Thoroughblog and Horse-Canada are back after some fix-its for the website.
Canadian horse owners and breeders were busy at Keeneland a week ago, will have to try and catch up with results in the day to come.
In WOODBINE RACING news, the final 4 weeks of the season have arrived, so has a mixed bag of cold weather, wet weather (today) and stuff between.
The trainer’s race continues to be interesting, even if perennial leader Mark Casse and his Canadian assistants simply have overpowering numbers of starters to probably keep the title.
Norm McKnight won 3 races on Friday’s card (all with Eurico da Silva riding) and moved within 5.
Trainer Starts Wins 2nd 3rds Earnings
Mark E. Casse 465 — 86— 78— 64 —$4,911,013
Norman McKnight 257 — 81— 46— 27—- $1,684,435
Eurico has a strong lead in the jockey’s race over Luis Contreras and he continues to chase the stakes wins in a season record.
He has 32 stakes wins this year but things have been quite in that department in recent weeks. The record is 36 held by Todd Kabel and Avelino Gomez.
Today, Da Silva rides SMOOTH TALK in the Frost King Stakes and tomorrow, Grace and Dignity in the Glorious Song. Both 2yos, trained by Catherine Day Phillips, are major contenders.
On the owner’s list, Chiefswood Stables leads by purses. The Krembil family celebrated a nice allowance win on Friday at Churchill Downs when the big, black Gelding AURORA WAY, took to the dirt once again and loved it, winning with flair after a less-than-perfect trip.
The son of Giant’s Causeway was 2nd in the Prince of Wales on dirt at Fort Erie but had lost several times as the favourite on the Woodbine Tapeta recently.
Stuart Simon made the trip from Woodbine to Churchill to saddle Aurora Way to the win. Julien Leparoux rode. His time for 1 1/8 miles was 1:52, good for an 89 Beyer Figure.
While Chiefswood leads by earnings, Bruno Schickedanz’s 59 wins, almost double the number he won at Woodbine the last 2 years.
UNSEEN ANGELS moves into tie for 2nd by wins
The game claiming filly UNSEEN ANGELS won race 1 at Woodbine on Friday for her 5th win of the Woodbine meeting. That ties the Florida bred 4yo by Kantharos with Melmich, Eminent Force and Ikerrin Road for the 2nd most wins on the season.
Unseen Angels, an $11,000 by back at auction, has won 9 of 20 in her career. She is owned by Bruno Schickedanz and trained by Norm McKnight.
Pink Lloyd 7 7 0 0 $413,524
Melmich 6 5 1 0 $294,297
Ikerrin Road (IRE) 9 5 0 0 $178,054
Eminent Force 8 5 1 1 $135,714
Unseen Angels 10 5 2 2 $74,664
WE WANT INFORMATION
Horseplayers, men and women who love the sport and play races regularly, are not a happy group when left in the dark. Betting 20 cents $2 or 100 in a race, or a sequence of races keeps the racing game alive.
When something happens in a race, or event at the track at any time, fans want to know that all events are being looked at and want to know the deciions and why they are made.
The Standardbred judges at Western Fair have had to tweet decisions and rulings this year in a pilot project set out by AGCO and hopefuly sooner, rather than later, the TB side will be doing same.
In recent weeks, several incidents at Woodbine (TB) have popped up which has certainly had effects on races.
The 6th race at Woodbine on November 1 was an unlucky one for the nice colt LEAVEM IN MALIBU, who ran out of room on the rail in the stretch when he appeared to be full of run. He was checked and angled out, tapped with the whip and was gaining but then he was eased up by his rider Luis Contreras. The horse may have had trouble keeping a straight course in the late stages of the race or things were getting tight again as they approached the wire. Nevertheless, the race has been under review since Nov. 1. This review occurred because (or in part, because) fellow rider Jesse Campbell posted the stretch run on Twitter a couple of times.
So far, no word on what was actually going on in the race or the Tweets regarding the race.
The horses of trainer Ralph Biamonte are now under the care of Dave Cotey. Biamonte had a 3rd positive test this year recently when 2 notices were posted on the Woodbine website about 2 positives for the horses Ethanator and Canadian Class for Acepromazine, both winners in a pan of a week recently.
The 2yo Legal Gump had a positive for Clenbuterol from a race in May. An investigation is ongoing.
Let’s consider this recent podcast from Ray Paulick and Scott Jagow:
https://www.paulickreport.com/features/the-friday-show/information-please/
