(PHOTO – AL KHALI (3) wins the Bowling Green over SIMMARD (inside) and both will be back tomorrow in the grade 1 Canadian International. Vanessa Ng photo
HANDICAPPING THE BIG THREE RACES SATURDAY AT WOODBINE
Three intriguing handicapping puzzles will greet fans who will flock to Woodbine tomorrow for a fun day of racing action and charitable work (Daily Bread Food Bank).
The day figures to be sunny and bright, a little on the cool side, but a picture perfect fall day.
Let’s handicap the 3 Grade 1 events and then we will see how it goes:
NEARCTIC STAKES
All 3 events are Win and You’re In but none of the races really are of Grade 1 calibre…that being said, the winner of the Nearctic may have a chance to be a threat behind fleet California filly UNZIP ME, who is headed to the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint.
In the 38th NEARCTIC, some Canadian boys are trying to get their stuff back together – FIELD COMMISSION was last year’s champion sprinter but he has not won in 6 races this year (he won this race in 2009) and GRAND ADVENTURE has pooped out since a pair of triple digit Beyer Figures when he won 2 graded stakes in the spring.
Both have a decent chance tomorrow since both fit 6 furlongs on the grass quite well.
How fast will the pace be? Well, FATAL BULLET, who was recently 3rd in the Play the King Stakes in only his 2nd turf try, is going to be on the lead, so will Bridgetown, perhaps Sneaking Uponyou also.
He’s the best 6 furlong horse in the race it appears and has all kinds of class so he has to be respected.
BOGUE CHITTO has a chance to rally for a good prize as he is very fresh and was a super 2nd in this race last year.
SNEAKING UPONYOU is the sneaky one – he too is coming off a short freshening and he has improved a lot since trying grass.BRIDGETOWN is a 3yo, fresh and has won on this course.
PICKS FOR THE NEARCTIC – FATAL BULLET, FIELD COMMISSION, BOGUE CHITTO, GRAND ADVENTURE
E.P. TAYLOR STAKES
Lots of interesting gals in here and you have to look closely at who they ran against to decipher some of these Euro gals:
SHALANAYA has been dull in her last pair but gosh, 2 starts ago she was 8th beaten 4 lengths in a Group 1 against the boys and DEBUSSY, who won the Arlington Million recently, was only a head in front of her. She also beat CHINCON ( in the International) in a previous race). She’s very interesting with 1st time Lasix too.
CONTREDANSE is the likely favourite and she is very dangerous. She is a full sister to CALLWOOD DANCER, who was 2nd in this race, and she is 1st time Lasix and was recently 2nd, beaten a head to the mighty Lily of the Valley, who came back to win the Prix de l’Opera. Add Luca Cumani and Garret Gomez and she’s a big one at about 9 to 5.
WOODBINE TRAINER ROGER ATTFIELD has 2 in the race and MISS KELLER has a shot off the Canadian Stakes win. She is in line for champion turf mare if she does well.
LONGSHOTS to consider include GALLIC STAR (her trainer won this race with a 44 to 1 shot last year) and AKARLINA,who has won 4 of her last 5.
CANADIAN INTERNATIONAL
It’s a disappointing field but we have lots to sheer for in the form of the giant FIFTY PROOF (a.k.a Tiny). He was 2nd to REDWOOD in the Northern Dancer Stakes and he figures to set the pace along with MARSH SIDE, who is always dangerous.
JOSHUA TREE, with Lasix and only 2 races overseas, and CHINCHON ARE THE ONES I lean to in here. The former won a big race at 2 so he has some ability and the latter won the United Nations and seems to like North American turf.
CANADIAN INTERNATIONAL IN THE PAPERS
GLOBE & MAIL
Flying around the world for a horse race
Michael Grange
TORONTO— Globe and Mail Update
In the pursuit of the $1.2-million winner’s share of the $2-million purse in Saturday’s Pattison Canadian International, the mile-and-a-half of turf between the starting gate and the winner’s circle is the shortest part of the journey.
For the four European-based entries, competing for the richest prize in Canadian racing can mean travel by trains, planes and horse trailers. The hope is they’ll do their flying on the track, but to get to Woodbine, the preferred mode of transport was a Boeing 747-400 Combi, a jumbo jet where the rear third is devoted to oversize cargo, in this case, some precious race horses.
Four of the nine horses in …read more below..
DAILY RACING FORM
ALAN SHUBACK DISSECTS THE EURO’S
Distinct French twist at Woodbine
By Alan Shuback
Woodbine will look like Longchamp West on Saturday, as 15 of the 28 horses lining up for the three Grade 1 races on Canadian International Day are trained in Europe.
The E.P. Taylor Stakes resembles division 2 of the Prix de l’Opera, with eight of the 10 females in the 1 1/4-mile contest trained in Europe, and it is the Oct. 3 running of the Opera that may hold the key to the E.P. Taylor outcome.
The Opera was won by Lily of the Valley, who wore down four-time Group 1 winner Stacelita in winning for the sixth time in a row.
In her previous start, Lily of the Valley had won Deauville’s 1 1/4-mile, Group 3 Prix de la Nonette. Three of the five fillies who finished behind her that day will line up for the E.P. Taylor.
EQUIBASE STATS THROUGH YESTERDAY ON WOODBINE..
TRAINERS
Rank Trainer Name Starts 1st 2nd 3rd Earnings Win% Top3 Top3%
1 Mark E. Casse 429 65 59 57 $3,455,808 15% 181 42%
2 Reade Baker 283 50 55 41 $3,006,234 18% 146 52%
3 Roger L. Attfield 160 37 23 20 $2,856,656 23% 80 50%
4 Sid C. Attard 213 36 36 25 $2,148,558 17% 97 46%
5 Mark R. Frostad 77 20 11 10 $1,930,635 26% 41 53%
6 Ian Black 169 18 25 19 $1,840,960 11% 62 37%
7 Robert P. Tiller 222 30 28 35 $1,798,545 14% 93 42%
8 Nicholas Gonzalez 183 30 26 17 $1,796,745 16% 73 40%
9 Steven M. Asmussen 218 35 35 33 $1,318,464 16% 103 47%
10 Malcolm Pierce 141 20 10 25 $1,244,483 14% 55 39%
11 Michael P. De Paulo 178 27 25 23 $1,184,235 15% 75 42%
12 Michael J. Doyle 186 20 26 23 $1,141,005 11% 69 37%
JOCKEYS
Jockey Name Starts 1st 2nd 3rd Earnings Win% Top3 Top3%
1 Eurico Rosa Da Silva 705 143 110 95 $6,900,359 20% 348 49%
2 Patrick Husbands 725 128 112 102 $6,954,653 18% 342 47%
3 Chantal Sutherland 657 102 91 101 $6,103,520 16% 294 45%
4 Omar Moreno 749 100 97 111 $4,008,452 13% 308 41%
5 Emile Ramsammy 665 87 78 67 $3,860,286 13% 232 35%
6 Luis Contreras 401 65 68 71 $2,923,215 16% 204 51%
7 Emma-Jayne Wilson 441 61 72 51 $3,335,309 14% 184 42%
8 James McAleney 448 60 65 57 $3,565,591 13% 182 41%
9 Jono C. Jones 421 52 57 57 $3,373,357 12% 166 39%
10 Justin Stein 506 46 52 56 $2,219,208 9% 154 30%
11 Corey Fraser 350 43 41 39 $2,323,800 12% 123 35%
12 Tyler Pizarro 370 39 44 42 $1,797,886 11% 125 34%
13 David Clark 339 37 40 34 $1,805,512 11% 111 33%
14 Richard Dos Ramos 320 36 23 18 $1,865,575 11% 77 24%
15 Gerry Olguin 365 33 48 39 $1,619,280 9% 120 33%
16 Steven Bahen 384 32 30 40 $1,466,108 8% 102 27%
17 Slade Callaghan 310 21 29 37 $1,262,992 7% 87 28%
OWNERS
1 Sam-Son Farms 78 23 9 13 $2,065,480 29% 45 58%
2 Melnyk Stables, Inc. 134 26 18 24 $1,487,552 19% 68 51%
3 Bear Stables, Ltd. 154 27 29 23 $1,384,519 18% 79 51%
4 Harlequin Ranches 60 16 14 9 $1,115,670 27% 39 65%
5 Terra Racing Stable 48 8 7 8 $1,051,022 17% 23 48%
6 Charles E. Fipke 61 13 11 9 $836,216 21% 33 54%
7 Stronach Stables 92 14 14 19 $769,228 15% 47 51%
8 Paul M. Buttigieg 65 15 11 4 $710,933 23% 30 46%
9 Hill, Jim and Susan 46 7 8 4 $663,711 15% 19 41%
10 IEAH StablesResolute Stables 1 1 0 0 $581,760 100% 1 100%
11 Augustin Stable 41 6 10 10 $541,279 15% 26 63%
12 Dominion Blck, Ball, D. and HGHR, Inc. 137 12 11 17 $531,841 9% 40
29%
13 Tucci Stables 79 7 17 10 $527,226 9% 34 43%
14 Cappuccitti, Audre and Gordon 53 5 6 13 $523,325 9% 24 45%
15 Peter Redekop B. C., Ltd. 32 9 5 7 $508,576 28% 21 66%
HORSES
1 Impossible Time 6 5 1 0 $326,228 83% 6 100% 99
1 Certain Pride 7 5 2 0 $133,154 71% 7 100% 92
1 Preakness Laugher 7 5 1 0 $79,532 71% 6 86% 97
4 Biofuel 4 4 0 0 $378,057 100% 4 100% 111
4 Kirkland Lake 7 4 1 1 $114,393 57% 6 86% 98
4 Riding the River 6 4 0 1 $112,497 67% 5 83% 102
4 Safety Zone 7 4 3 0 $108,569 57% 7 100% 101
4 Secret Skills 6 4 0 1 $77,266 67% 5 83% 90
4 Kalua On the Rocks 8 4 2 2 $67,652 50% 8 100% 90
4 My Island Girl 4 4 0 0 $50,496 100% 4 100% 88
4 Set in Stone 6 4 0 1 $47,193 67% 5 83% 99
