Academic starts season with rare sprint in Hendrie
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Canadian champion Academic will make her 4-year-old debut in Sunday’s Grade 3, $150,000 Hendrie Stakes for older fillies and mares going 6 1/2 furlongs on Woodbine’s Tapeta.
After competing exclusively in route races during her championship campaign last season, Academic will start in a sprint for the first time since running fourth in a maiden event in her second start Sept. 13, 2014. Trainer Reade Baker said his options were limited for Academic, with the first route race for older fillies and mares scheduled for May 29 going a mile on grass in the Grade 2 Nassau Stakes.
“I’d like her to be in a race going a mile and a sixteenth with no speed in it, but I can’t necessarily have what I want,” he said. “It’s not like there’s a lot of options.”
Academic was predominantly a speed runner in her route races last season, but Baker said she has been training behind horses in the morning this year.
“If she’s going to be a good filly and do the things we think she’s going to be able to do, then she’s got to be able to get off the pace and learn how to do those things,” he said.
Hendrie Stakes, Race 8
Key Contenders
Academic, by Henny Hughes
Last 3 Beyers: 89-83-88
DRF FORMULATOR FACT: With Justin Stein now retired, jockey Eurico Da Silva gets the mount on Academic. Da Silva and Baker have a 10-for-34 mark with a $2.33 return on investment over the past three years and have won both of their starts together this season.
Leigh Court, by Grand Slam
Last 3 Beyers: 89-88-69
◗ She made a triumphant return to Woodbine on April 10, winning the Grade 3 Whimsical Stakes on the lead. Leigh Court has won 5 of 7 career starts at Woodbine.
Cactus Kris, by Cactus Ridge
Last 3 Beyers: 89-87-88
◗ She comes into this race having finished second in the Giant’s Causeway Stakes on turf at Keeneland on April 16. She has had success at Woodbine in the past, winning last year’s Grade 3 Ontario Fashion Stakes and finishing second in the Grade 3 Seaway Stakes.
Skylander Girl, by Stroll
Last 3 Beyers: 84-83-85
◗ She won this event last season with a 95 Beyer Speed Figure while running on a lone lead.
◗ She was caught behind horses at the top of the lane in the Whimsical Stakes but did close nicely along the outside when she found running room.