LABOUR OF LOVE

It's LABOUR DAY weekend and that means lots of stakes action, yearlings to inspect and then bid on (Tuesday) and, hey, football season is approaching fast!
Today's stuff includes a re-cap of yesterday's races and a preview of things that are interesting today.
Also,there is a a proposal to re-vamp the HORSE IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM in Ontario, a MARE RESIDENCY aspect has been mentioned (hmmmmmm, interesting!).
Time to shop for those yearlings - they can be viewed at the Woodbine sales pavillion this weekend through Tuesday. Sale post time is 3 p.m.

WOODBINE FRIDAY

CUBA’S ‘GOOD’

Old and classy CUBA got off the schneid with a win yesterday at Woodbine for $30,000 claiming for Cam Allard. The 6yo horse by Not for Love was a stakes performer at one time. Yesterday he received an ace of a ride from Tyler Pizaroo to win after an inside, stalking trip at 1 1/16 miles.

GANTU, hammered down to 4 to 5 in race 2, the allowance feature of the day, beat older horses with a lovely stalking trip under Emma-Jayne Wilson. Predictable for the win, Gantu is an Ontario homebred from Robert Harvey’s program.

Stakes winner Are You Serious was a mild third while racing for a $62,500 claiming price and My Lucky Strike continued to be off form and trailed in last.

From worst to first: TACITO, an Ontario-bred Trajectory gelding out of stakes winner Barlee Mist went from a 12th place finish beaten 25 ¾ lengths to winning his maiden with the drop from MSW to $20K claiming in the 3rd race. Centennial Farms Inc. and trainer Alec Fehr orchestrated the turnaround with the chestnut, who went off at 14 to 1.

Nifty race-riding by apprentice MATT MOORE in the 4th race who lost his right iron sometime during the race and from the quarter-pole to the wire, Moore was just hanging on with one leg in an iron,the other just holding on. His mount, NEVER LEFT OUT, dragged the kid to the win anyway, as much the best after a very troubled outing in her previous start.

Players of the PICK 4, especially if you cut down the price and played a 20 cent one, may have been happy when FLIGHT TO CASH (Pine Bluff out of a mare who is out of an Alleged mare) flew home to win the 5^th for maiden allowance fillies at 6 ½ furlongs on the turf. Well bred for grass on the dam’s side of her pedigree, the filly (who was 3^rd to Rags to Riches earlier in her career), paid $44.50 for owner John Fielding and trainer Reade Baker.

Long distance loving QUEENLY LUCK won the 6^th at 1 3/8 miles on turf for Cinnamont Stable and trainer Malcolm Pierce. The filly reeled in a brave pace setting Allnightdance in the final stages to win the $40,000 claiming race. She’s a Florida bred by Lucky North.

The Pick 4 wrapped up with longshot LA GRAN GERMAINE (Yes, another ‘La Gran’ horse by Compadre) who won her maiden at 18 to 1 for Fieldstone Farm. Oh yes, the PICK 4 paid $24,000, (a 20 cent payoff).

One of the featured races, the 8^th, went to ITIZNOW (Tiznow) a Goldmart Farms Kentucky bred who won his second consecutive race in front running fashion and the OLD TIMERS STABLE’s SLY ILLUSION, a half brother to Grade 1 winner Maryfield, darted up the rail to win the finale at 8 to 1.

ONTARIO COLLEEN LOADED

TODAY AT WOODBINE

Fifteen (15) were entered in Saturday’s Ontario Colleen Stakes at one mile on the grass for 3yo fillies for $125,000 with favouritism likely going to either RED BIRKIN, trained by Roger Attfield, or AUDACIOUS CHLOE, trained by Todd Pletcher.

Red Birkin, a Grade 3 winner (oops, she won the Boiling Springs at Monmouth but was disqualified), er, two-time winner for owner/breeder Haras Santa Maria de Araras, is due to get lucky soon. The Belong to Me filly bled in her latest in the Grade 3 Lake George at Saratoga. Robert Landry rode her to a win at Woodbine in May.

Audacious Chloe likes to race near the front of the pace and she is a 5 time winner, four stakes, and she’s quite tractable, having traveled all over North America for turf stakes.

The More Than Ready filly is capable of a 90 Beyer Figure which puts her in contention under local rider Jim McAleney.

Others to consider include SPRUNG, whom trainer Mark Casse says needs some pace to run at and she may get it, the promising maiden winner CHIPARA, a $1 million yearling purchase by Chiefswood Farm and THIELLA, who invades from Europe with 1^st time Lasix and trainer Dermot Weld.

A fine batch of 2yo fillies try to win their maidens in race 5 and SARCASM, a $500,000 yearling purchase, is getting her 4^th attempt to do so. She is stakes placed in her last start in the My Dear and has been freshened 2 months.

Formidable opponents would seem to be the Mark Casse trained beginner GRANDEZA, by promising first-crop sire GREATNESS; MA LOUISE, a Florida 2yo purchase who worked fast for her sale and was bought by Joe Walls et al; and Stronach Stables’ SAVOURY SOUP, a buy-back at its own sale and a daughter of Alphabet Soup.

How about the 7^th race today? It’s an $87,900 allowance for non-winners of $52,740 since June 15 and has attracted champions PALLADIO and JUDITHS WILD RUSH plus stakes class Powerful Touch and Arch Hall. Super event to cap the PICK 4.

SARATOGA WRAPPING UP

Will Ron bounce?

But not before LAWYER RON tries for the Woodward Stakes today and everyone is calling for the Langfuhr colt to bounce, ‘react’ off that huge race he ran in the Whitney.

He could veyer well come down from that explosive effort and still win today as his opponents may simply be inferior.

The value plays if you are totally against Lawyer Ron are MAGNA GRADUATE and POLITICAL FORCE.

OTHER STUFF AROUND THE TRACKS

Canadian-bred JUNGLE FIGHTER is in the RED BANK STAKES at Monmouth today for trainer Justin Nixon and the Stronach Stables. It’s a Grade 3 race at 1 mile on the turf.

At DELAWARE PARK, Canadian-bred TWILIGHT METEOR, 2^nd in the Breeders’ Stakes in his last start, is a contender in the Kent Breeders’ Cup Stakes, a Grade 3.

MCCORMACKS ARE THE ‘BOSS’

VAN BOSSED, a 2yo colt by first year sire Van Nistleroy, won his maiden at Catterick Bridge in England two days ago for breeders Bernard and Karen McCormack of Oshawa,Ontario.

The colt, out of Embossed by Silver Deputy, was a $60,000 weanling purchase. It was Van Bossed’s first start.

GETTING ‘HIP’

The Ontario Racing Commission has received plans for a restructuring of the Horse Improvement Program (HIP, a breed development program for Thoroughbreds, Standardbreds and Quarter Horses) setting up a $45 million program in incentives and purses for Ontario-sired and Ontario-bred horses.

“Exciting recommendations received from the Industry Advisory Group propose a new mare residency program as a foundation for increased incentives for owners and breeders,” said the press release.

The proposals will be presented to the ORC board for approval.

For more, visit the ORC website

www.Ontarioracingcommission.ca

PRESQUE ISLE, 5:30 POST

The first card of the new meeting at Presque Isle Downs in Erie, Penn. Starts tonight at 5:30 p.m. Canadian connections are in the first race, the Inaugural Stakes – Jam Jar’s LOTTACOSTA and jockey Ray Sabouring are 8 to 1 in the morning line.

Presque Isle has the Tapeta synthetic footing on its track.

JUST 28 NOMINATED TO WOODBINE MILE

Okay, so the suppment program at Woodbine can ensure that there will be late additions but a surprisingly light noms list was released yesterday for the WOODBINE MILE - grade 1, worth $1,000,000 on Sept. 16.

Among the names on the list that, if they came, would make the race interesting - BECRUX (Last year's winner); REMARKABLE NEWS; SHAKESPEARE; and any Euro's (which rarely come for this race) - CARADAK, BLUE KSAR or GEORGE WASHINGTON.