TODAY’S NEWS – PLATE, PLATE and more Plate
MOB SCENE – ANDREW FREDERICKS, from Trinidad, is hoping his guy MOBTHEWARRIOR is the Plate winner. (Terence Dulay/www.horse-races.net photo, check their site for more pics and news)
ARCTIC FERN OUT, CAPTAIN CANUCK, NO GO
blinkers on Giant’s Tomb
It was a tumultuous day for trainer Mike Keogh and owner Gus Schickedanz and his team as they had to announce that their talented gelding ARTIC FERN would have to miss the Plate.
The worse part is that the gelding x-rayed clean and while he seems to be sore in the shoulder area, they can’t find anything.
Artic Fern would have been one of the favourites.
CAPTAIN CANUCK, a one-time winner, is reportedly out for sure. The Earle Mack colt, trained by Josie Carroll, had beeno n the fence along with 2 other fillies – Moment of Majesty and Embur’s Song.
Lots of equipment changes in the PLATE, and that makes things interesting. MOBILIZER will have blinkers on, so well GIANT’S TOMB, a somewhat gallumping felow whose workout with his Plate mates on Sunday morning was not as startling as one may think.
“That’s just him,” said trainer Mark Frostad about the colt’s habit to shut down in his work right after the finish line. “He just does what he has to.”
Frostad is keen on the fact he has 3 colts with all different styles for the Plate – speedy Dark Cloud Dancer, whom he thinks is good but perhaps not quite ready to beat up on this guys, HOTEP, the darling of the team who gets Patrick Husbands and GIANT’S TOMB.
STRENGTH IN NUMBERS – For the second time in 10 years, Sam-Son Farm and trainer Mark Frostad are in a position to win back-t0-back editions of the Queen’s Plate with full siblings. In 2000 and 2001, Sam-Son won the Plate with Scatter the Gold and Dancethruthedawn, both offspring of the legendary Dance Smartly. Last year, Sam-Son captured the Plate with Eye of the Leopard, a son of Oaks winner Eye of the Sphynx. This year, Eye of the Leopard’s full brother Hotep (also a son of A.P. Indy) could give Sam-Son the double.
GHOST FLEET, who perhaps had the most stunning appearance at the Plate barbeque/media event yesterday, will race without blinkers and he has been working like a bear.
Not sure if this jet black guy can win at the distance but gosh, who can’t sheer for MEL LAWSON and RICHARD DOS RAMOS?
STUNNING – GHOST FLEET is a dark horse for Sunday. Cindy Pierson Dulay photo
PROBABLES FOR SUNDAY’S PLATE…
draw is Thursday morning…post time for the day is 12:25
BIG RED MIKE
ch.g.3 by Tenpins(Smart Strike) – Regent n’Flashy(Vice Regent)
Terra Racing Stable Nicholas Gonzalez
D’S WANDO
b.c.3 by Wando(Langfuhr) – Silver Taler(Bold Ruckus)
D’s Stable, Riviera Racing Stable and Yorktech Racing Stable Ian Black
DARK CLOUD DANCER
dk b/.c.3 by Storm Cat(Storm Bird) – Dancethruthedawn(Mr. Prospector)
Sam-Son Farms Mark R. Frostad
GIANT’S TOMB
ch.c.3 by Awesome Again(Deputy Minister) – Song of the Wild(Gone West)
Sam-Son Farms Mark R. Frostad
GHOST FLEET
dk.b.c. Arch – Destroy
Jim Dandy Stables Sid Attard
HOTEP
b.c.3 by A.P. Indy(Seattle Slew) – Eye of the Sphynx(Smart Strike)
Sam-Son Farms Mark R. Frostad
MOBILIZER
dk b/.c.3 by Motivator (GB)(Montjeu (IRE)) – Kris Is It(Kris S.)
Stronach Stables R. L. Attfield
MOBTHEWARRIOR
dk b/.g.3 by Mobil(Langfuhr) – Little Warrior(Woodman)
Andrew V. Fredericks Gregory de Gannes
ROAN INISH
dk b/.f.3 by Elusive Quality(Gone West) – Inish Glora(Regal Classic)
Robert J. Costigan Carolyn Costigan
SMART SKY
b.c.3 by Sky Mesa(Pulpit) – Flashy n Smart(Smarten)
C. Scott Abbott Racing Stable Ltd. Michael J. Doyle
VICAR STREET
chc Vicar – Sudden Profit
Rocco d’Alimonte/Frank Annecchini Catherine Day Phillips
WHO WE GUNNA CALL
dk b/.c.3 by Ghostzapper(Awesome Again) – Touch Dial(Phone Trick)
Castle Peak Farm, Ltd. Tino Attard
Also possible – MOMENT OF MAJESTY
PLATE IN THE NEWS..
TORONTO STAR
DAVE FESCHUK
A few years ago, when Queen Elizabeth made a visit to the United States, our reigning monarch attended the Kentucky Derby to do what she does for a living: Wear a nice hat and wave and smile.
But her interest in the spectacle amounted to more than regal duty. That weekend, the folks at Adena Springs South, the Kentucky stables owned by Aurora industrialist Frank Stronach, fulfilled a request from Buckingham Palace. The Queen, bound for the White House and elsewhere later in her U.S. visit, was bereft of official business on the Sunday following the Derby.
She wanted to occupy her day with something she does for the love of it:
read more..
GLOBE & MAIL
Beverley Smith
At the Gonzalez barn, emotions are being held in check. Fingers are being crossed.
Nick and Martha Gonzalez, a husband and wife training team, have been down this road before, heading to the Queen’s Plate with one of the favourites. This time, it’s with Big Red Mike, winner of the Plate Trial three weeks ago.
Last year, they were on the same path with My Bad, but the horse hurt a leg in his final training before the Plate and missed the race.
The memory was still fresh and painful last Friday when they took Big Red Mike for his final work. He came back bouncing and happy.
“Horses are very perishable,” Martha said. “It happens real quick. [Big Red Mike] is probably the best shot that Nick and I have ever had, anything close to being in the Queen’s Plate. Touch wood, everything went well. He’s in good order.”
TORONTO SUN
Crazy’ Mike is one to watch
By DAVE FULLER, Toronto Sun
He was the quickest horse at the recent Queen’s Plate Trial, leading wire to wire in a race featuring nearly all of Canada’s top 3-year-olds.
But because he was an unexpected winner, because the Queen’s Plate is a furlong longer, because, as one long-time Woodbine employee put it, “he’s crazy”, Big Red Mike remains a bit of risky business.
His trainer, Nicholas Gonzalez, wisely elected not to parade Big Red Mike in front of media members, owners, trainers and patrons gathered Monday at Woodbine for the annual Queen’s Plate barbecue.
Mobilizer was there, D’s Wando was there, Mobthewarrior and Woodbine Oaks winner Roan Inish were there. But not Big Red Mike.
The last time he was in any sort of a parade, he reared up and threw veteran jockey Eurico Rosa da Silva on his keister.
“He’s got talent and he’s got a couple of tricks. When you have a horse like that, you just have to tolerate it,” Gonzalez said recently.
read more – www.torontosun.com
WELLS JR. LEAVING FORT ERIE
After 33 years,Daryl Wells Jr., the voice of Fort Erie, will be leaving his post as track announcer/media contact at the border oval.
Effective Thursday July 1, Fort Erie Live Racing Consortium will officially take over the operation of Fort Erie Race Track.
ELISSA BLOWE takes over as media contact and marketing while the search is on for a track announcer.
CHIEFSWOOD MOVES
The DAILY RACING FORM reported last week about the moving of some horses of Chiefswood Stable to trainers Ian Black and Paul Attard – from longtime trainer ERIC COATRIEUX.
Chiefswood won the Queen’s Plate with NIIGON several years ago.
It has horses at Fort Erie with JUSTIN NIXON as well as the runners at Woodbine and at the training centre in Loretto, Ontario.
