Calgary Cat pointing to Highlander Stakes

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Calgary Cat most recently finished a narrow third in the Grade 2 Connaught Cup over seven furlongs on turf here June 3 and will shorten up for the Grade 2, $250,000 Highlander Stakes over six furlongs on turf as part of the Queen’s Plate card July 2, trainer Kevin Attard said.

Calgary Cat was 9 1/2 lengths off the lead with just three furlongs left to run in the Connaught Cup but closed well down the lane under jockey Luis Contreras. He was involved in a three-horse photo finish with winner Tower of Texas and runner-up Commute, losing by a head.

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“He ran really well,” Attard said. “He was a little farther out than I would have liked to have seen him, but he came running, and that’s all you can ask for. He ran hard.”

Calgary Cat is among the 18 nominees for the Highlander, which had its base purse increased by $50,000 this year and now offers a fees-paid berth in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint at Del Mar on Nov. 4. Other nominees include Commute; Grade 3 Churchill Downs Turf Sprint winner Green Mask, who ran second in the Highlander last season; Grade 2 Shakertown Stakes winner Holding Gold; last year’s Highlander Stakes winner, Passion for Action; and Pink Lloyd, a three-time stakes winner on Tapeta this season.