ETOBICOKE, Ontario – The speedy King Elvis returns to Woodbine off a freshening in Friday’s eighth and final race. With the rail at zero feet, can he win the projected front-end battle and the war in the one-mile inner turf route? King Elvis wired nonwinners-of-two opponents here in the fall, after which he wintered at Palm Meadows with trainer Marty Drexler. He finished fourth, third, and sixth in a trio of tough $35,000 conditioned claimers at Gulfstream Park against the likes of Fly the W, Spy Hunger, and his classy stablemate Frosted Over. King Elvis, who last raced April 11, competes for the optional $40,000 claiming tag in Friday’s hybrid event for nonwinners of three, Ontario-sired allowance types. Sahin Civaci will be in the saddle. Motion Granted, who is eligible for nonwinners-of-two company, is the other front-runner in the lineup. He has evolved into a need-the-lead type, beating $25,000 maidens in October and then getting the winter off before two fringe finishes this meet. Xarel Forde rides the 4-year-old for trainer Nathan Squires. Bedazzle Me, Cabernaydo, and Lil Bit Gangsta are all possible off-the-place threats in the 10-horse field. :: Access the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. Bedazzle Me, the lone female in the lineup, has spent most of her career racing on the Tapeta and had a poor turf record heading into her last outing in a first-level allowance/optional claimer on the inner turf. Sent off at 59-1, she stalked a slow pace and went three wide on the far turn before just missing second while earning a career-high 74 Beyer Speed Figure. Off a layoff, Cabernaydo won his first start for trainer Katerina Vassilieva by disqualification May 31 after mounting a wide rally in a Tapeta route for nonwinners of two. He beat $40,000 maidens on the inner turf here in September when trained by Drexler. Lil Bit Gangsta was once a staple in the Woodbine Turf Endurance Series. The 7-year-old has gone winless since 2023 and was shareless in eight outings last year. When exiting a six-month vacation May 30, he closed from fifth for second behind the winter-raced Causin’ Mayhem in a $25,000 mile for nonwinners-of-three claimers on the inner turf. Palace View came on belatedly for fourth behind Lil Bit Gangsta on May 30 in an improved performance that followed back-to-back subpar showings at Gulfstream. Sooner Lunar recorded a series of double-digit losses against tougher in the fall before getting the winter off. He split Lil Bit Gangsta and Palace View when third after showing uncharacteristic early foot in his season opener May 30. Canadian Triple Crown nominee Kekoa is meeting older rivals for the second time in a row off a decent effort in a Tapeta sprint in his seasonal bow. Completing the eighth-race lineup are Proud Ronin and Penner Ash. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.