Hard Edge looks for second consecutive win in Thursday feature at Woodbine

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Hard Edge will look to continue her winning ways in Thursday’s featured conditioned allowance with a $50,000-claiming option at Woodbine.

A 4-year-old owned and bred by Chiefswood Stables, Hard Edge has placed in all seven of her starts on the Tapeta for trainer Stuart Simon.

Hard Edge took a few races to put it all together. She graduated in her fourth start in December in a 6 1/2-furlong maiden special, earning a big 86 Beyer Speed Figure in the process. Thursday's race is 7 furlongs.

Hard Edge finished third as the even-money favorite in her May 7 season opener in a 5 1/2-furlong allowance, and subsequently ran second to the favored Loyalty in a key allowance. She cleared the first allowance condition most recently in a gutsy display, during which she disposed of two rivals on the lead before drawing off to win with an 85 Beyer.

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On Thursday, Hard Edge drew outside the other front-runner in the seven-horse field, Ms Vancougar, in post 3. From there, jockey Eswan Flores can use her tactical speed to his advantage.

“It took her a while to mature,” Simon said. “As the year went on last year, she started working better and better, and she’s continued to run better and better. We’re hoping to take that next step in this allowance condition and see where it takes us.”

Simon is looking forward to trying the daughter of Hard Spun on the grass.

“I’d really like to get her on the turf, but it hasn’t worked out,” Simon explained. “Maybe she’ll get seven-eighths or a mile around one turn on the turf. She’s a stalky type of mare, and I think she’s a one-turn horse.”

Ms Vancougar used different running styles to beat maidens and allowance types in her last two 2021 outings in the fall. She led until late stretch before weakening to second in her May 28 comeback, and is exiting a flat fourth in another conditioned allowance.

Kazushi Kimura will ride Ms Vancougar again for owner-trainer Nick Nosowenko.

Afleet Katherine could be coming around. She’s turning back to a suitable distance off a belated fourth in a turf route in her second appearance at the meet. Trainer Kevin Attard has good numbers going from a route to a sprint.

Golden Vision, Silent Causeway and Hello Friends were all unplaced in the June 26 Ballade Stakes, a six-furlong sprint for Ontario-sired females.

Golden Vision won the 2021 Ballade in an upset and was competitive in several other stakes last year, including a third in the Grade 3 Ontario Fashion.

Silent Causeway notched her first stakes going 1 1/16 miles in the restricted La Prevoyante in December, but was beaten in double digits in both of her starts this year.

Hello Friends is shedding some weight with apprentice Slade Jones aboard.

Competing the field is Ghaaleb the Great.

Post time for the eight-race Thursday card is 5 p.m.