Dixie Law comes back fresh for Ontario Damsel
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ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Dixie Law has had a productive 3-year-old campaign for trainer Dale Desruisseaux. She returns from a freshening at 1 1/16 miles in Saturday’s $125,000 Ontario Damsel, one of three Tapeta stakes on the Woodbine card along with the Sophomore and Silver Creek.
One of the top 2-year-olds on the grounds last year, Dixie Law won her May 16 season opener in the Ruling Angel Stakes, after which she ran third in the Grade 3 Selene, second in the Woodbine Oaks, and fourth in the prestigious King’s Plate, all behind Luster.
Switching to the grass most recently Sept. 6 in the Wonder Where Stakes, Dixie Law outfinished Katie’s Grace to prevail by a neck in the final leg of the Canadian Triple Tiara.
Desruisseaux said he bypassed the Sept. 26 Breeders’ Stakes, the 1 1/2-mile anchor leg of the Canadian Triple Crown on turf, because he wanted to give Dixie Law more time between engagements.
“I wanted to give her a little break after going through the grind that she did,” Desruisseaux explained. “We gave her a couple of weeks off at the farm. She hadn’t missed a dance, running pretty much every three weeks going into the Wonder Where.
“If it was [five weeks out], I would have run her in the Breeders’. She maybe moves up on the grass a tiny bit, but I don’t think a whole lot. Her numbers are pretty equal on everything.”
The Ontario Damsel drew five other 3-year-old fillies – Bold Time, Cool Times, Ontology, and the shippers Hot Mash and Raiding Party.
Based in Kentucky with trainer Brendan Walsh, Raiding Party has made all five of her starts on turf, ending up sixth last time out in the Grade 1 Del Mar Oaks. The Irish-bred has worked regularly over Turfway’s Tapeta.
Sophomore Stakes
Desruisseaux sends out Highwaytothemoon in the $125,000 Sophomore, in which he gets back to sprinting after contesting two-thirds of the Canadian Triple Crown.
Highwaytothemoon won the seven-furlong Queenston Stakes in June and then doubled up in the nine-furlong Plate Trial, after which he was unplaced in both the King’s Plate and Prince of Wales.
The 6 1/2-furlong Sophomore lured four others, including stakes winners Meilani and My Covenant.
Meilani, victorious in the Alywow Stakes on the Tapeta on June 28, had a troubled trip most recently when seventh in the Aug. 8 Shenandoah Stakes on the grass at Colonial.
“She’s arguably better on synthetic,” trainer Kevin Attard said. “She didn’t have a great trip at Colonial. She missed the break, got bottled up, and had nowhere to run.”
My Covenant is coming off a seven-length score in the Lake Erie Stakes for Ontario-sired 3-year-olds on the dirt at Fort Erie.
“The fact that he took so well to the dirt at a new track was very impressive,” trainer Audrey Cheung said.
◗ Keeneland-based Dazzling Move meets Fortyfiveseventy and six others in the $150,000 Silver Creek, a 1 1/16-mile Tapeta route for older Ontario-bred fillies and mares. A Grade 1-placed dirt miler, Dazzling Move ended a drought last time when finding the mark in a conditioned allowance at Horseshoe Indianapolis.
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