRISED and BAIL US OUT, are in the hunt as is multiple stakes winner FOREVER SOUPER from the Michael Trombetta barn.

Forever Souper just set a track record at Presque Isle for 1 1/16 miles in the Presque Isle Mile, 1:41.20, and he’s won nine of 18 races.

Casse also has the dark horse TOSEN WISH (Ire), who sizzled in his Woodbine debut on the grass and is a two-time winner on synthetic dirt overseas.

War Bomber was scratched from the Autumn last weekend and he is entered in the Kennedy Road Stakes (G2) on this weekend’s card. Lac Macaza was also scratched last weekend from the Autumn.

Canada’s Horse of the Year candidate PATCHES O’HOUIHAN, unbeaten in four stakes races this season, has just five rivals in the bet365 Kennedy Road at 6 furlongs. Frank DiGiulio’s remarkable four-year-old gelding, 11-for-13 in his career, just won the Neartic Stakes (G2) despite drifting out badly on the turf course. One of his two losses came in last year’s Kennedy Road. Sofia Vives rides for trainer Bob Tiller.

Shipping in for the Kennedy Road is last year’s Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprinter (G1) winner NOBALS, trained by Larry Rivelli for Patricia’s Hope LLC. Nobals, by Noble Mission (GB), won the Woodstock stakes at Woodbine two years ago in 1:08.15 for the distance. (108.15 was the official corrected time according to Daily Racing Form and the post race track media release, although the initial posted time was 1:07.63)

Nobals, who is five-for-eight on synthetic dirt, is winless in three races this year since his Breeders’ Cup score. (Read previous news items about Nobals here and here.)

The bet365 handicapping feature on Canadian Thoroughbred this week will focus on the Kennedy Road.