Calgary Cat, Sharp Sensation vying for champion honors in Kennedy Road

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Calgary Cat will look to remain undefeated on Polytrack in 2014 and stake his claim on the male sprint championship in Sunday’s Grade 2, $200,000 Kennedy Road Stakes at Woodbine.

Calgary Cat has won a pair of allowance contests and also captured the Grade 3 Bold Venture Stakes on the Polytrack at Woodbine this season. He earned a career-best 98 Beyer Speed Figure in the Bold Venture.

Last time out he was a close third behind Caspar Netscher and Black Hornet in the Grade 2 Nearctic Stakes on turf on Oct. 19. Black Hornet returns in the Kennedy Road.

“I thought our horse ran his race,” said Calgary Cat’s trainer, Kevin Attard. “I’m just hoping there’s going to be some speed to keep that horse honest and give us an opportunity to close.”

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The Kennedy Road will put Calgary Cat up against Sharp Sensation, and both are leading contenders for this season’s male sprint championship. The result in the Kennedy Road could ultimately decide which horse earns the title, and Attard said Calgary Cat is doing well coming into the race.

“He’s coming into the race as good as he’s been going into his previous events,” he said. “We’re looking forward to getting a run against Sharp Sensation because there’s probably a lot on the line.”

KEY CONTENDERS

Calgary Cat (Last 3 Beyers: 95-98-93)

◗ Calgary Cat appears to have an ideal draw outside of his main rival, and the presence of Black Hornet ensures there will be speed to chase.

DRF FORMULATOR FACT: Over the past two years, Attard has a 19 percent strike rate with horses moving from turf to synthetic, with a return on investment of $2.23.

Sharp Sensation (Last 3 Beyers: 94-91-95)

◗ Trainer Reade Baker took the blinkers off Sharp Sensation for his last start, which came in the Bet On Sunshine Stakes on dirt at Churchill Downs on Nov. 1, and he responded with a half-length victory over Nates Mineshaft.

◗ Sharp Sensation has proved to be a versatile horse this season, as he’s won stakes on dirt, turf, and synthetic, but has only one win in three starts at Woodbine in 2014.

Black Hornet (Last 3 Beyers: 96-87-89)

◗ The turf experiment in the Nearctic brought an improved performance from Black Hornet, as he set quick fractions on an uncontested lead and held on to be second.

◗ He’ll likely find himself on the lead again in the Kennedy Road, but there appears to be other front-runners that he will have to contend with.