You wouldn’t think there were any main track sprint races on the Woodbine schedule that the great PINK LLOYD had not won, but on November 7 the 9-year-old icon won his first Ontario Jockey Club Stakes, in his first attempt at the restricted race. More incredible is that it was the 25th stakes win for the gelding by Old Forester – Gladiator Queen by Great Gladiator. The OJC Stakes, worth $100,000, is an Ontario sired dash at six furlongs and was the 28th win overall for Pinky from 36 career races. His earnings now stand at $1.83 million (US) or somewhere around $2.2 million Canadian.
Pink Lloyd, who is nearing the end of his illustrious career, had to work a little bit harder on Sunday to win, fending off stakes winner Souper Hot through the stretch run, but he only got a couple of taps from jockey Rafael Hernandez and always seemed to have his rival measured. Souper Hot, who won the Bold Ruckus Stakes in 2019 and has been a blue collar allowance type since then, was a neck off winning and 1 1/4 lengths ahead of Told It All.
The time of 1:09.52, run on a Tapeta surface that may have got a bit quicker during the day, was reasonable. Later, the first time starter STRIKER (War Front) won his maiden in 1:08.50 while LENNY K, a 3-year-old, won an allowance/optional event in 1:08.67.
But the victory was all that mattered for Pink Lloyd, who has been carefully and shrewdly managed by trainer Bob Tiller and the Entourage Stable since his debut five years ago. There have been lots of bumps and turns along the way, but the lanky chestnut still can get it done.
“He was just playing with the other horse [Souper Hot],” said Hernandez, who earned his colony-leading 13th stakes win on the campaign. “He likes to fight all the time. He’s a 100 percent heart horse. I know how special this horse is for the family and for Woodbine, too. Everybody cheers for him. Bob, he’s always got the horse 100 percent to the race, and he always shows up. He’s a great, unbelievable horse.”
It was a sentiment echoed by Pink Lloyd’s Hall of Fame conditioner.
“It’s been a tremendous ride,” offered Tiller of the seven-time Sovereign Award winner. “I’ve always said it could end tomorrow and there would be no bad feelings. It would be sad that it’s over, but we’ll be very happy on other ends that it is over because five years of this hasn’t been easy. He’s just an absolutely amazing animal. He’s been great for Woodbine, he’s been great for Canadian horse racing. I just love him to death. He’s an icon.”
As for the Ontario Jockey Club performance, Tiller added, “I know there’s going to be people that are going to say today this race wasn’t an impressive race. Well, wait until you see some speed in front of him and you’ll see what an impressive race you get from him.”
There is one stakes race left in 2021 for sprinters, the Grade 2 Kennedy Road on Nov. 27, which would figure to be the gelding’s final career race.
He is set to join the LongRun Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation farm in Hillsburgh as an ambassador.
EXCITING MAIDEN WINNERS – STRIKER‘s sizzling score in his debut for LNJ Foxwoods and trainer Josie Carroll was not unexpected as the handsome grey had shown talent in the morning workouts and had the pedigree to match. The War Front fellow is the first foal of Grade 3 winner Dreamologist, a daughter of Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Dreaming of Anna.
MRS. BARBARA was also a predictable winner on Sunday when she took her maiden at 1 1/16 miles on the Tapeta in the good time of 1:44.16. The Kentucky-bred by Bodemeister – Destroy by Housebuster rallied wide from mid-pack to a 2 3/4 length win under Rafael Hernandez for Jim Lawson’s Spruce Stable. The 2-year-old came in with lofty credentials as she was fourth in the Grade 1 Natalama to Wild Beauty and she was only four lengths behind Pizza Bianca who came back to win the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1).
Mrs. Barbara is the 10th winner for DESTROY, the 2010 Outstanding Broodmare at the Sovereign Awards. Bred by Mel Lawson, Destroy had three stakes runners in 2011: graded stakes winner Smokey Fire (lifetime earnings over $706,000), and previous stakes winners Utterly Cool and Ghost Fleet.
Destroy’s dam is multiple Canadian champion Eternal Search, who raced for the Lawson family.
British Columbia-bred BILLYJANE (Pop Artist – Low Key Affair by Vying Victor) led throughout to win a $25,000 maiden claiming race in 1:10.16 in race 2 on Sunday. The speedy gal was bred by Wendy Kruger and is owned by Kruger and Telford Farms and trained by Phil Hall.
On Saturday, Michelle Newell’s MS VANCOUGER (Vancouver (Aus) – Blarney Blush by Van Nistelrooy) was a smart winner of a maiden allowance for fillies and mares at six furlongs. Trained by Nick Nosowenko, Ms Vancougar was making her third career start and her first on Tapeta and she won in 1:09.21.
First-year US sire Gun Runner had a big weekend with his son CORNICHE winning the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1) and at Woodbine his son STOWAWAY won his maiden in his third career race for D J Stable. The bay colt is trained by Mark Casse and he edged first-time starter RALPHIE BOY (Blame) who was bred in Kentucky by Ontario breeders Frank DiGiulio Jr , D’Onofrio, Peri and Lockhart.
On Friday, Gail Wood’s LUCYS CHILD, the first foal to race for Wood’s good mare Inclusa, won his maiden in an Ontario-sired maiden allowance/optional in 1:24.74 for seven furlongs. The son of Silent Name (Jon) was also the first winner of the season for trainer Phil Gracey.
CLAIMING GAME – Twenty-four (24) horses were claimed from races in four racing days at Woodbine last week. The most expensive was the $62,500 paid by Formal Racing Stable for RICHIESINTHEHOUSE, a stakes winning 7-year-old bred and co-owned by Richard Ravin. The son of Sidney’s Candy, an 18-time winner in 30 races, had a troubled run on Sunday when second to the fleet Lenny K., an Ontario-bred for Al and Bill Ulwelling.
FOUR WINS – Four horses have four wins at the meeting. The newest one to do so was the tough chestnut HITTERS PARK who won for $7,500 claiming on Saturday for Sadio Maragh and 1569389 Ontario and trainer Martin Drexler. Hitters Park (Cowtown Cat) joins Lorena, Bella Nina and Dancing Doll as four-time winners in 2021.
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