Godolphin, Appleby prevail again in Woodbine Mile with Notable Speech
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ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Godolphin and trainer Charlie Appleby’s dominance in the $1 million Woodbine Mile continued Saturday when favored Notable Speech displayed his class with a thrilling come-from-behind score under William Buick.
There were some anxious early moments in the inner turf route when Notable Speech broke slowly while bumped by One Stripe at the break. Buick then coaxed Notable Speech along to hold his rail position through a tight opening heading into the first turn and they proceeded to save ground about three lengths off the lead midway on the far turn.
My Boy Prince, Canada’s champion male 2-year-old in 2023, set honest fractions under Joel Rosario and maintained a clear lead entering the stretch. Buick angled Notable Speech wide for the drive and he rallied powerfully on his left lead to collar My Boy Prince late en route to a 1 3/4-length tally, in a time of 1:35.33 over the firm ground.
Gas Me Up finished another 1 3/4 lengths back in third. He was followed by Naptown, One Stripe, Win for the Money, Stanley House, Wyoming Bill, and Hunt Master.
Traditionally run on Woodbine’s roomy main turf, the Woodbine Mile was moved to the tight inner course for this year while the main course is undergoing renovations. Buick said the course switch made it more challenging for the runners from England on the card.
“It changed the dynamic a lot,” Buick said. “Our horses find it challenging, so I was not going to give up my position on Notable Speech, and he’s an experienced horse, so I could do that with him. He had to be brave for a little bit, but once he got into that position, he relaxed beautifully and got into a nice rhythm. For me, he was winning from a long way out.”
Victorious in the Group 1 English 2000 Guineas last year, Notable Speech ($2.80) was coming off a troubled narrow loss in the Group 1 Prix Jacques Le Marois at Deauville in France.
“His last race was very frustrating,” Buick recalled. “He should have won that day, and he deserved to win. It was a hard pill to swallow, but he put it right today.”
The Grade 1 Woodbine Mile is a Breeders’ Cup Win and You’re in qualifier, and Appleby assistant Alex Merriman said the son of Dubawi is probably headed back to Del Mar for the Nov. 1 BC Mile, in which he finished third last year. Godolphin, Appleby and Buick won both the Woodbine Mile and the BC Mile with Modern Games in 2022 and Master of The Seas in 2023.
“He ran a solid race last year,” Merriman pointed out. “It’s a big, big experience from going there and coming here. Hopefully, it sharpens him up from the two turns.”
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