EURO-NATIONAL

BREEDERS' CUP CHALLENGE DAY AT WOODBINE

Saturday October 4, 2008

The rain came down hard and heavy this morning just as some of the European runners for the Canadian International and E.P. Taylor Stakes finished their morning jaunts.

(top right, TOQUE DE QUEDA, a favourite for the E.P. Taylor)

Lightning, big cracks of thunder and monsoon-like rain was the order of the morning..at least for an hour or so.

DOCTOR DINO (at right, this morning) is a feisty fellow who gave his rider and caretaker ERIC GANDON all he could handle this morning. The multiple Group 1 winner does not want much give to the turf course so the rain did not make Gandon too happy this morning.

LUCARNO is also full of beans. The tall leggy Dynaformer horse won the St. Leger last year (English) and is about as studdish a colt as there is...

MOURILYAN (at right) strutted around calmy and proudly and then bounced around the Polytrack this morning looking like a happy and sharp colt.
The 4yo's trainer Herman Brown, who has 60 in training in South Africa, was on hand to watch his colt train this morning.

The fillies TOQUE DE QUEDA (Curfew) and FOLK OPERA are slight gals. The former is taller with a white blaze but she is very narrow and Godolphin's Folk Opera is a little wee miss who was quite feisty this morning.

Looking super on the turf course this morning was STARTICUS, who is a local hope in the Nearctic Stakes, trained by Ralph Biamonte. The tally dark bay dragged his rider around the course and looked very strong.


NEARCTIC FIELD SHOULD BE 14

SUMMER STAKES...ANYONE? ANYONE?


Looks as if the 6 furlong NEARCTIC will have a full field of some top notch turf sprinters...it will be a super betting race.

The Summer Stakes, for 2yos at 1 mile on the grass is having a rough time attracting entries.

Reports this morning were that three horses are confirmed...SKIPADATE, UTTERLY COOL and GRAND ADVENTURE.



NEARCTIC STAKES 6 furlongs,. turf


Heros Reward D. Capuano
Just Rushing Sid Attard
Mohegan Sky L . Rice
Mulmur M. Frostad
Off Duty L. Whiting
Quietly Mine (C Clement
Santiago Aitlan A. Wohler
Starticus R. Biamonte
Starvinsky B. Jackson
Storm Treasure S. Asmussen
The Great Caruso M. Pierce
True to Tradition S. Lake


SUMMER STAKES

Grand Adventure
Skipadate
Utterly Cool


from woodbine media office...


EARLY LOOK AT THE PATTISON CANADIAN INTERNATIONAL (10)
Horse/Owner/Trainer/Jockey

Champs Elysees/Juddmonte Farms/Robert Frankel/Garrett Gomez
Doctor Dino/Javier Martinez Salmean/Richard Gibson/Frankie Dettori
Lauro/Gestuet Ittlingen/Andreas Wohler/Eduardo Pedroza
Lucarno/Augustin Stable/John Gosden/Jimmy Fortune
Marlang/Gus Schickedanz/Debbie England/Richard Dos Ramos
Marsh Side/Robert Evans/Neil Drysdale/Javier Castellano
Mourilyan/Ramzan Kadyrov/Herman Brown/John Egan
Quijano/Gestuet Fahrhof/Peter Schiergen/Andrasch Starke
Seaside Retreat/William Farish Jr./Mark Casse/Patrick Husbands
Spice Route/Harlequin Ranches/Roger Attfield/Jim McAleney



'REED' ALL ABOUT IT: MARSH SIDE READY TO TACKLE PCI RIVALS

Robert Evans' strapping Marsh Side - he's over 17 hands high - comes
into the Pattison Canadian International off a game and gutsy
performance in the Grade 1 Northern Dancer Stakes, on September 7 at
Woodbine. Now, the Kentucky-bred has his sights set on reining in his
first win since December of 2006.

A five-year-old son of Gone West, Marsh Side headed into the Northern
Dancer in anything but good form. In his four previous races, the bay
finished 12th, 6th, 8th and 4th, respectively. In total, he lost by a
combined 63 lengths in those races.

(he finished last in the 2007 Canadian International)

Understandably, Marsh Side was ignored to the tune of 47-1 on the
toteboard in the 1 1/2-mile Northern Dancer. But a strong turn of foot
put Marsh Side in the thick of the action, eventually finishing fourth,
a diminishing three-quarters of a length behind Pattison Canadian
International rival, Champs Elysees.

"My feeling would be that he should improve off that last race," said
trainer Neil Drysdale, of the effort that landed Marsh Side a 97 Beyer
Figure (Daily Racing Form speed rating). "His last race, I thought he
ran very well. He was strong down the lane. We only missed by three
parts of a length. For a minute, I thought we're okay, but he's a bit
of a galloper and he doesn't quicken that much. We'll see how we do."

Drysdale will have the services of Javier Castellano, who teamed with
Sky Conqueror to take the 2006 Northern Dancer Turf, at Woodbine. Last
year, Castellano partnered Heros Reward to victory in the Nearctic
Stakes.

Drysdale added that he was not shipping Cedar Mountain up for the
race.


LONGSHOT LAURO READY FOR PATTISON

Five-year-old German-bred Lauro will attempt to do the nearly
unthinkable when he goes postward Saturday in the Pattison Canadian
International...win the Grade 1, mile and one-half turf classic off an
18-month layoff.

Trained by Andreas Wohler, who has twice finished second in the
International, with Paolini in 2001 and with Simonas in 2004, Lauro,
bred and owned by Gestuet Ittlingen, last raced in April of 2007 in
Cologne, when under the care of trainer Peter Schiergen.

"I've had him for over a year," explained Wohler, who will saddle Lauro
for the first time on Saturday. "He was in America last year in the
spring at Keeneland, but he had some problems with his pelvis - nothing
serious, so we couldn't race him. We had to rest him. So we took him
home again. Now he's fine. He's had a long time off but he's a very
good horse."

Lauro, who will be ridden by Eduardo Pedroza, won his first three
career starts in 2006. Among his victims was Rail Link, who would go on
that fall to win the prestigious Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Overall,
the son of Monsun has won three of seven career starts, with two
seconds.


EARLY LOOK AT THE E.P. TAYLOR (10)
Horse/Owner/Trainer/Jockey

Arden Belle/Salt and Pepper Stable/Robert Gerl/Jono Jones
Callwood Dancer/Harlequin Ranches/Roger Attfield/Eurico Rosa da Silva
Classy Landlady/Dura Racing & M.J. Doyle Racing Stable/Slade Callaghan
Folk Opera/Godolphin/Saeed bin Suroor/Frankie Dettori
Green Lyons/Castleton Lyons/Neil Drysdale/Indefinite
Hostess/William Clifton Jr./James Bond/Javier Castellano
J'Ray/ Lawrence Goichman/Todd Pletcher/Joe Bravo
Royal Pleasure/Augustin Stable/Jonathan Sheppard/Rosemary Homeister
Sealy Hill/Melnyk Racing Stables Inc./Mark Casse/Patrick Husbands
Toque de Queda/Marquesa de Moratalla/Mike Delzangles/Garrett Gomez



TUESDAY SCOREBOARD...

WOODBINE TRAINERS

Name Starts 1st 2nd 3rd Earnings

Mark E. Casse 335 47 50 51 $3,604,229
Sid C. Attard 216 40 32 34 $2,323,607
Scott H. Fairlie 168 35 32 18 $1,357,598
Roger L. Attfield 179 35 21 27 $2,880,225
Reade Baker 219 33 24 30 $1,819,495
Steven M. Asmussen 183 31 24 22 $1,834,709
Michael J. Doyle 206 25 18 23 $1,168,401
Nicholas Gonzalez 142 24 21 21 $1,817,974
Brian A. Lynch 79 24 11 11 $1,861,546
Audre Cappuccitti 176 23 13 19 $709,950
Terry Jordan 60 23 13 4 $886,757


WOODBINE JOCKEYS

Name Starts 1st 2nd 3rd Earnings

James McAleney 563 112 86 79 $5,985,131
Patrick Husbands 507 94 79 78 $5,589,662
Chantal Sutherland 551 81 65 75 $4,359,055
Emile Ramsammy 606 79 76 80 $4,031,401
Emma-Jayne Wilson 625 75 74 101 $4,523,391
Eurico Rosa Da Silva 546 72 69 62 $4,147,723
Tyler Pizarro 469 64 63 52 $2,990,908
Jono C. Jones 421 60 46 50 $4,335,333
Justin Stein 427 44 61 39 $2,182,264
David Clark 374 43 43 44 $2,799,787