Inglorious gets chance to show she can go long in Ontario Lassie

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – First-out stakes winner Inglorious will travel 1 1/16 miles Saturday at Woodbine Racetrack in the $150,000 Ontario Lassie Stakes for Ontario-foaled 2-year-old fillies.

Inglorious, a $90,000 yearling purchase by Donver Stable, made her only start against Ontario-breds in the six-furlong Fanfreluche on Oct. 24.

Beginning from the one-hole, Inglorious broke about four lengths behind the others and trailed early, before Chantal Sutherland angled her wide on the backstretch. She loomed into contention four-wide on the turn, and then wore down Dreamy Moonlite in the stretch before edging away for a daylight win in a time of 1:10. She was awarded a 73 Beyer Speed Figure.

“It looked like a spot where she could be competitive,” said trainer Josie Carroll. “It worked out well – certainly the way you’d like to see a horse run. Chantal didn’t rush her. She relaxed, and finished. We thought she was a nice filly all along.”

Carroll said the Lassie is a pivotal race for Inglorious, to help determine whether or not she’s a prospect for important stakes such as next year’s Woodbine Oaks.

“It’s something we have to try,” said Carroll. “She’s a Canadian-bred filly, and we need to see if she’ll go two turns.”

Grand Style won her maiden in style Oct. 30, in the $252,000 Princess Elizabeth Stakes. She earned a 71 Beyer in that 1 1/16-mile route, which was her second start for trainer Mike Doyle. Her previous trainer, Rusty Arnold, sent her to Doyle for a fall campaign.

“Rusty and I have been friends forever,” Doyle explained. “Rather than him coming to set up here, he sent her to me. She’s Canadian-bred. They bought her from the Sam-Son consignment at Saratoga as a yearling. We supplemented her to the Princess Elizabeth, and that worked out good.”

Doyle said Grand Style has trained encouragingly leading up to the Lassie. She breezed six furlongs in 1:17.60 on Nov. 20.

“She actually went from the five-eighths pole then, in 1:02 and change,” Doyle said. “I called in three-quarters from the five-eighths pole, because she was going to gallop out. She galloped out the seven-eighths in 1:31.”

After ending up third in the Princess Elizabeth, the Mark Casse-trained Sense of Pride finished second in maiden special company.

“She came back and had a flat race,” Casse said. “The Princess Elizabeth may have been a little hard on her, and she may have bounced.”