Elysian Field rallies wide for Woodbine Oaks victory
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ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Trainer Mark Casse emerged from Sunday’s Woodbine Oaks card with two major players for this year’s $1 million King’s Plate: the impressive Oaks winner Elysian Field and gate-to-wire Plate Trial victor Paramount Prince.
With Sahin Civaci aboard, Elysian Field rallied wide from seventh in the nine-furlong Oaks to score by 2 1/4 lengths, in a time of 1:49.83. Wickenheiser closed from 13th in the 14-horse field to finish second, and Fortyfiveseventy beat out Me and My Shadow and the favored Ticker Tape Home for third. The latter had inherited the lead from the dueling pacesetters Fashionably Fab and Friends for Life on the far turn before tiring in the final furlong.
“I had a good trip overall and she came running,” said Civaci, who won four races on the card. “I saw a gap there and I tried to take it, but then it closed in. I had to check a little bit, and then I swerved out and she got a clear run.”
A daughter of Hard Spun, Elysian Field ($13.60) earned $300,000 of the $503,000 purse for owners Team Valor International and Gary Barber.
Casse said the timing is favorable to run Elysian Field back in the Aug. 20 Plate, a race he has won with an Oaks runner twice before, with Lexie Lou and Wonder Gadot.
“I’m extremely happy that now we get a month between the Oaks and the Plate,” Casse said. “That’s important. Even though I won it a few times, we were seeing it take its toll. Three weeks is tough, and now we get four weeks. She’s a big, strong filly.”
*** Paramount Prince ($25.50) won the $152,000 Plate Trial convincingly under Patrick Husbands, in his first start around two turns.
Paramount Prince went straight to the front and proceeded to set honest fractions before drawing off in the stretch to prevail by five lengths, in a time of 1:49.99 for the 1 1/8 miles.
Cool Kiss beat out Twin City for second as the even-money favorite, while favored Stanley House finished a belated sixth in the 12-horse field.
“Looking at the race, seeing it unfold, all the trainers are going to say: ‘take back’,” Husbands said. “I got everything my way—the race unfolded that way. His last work, I put a horse about 10 lengths in front of him. I told the (other) rider not to worry about me, and he relaxed behind that horse. Going into his race, if somebody really wanted the lead, I’d let them take the lead. He proved in his last work that he doesn’t need to take the lead.”
Paramount Prince banked $90,000 in his first stakes victory. Casse said the gelded son of Society’s Chairman has found his niche around two turns.
“I think maybe we got to see what he wants to do and that’s he wants to get into stride, and then he’ll run all day,” Casse said.
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