Home edge for Maritime Passion over shippers

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Maritime Passion has the home-field advantage Saturday at Woodbine in the $150,000 Ontario Debutante, a six-furlong stakes for 2-year-old fillies that has lured three American shippers.

Maritime Passion captured both of her starts fairly easily. She graduated from off the pace in her five-furlong debut, and took the 5 1/2-furlong Shady Well Stakes in 1:04.24, a time that got her a Beyer Speed Figure of 82.

Maritime Passion drew post 1 in the restricted Shady Well, but jockey Chantal Sutherland got her off the dead rail early, and she proceeded to duel two wide on the lead en route to a 3 3/4-length win.

"I wasn't really concerned about the 1 hole," said trainer Mike DePaulo. "I would have liked to have seen her sit back a little more, but Chantal got her out and over pretty quick. She got the money, so I guess she made the right move."

DePaulo was thrilled with the way Maritime Passion breezed five-eighths in 59 seconds last Saturday, galloping out six furlongs in 1:12, according to the trainer.

"She went with somebody for a quarter," DePaulo said, "and then went around them like they were stuck to the fence. She went real fast around the turn, but then she galloped out well. I don't think three-quarters will be a problem for her."

Franny Freud, Vertical Vision, and Credit Crunch are all shipping in from the United States for the Debutante.

Franny Freud won her opener in a romp on the dirt at Belmont, and has been idle since her runner-up placing behind the well-regarded Midst in the five-furlong My Dear Stakes here June 28. She was scratched from the Grade 3 Schuylerville Stakes July 29 at Saratoga. Patrick Husbands picks up the mount on Franny Freud for trainer John Terranova.

Vertical Vision graduated second time out in a 5 1/2-furlong dash at Lone Star. Most recently, she earned her second consecutive Beyer Figure in the upper 80s, making all the running in the five-furlong Prairie Gold Lassie Stakes at Prairie Meadows. Luis Contreras will ride Vertical Vision for trainer Steve Asmussen.

Credit Crunch is exiting a front-running score in a 4 1/2-furlong maiden special over Arlington's Polytrack, for which she received an 87 Beyer.

Negligee is a longshot possibility. She broke slowly before rallying wide for a game score in her lone try, which came against $62,500 maidens.