The Minkster takes on Saratoga shipper in Plate Trial

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – The Minkster will put his unbeaten record on the line against the promising shipper Causin’ Mayhem and seven other Canadian-bred 3-year-olds in Sunday’s $150,000 Plate Trial Stakes at Woodbine. The 1 1/8-mile event is a key prep for the $1 million Queen’s Plate here Aug 21.

The Minkster took the 1 1/8-mile Coronation Futurity at 2 and then got the winter off before beating Rondure in his season opener, the seven-furlong Queenston Stakes. Rondure returned to romp in the Grade 3 Marine.

Trainer Danny Vella said things didn’t go as expected in the June 12 Queenston for The Minkster, but the son of English Channel still got the job done.

“I ran him a bit short, we may have moved a bit early, and he got to the front and thought, ‘Okay, we’ve won, the race is over.’ ” Vella explained. “You forget that it was only the third start of his life, and they can still run green at that point.”

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The Minkster had an impressive six-furlong work in 1:10.60 on July 9, followed by a five-eighths breeze in 1:00.80 last Sunday, both under jockey David Moran.

“He worked Sunday morning and he went brilliant,” Vella said. “We just wanted an easy work after his work the week before, which was a tougher one. We just wanted to blow him out a little bit and put the final touches on him. We schooled him in the starting gate and in the paddock, and we’re ready to run.”

Causin’ Mayhem, based at Saratoga with trainer Todd Pletcher, is making his first Tapeta start for owner Chiefswood Stables and will have Kazushi Kimura aboard.

Chiefswood general manager Robert Landry said Causin’ Mayhem ran greenly when second in his debut on the turf March 12 at Gulfstream. He graduated on a muddy track in a one-mile maiden special June 3 at Belmont that was taken off the turf.

“We ran him on the grass because Todd really felt the dirt wasn’t his best surface, but with it raining and coming off, we really wanted to get a race into him,” Landry recalled. “He was never terrible on the dirt, so we decided to give him a go and he dictated the race and ran pretty good. He’s always shown us he’s had some talent. The biggest question mark is how he handles the synthetic. Most horses do. Todd seems to be happy with where he’s at.”

Dancing in Da’nile, the Coronation Futurity runner-up, was third in his comeback in a June 12 allowance on the grass.

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“This year, he came back to me in May,” trainer Gail Cox said. “We needed to get a race into him, so he wound up running on the turf with older horses. He got bounced around a little bit. He probably should have been second. He ran a good race and came out of it well. We’ve been able to train forwardly. He will love the distance in the Plate Trial, and he’s an improving horse.”

Duke of Love wound up fourth in the Queenston and is coming off a distant second in the Marine.

Completing the field are Guard of Honour, Hall of Dreams, Bill Needle, Lac Macaza, and Sir for Sure.