Civaci comes from Vancouver ready to ride

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Jockey agent Ron Burke appears to have an able replacement for the injured Ademar Santos in Sahin Civaci, who made his way to Woodbine from Vancouver, British Columbia.

Santos suffered a broken collarbone when his mount, Hopehard, stumbled and unseated him just past the wire in the eighth race here April 21. Santos is recovering at home in Tampa, Fla.

Civaci, 25, was tied for sixth-leading rider at Hastings in 2018, during which he won aboard 28 of 191 mounts. He captured three stakes there last year on Calgary Caper, most notably the Grade 3 B.C. Premier’s Handicap.

Civaci has 120 victories from 1,035 mounts in North America.

Burke said Civaci has been working horses for an assortment of trainers, including Robert Tiller, Stu Simon, and Marty Drexler. He should have his first local mount within a week.

“We’ve been busy,” Burke said.

◗ Woodbine’s two leading apprentices, the Japanese natives Kazushi Kimura and Diasuke Fukumoto, both have their five-pound weight allowance for most of the rest of the meet.

Kimura was granted a winter extension of 124 days, and his apprenticeship is scheduled to end Oct. 26. Fukumoto, who also got a 124-day extension, will be an apprentice until Sept. 14.

Kimura, last year’s Sovereign Award-winning apprentice, is tied for second in the standings with Rafael Hernandez with five wins. Fukomoto has three wins, which ranks him tied for fourth with three others.

◗ Perennial leading rider Eurico da Silva made quite a splash last Sunday when he won aboard all six of his mounts in succession. He was to have ridden Sure Would Forest in the eighth and final race, but the unraced 3-year-old was scratched after getting loose behind the gate.

Da Silva’s remarkable feat fell one win short of the Woodbine record. The great Sandy Hawley twice won seven races in the early 1970s. Richard Grubb did it first on May 16, 1967.

Da Silva sits alone atop the standings with eight wins, including a decisive score in Sunday’s $114,800 Wando Stakes on the Queen’s Plate contender Skywire.

◗ Trainer Mike DePaulo said that last Saturday’s Woodstock stakes victor Souper Success will probably keep to sprinting for the immediate future.

In his season debut in the $112,200 Woodstock, Souper Success earned his second straight 80 Beyer Speed Figure for beating a quality field in the six-furlong sprint for 3-year-olds. DePaulo said Souper Success will be nominated to the $125,000 Queenston Stakes on the Tapeta on May 19 and the $100,000 Bold Ruckus Stakes on the grass June 2.

“He was in Florida for a bit, but he doesn’t have a two-turn bottom,” DePaulo said.