ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Off an 11-month layoff, a razor-sharp Cruden Bay won the Grade 2 Connaught Cup for the second year in a row at Woodbine on July 20. The stretch-runner will stretch from seven furlongs to a mile in Saturday’s Grade 2, $200,000 King Edward, a pivotal prep for next month’s Grade 1 Woodbine Mile. A late bloomer owned by Michael Lay, Cruden Bay earned a fat 98 Beyer Speed Figure in last year’s Connaught Cup. He went to the sidelines after finishing fifth in last year’s King Edward and then took this year’s Connaught Cup with a 96 Beyer by closing stoutly from ninth under new rider Fraser Aebly. Trainer Don MacRae said Cruden Bay went wrong while training for the 2024 Woodbine Mile. “He fell way out of it in the King Edward last year and came with a run at the end,” MacRae recalled. “We were prepping him back for the Mile and he came back a little bit off in behind one day. We just took our time rehabbing him and bringing him back, and the time paid off.” :: Access the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. MacRae said the 7-year-old has worked more aggressively than ever this year and should relish a one-turn mile. “He’s worked differently this year,” MacRae said. “His whole career, he never breezed a bullet until he did the other day with William T. I thought it was a great work. He seems like a big, strong horse this year. He’s very happy. I think a mile should be more beneficial to him.” Dresden Row is one of three supplements in the 10-horse field. Trained by Lorne Richards, the reigning Canadian champion male 3-year-old is exiting a troubled second as the favorite in the Grade 3 Seagram Cup on Tapeta, arguably his preferred surface. Trainer Mark Casse entered the speedy War Strategy and Lucky Score, who mounted his patented wide rally to finish fifth in the Connaught Cup. Lucky Score finished a close seventh after a troubled run in the 2023 Breeders’ Cup Mile at Santa Anita. Trainer Kevin Attard is quite high on Gas Me Up, who won a six-furlong conditioned allowance going away on July 20 in his second start off a one-year layoff. “He’s 2 for 2 on the [main turf],” Attard pointed out. “I think he’s a nice horse.” Bold Venture Chiefswood Stables appears to hold a strong hand in Saturday’s $150,000 Bold Venture with the closer Playmea Tune and front-runner Simcoe. Trained by Josie Carroll, Playmea Tune just missed beating the favored Patches O’Houlihan when second in this Grade 3 race last year. He won his first stakes on Tapeta going the 6 1/2-furlong distance of the Bold Venture in the Feb. 1 Forego at Turfway Park. The handsome bay enters Saturday’s engagement fresh off a fourth on turf in the Grade 2 Highlander behind Canadian champions Patches O’Houlihan, My Boy Prince, and Dresden Row. Playmea Tune has prepped encouragingly since the June 28 Highlander, outworking King’s Plate contender Notorious Gangster in a five-furlong breeze in 59.80 seconds with a thorough gallop-out on Aug. 7. John Velazquez inherits the mount on the 5-year-old from Rafael Hernandez, who chose Simcoe. “He’s in good order,” Chiefswood general manager Robert Landry said. “Simcoe is on form right now [too]. We have a pretty good one-two punch. Hopefully, they run their races.” Trained by Katerina Vassilieva, Simcoe has thrived since sticking to sprinting since last fall. The 5-year-old won back-to-back conditioned allowances with a pair of 99 Beyers over the winter at Turfway. When returning to Woodbine in late May, he was a stalking second in the Grade 3 Jacques Cartier. He is coming off a gutsy tally in a conditioned allowance June 22. Casse sends out Ice Chocolat and Victory Achieved in the eight-horse field. The wonderfully versatile Ice Chocolat is on the comeback trail. He had a breakout season in 2023, during which he recorded narrow losses in the Grade 2 Nearctic and Grade 2 Kennedy Road after ending up third in the Grade 1 Fourstardave at Saratoga. Ice Chocolat ran lights-out at Saratoga in June of last year, winning the Grade 3 Poker at 24-1 with a 96 Beyer. The Brazilian import has only started once since then, finishing eighth in the March 29 Appleton Stakes at Gulfstream Park. He worked five furlongs in a sizzling 58.80 on the Tapeta July 31. Front-runner Victory Achieved won three consecutive Tapeta sprints here last fall. He went to the bench after a fading fifth in his stakes debut in a two-turn Tapeta test at Gulfstream in January. Old Chestnut upset Simcoe while running the race of his life on the lead in the Jacques Cartier. He was only an early factor most recently when sixth in the Highlander. Twin City was cross-entered in the Bold Venture and King Edward. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.