GIVE THANKS!!! 
UPDATED SATURDAY MORNING AT 10:57 – Cold and crisp at Woodbine…IMPERIAL MONARCH to be joined by RELIABLE MAN who seeks his first win all year in CANADIAN INTERNATIONAL next weekend….
MATT WOOLEY PHOTO (EquiSport)
It may be fall but there is SPRING IN THE AIR! (in yellow)
In an exciting run from deep in a 14-filly field, SPRING IN THE AIR, bred in Ontario by American farm WinStar, won the Grade 1 Alcibiades at Keeneland on Friday and could be headed to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies.
Ridden by Patrick Hubands, the 2yo by Spring at Last – Unbridled Run by Unbridled raced at Woodbine three times, winning a maiden race and placing in the Natalma Stakes. She came out of a crowd and charged fast through the stretch to win the 1 1/16 mile race with an 83 Beyer Figure.
Oh yes, and trainer Mark Casse has Spring Venture in the Grade 3 Mazarine tomorrow and UNCAPTURED in the Grade 2 Grey Stakes on Sunday.
Wow.
More to come Saturday morning but for now, enjoy that great photo by MATT WOOLEY.
GO GO NANCY O!
More excitement for Canadian racing fans today as locals compete in bg races in the US? Perhaps, with NANCY O, a troubled 3rd in the Natalma Stakes (behind Spring in the Air) is in New York.Ontario bred DYNAMIC SKY is at Keeneland for JOhn Oxley and trainer Mark Casse. That team goes for a 2nd straight graded stakes win with a 2y0 while UNCAPTURED goes for a graded stakes win tomorrow at Woodbine.
Casse is also at Hawthorne today with Canadian-bred Pool Play and in the Indiana derby at Hoosier with American-bred Stealcase.
An embarassment of riches!
FRIZETTE S.-GI, $400,000, 2yo, f, 1m
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER ML
1 Toasting Congrats Castro Albertrani 12-1
2 My Happy Face K Tiz Wonderful Dominguez Rodriguez 4-1
3 Roveing Patrol Nacheezmo Dettori Cecil 20-1
4 Carameaway Lawyer Ron Ortiz Jr. Friedman 30-1
5 Sweet Shirley Mae K Broken Vow Rosario Ward 8-1
6 Nancy O (Ire) Pivotal (GB) Moran Costigan 15-1
7 Dreaming of Julia A.P. Indy Velazquez Pletcher 2-5
MORE CASSE AT KEENELAND
Roger too!
Saturday, Keeneland, post time: 4:49 p.m. EDT
DIXIANA BREEDERS’ FUTURITY-GI, $400,000, 2yo, 1 1/16m (AWT)
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER ML
1 Joha Johar Maragh Maker 6-1
2 Are You Kidding Me Run Away & Hide Solis Attfield 12-1
3 He’s So Fine Purge Cohen McPeek 20-1
4 Java’s War War Pass Eramia McPeek 12-1
5 Tizracer K Tiznow Lezcano Pletcher 4-1
6 Pataky Kid K Rockport Harbor Lopez Proctor 12-1
7 Craving Carats K Street Sense Dsrmeaux Romans 12-1
8 Dipsy Drew K Pleasantly Perfect Court Fires 50-1
9 Charming Kitten Kitten’s Joy Castellano Pletcher 5-1
10 Positively K Distorted Humor Borel Byrne 10-1
11 Balance the Books K Lemon Drop Kid Leparoux Brown 5-1
12 Dynamic Sky Sky Mesa Contreras Casse 12-1
13 He’s Had Enough K Tapit Gutierrez O’Neill 12-1
14 Tree Of Life K Lion Heart Espinoza Dollase 12-1
AE Hightail K Mineshaft Rocco Jr Lukas 20-1
AE Zoloto K Medaglia d’oro Alvarado Miller 30-1
and Hawthorne…
Saturday, Hawthorne, post time: 6:50 p.m. EDT
HAWTHORNE GOLD CUP H.-GII, $500,000, 3yo/up, 1 1/4m
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER ML
1 Alternation Distorted Humor Quinonez Von Hemel 5-2
2 Eldaafer A.P. Indy Santana Jr Alvarado 6-1
3 Mister Marti Gras Belong To Me Perez Block 5-1
4 Pool Play K Silver Deputy Mena Casse 6-1
5 Cease War Chant Campbell Stall Jr 7-2
6 Fly Lexis Fly Badge Of Silver Torres Drysdale 8-1
7 Nates Mineshaft Mineshaft Baird Smith 4-1
WOODBINE, LET’S BE THANKFUL
There is plenty to be thankful about as we embark on a 3-day holiday weekend of racing at Woodbine.
Indeed, we have one of the greatest facilities for horse racing in the world and lots of great horsepeople filling our races.
The future is uncertain to be sure, but Woodbine will hold its own and let’s face it, people love to bet on our races as long as we have all these great horses.
How cool is it that some of horses are doing well in the US too?
The temperature has plummeted for this weekend and it is windy. The Polytrack has been quick and, now that the fog seems to be behind us (in case you missed it, the last 2 races on Wednesday night were cancelled due to fog, which was a very strange development indeed), let’s get set for 30 races and lots of stakes action!
TODAY’S MAZARINE STAKES should be a showcase for Spring Venture, the Spring at Last filly who beat Spring in the Air easily in the Natalma last time and makes her Polytrack debut. She is 2 for 2 for the partnership of Gary Barber and Stonewall Farm, new owners for the Mark Casse team.
We’ll do more updating on Woodbine racing tomorrow – for now, check out the CANADIAN INTERNATIONAL NEWS BELOW the ARC NEWS..
DETORRI AND CAMELOT TAKE ON ORFEVRE
from The Independent
By Nick Robson
Frankie Dettori says he’s “honoured” at getting the call-up to partner Aidan O’Brien’s leading contender Camelot in Sunday’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp.
Dettori — who is stable jockey to Ballydoyle’s great rivals Godolphin — has not ridden for O’Brien since winning the 2005 St Leger at Doncaster on Scorpion.
The Italian will be riding in his 25th consecutive Arc, which he has won three times on Lammtarra (1995), Sakhee (2001) and Marienbard (2002). “It’s a real honour to be chosen to ride the Guineas and Derby winner in the Arc,” said Dettori.
“What has happened in the last few days is pretty unbelievable (with defections from the race) — Snow Fairy has an injury, Nathaniel is out.
“Joseph can’t do the weight on Camelot and the ride became available — I’m really looking forward to it.
http://www.independent.ie/sport/horse-racing
ORFEVRE LOOKING TO BECOME JAPAN’S FIRST ARC WINNER
(but he got post 18!!)
AFP – Should Orfevre give Japan their first win in Europe’s most prestigious race the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp on Sunday it should be considered a magnificent feat for the whole country, his trainer Yasutoshi Ikee said.
The 37-year-old – who first dreamed of winning the Arc when he worked for English training great Sir Michael Stoute in the late 1990’s – will not only be trying to end 32 years of frustration for his compatriots but also make up for his father Yasuo’s disappointment in the 2006 edition.
For Yasuo – also a trainer and the first member of the family to be involved in racing – brought Deep Impact over as a hot favourite for the Arc but he could finish only third and was subsequently disqualified for testing positive for a banned substance.
CANADIAN INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Imperial Monarch set to be favoured in Woodbine’s rIchest race next weekend
The latest news on the International front had a lot to do with the latest news as far as tomorrow’s Arc field is concerned.
The field for the Arc settled at 18 (we can watch the race on a tape delay tomorrow but no betting) and RELIABLE MAN, a top runner last year at 3 was withdrawn.
It seems as if the grey 4yo colt will now come to Woodbine in search of his first win of the year.
The steel-coloured fellow has struggled a bit this season but was a close 4th in the King George in the summer and his trainer said he needed his latest when 2nd in the Group 3 Maison Lafittes.
IMPERIAL MONARCH, 3 for 4 in his career, is a likely favourite along with JOSHUA TREE and AL KHALI, WIGMORE HALL.
As is often the case nowadays with this race, the field is a solid, useful group of Group 3, Group 2 runners.
RELIABLE MAN, by Dalakhani out of a sadler’s Wells mare – good at 3 last year, wandering this year at 4, is he rliable for Woodbine?
from Dalakhani website, the Aga Khan
International probables:
Imperial Monarch
Joshua Tree
Scalo
Forte de Marmi
Reliable Man
Wigmore Hall
Dandino
Al Khali
Stormy Lord
Air Support
EP Taylor
Barefoot Lady
Kapitale
Lay Time
Siyouma
Leupartie
Pagera
Trois Lunes
Princess Highway
Stars to Shine
Neartic Stakes – Euro-shippers
As de Trebol
Fire Lily
Night Carnation
