Casse has formidable pairs in Marine, Queenston stakes
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Trainer Mark Casse will be well represented in Sunday’s 3-year-old stakes action at Woodbine when he runs Easy Time and Frosted Over in the Grade 3, $150,000 Marine, and Gretzky the Great and Master Spy in the $125,000 Queenston. Both races are on the Tapeta main track.
Easy Time won for fun here first time out in a seven-furlong maiden special on the Tapeta on Oct. 25, when he received a 72 Beyer Speed Figure. The son of Not This Time started twice over the winter at Gulfstream, where he finished far back in a Jan. 2 dirt stakes before dropping a neck decision in a one-mile allowance on the turf Feb. 12.
Easy Time breezed five-eighths here July 1 on the Tapeta in 1:00.20, which was the fastest of 20 works at the distance.
“I like him a lot,” Casse said. “He worked really good. He was much the best in that allowance race on the grass at Gulfstream. Then, he had a few little issues, so we gave him some time off and brought him back.”
Like Easy Time, Frosted Over will negotiate the 1 1/16-mile distance of the Marine for the first time. He comes off a 4 3/4-length maiden-special score going seven-eighths here June 20, for which he got an 83 Beyer.
“He won pretty impressively,” said Casse, who has won the Marine once.
Tidal Forces, unbeaten in two starts, both for trainer Gail Cox, should be among the Marine favorites. After winning a 1 1/8-mile maiden-special on the Gulfstream grass in April, the Sam-Son Farm homebred won a 1 1/16-mile allowance on the Tapeta on June 19.
Haddassah, a professional debut winner going long at 2, was third in his season opener in an allowance route on the turf won by Town Cruise, who came back to win a second-level allowance. Haddassah breezed a solo three-quarters in 1:12.60 last Sunday.
Gretzky the Great returns
Reigning Canadian champion male 2-year-old Gretzky the Great heads the seven-furlong Queenston, a prep for the Queen’s Plate on Aug. 22. He finished third and fifth in two Tapeta stakes during the winter at Turfway before heading to the sidelines.
Gretzky the Great worked five-eighths on July 2 in a bullet 59.20 seconds, handily.
“He missed a little bit of time with a quarter crack,” Casse said.
Master Spy, last year’s Cup and Saucer Stakes winner, was a non-threatening fifth in his comeback in the six-furlong Woodstock Stakes on Tapeta.
“It was a little short for him,” Casse said. “I wanted to get him started there. I’m not so sure he’s not a better turf horse. We’ll see.”
Download and shipper Del Griffith were both supplemented to the Queenston.
Candy Overload was cross-entered in both races off a second-place finish in an Ontario-sired allowance sprint, for which he got an 84 Beyer.