Mira Mission gets perfect trip to upset Canadian Turf
Mira Mission won his third straight grass race, running down Mouillage in deep stretch to post a three-quarter-length victory in the Grade 3, $150,000 Canadian Turf Stakes on Saturday at Gulfstream Park.
The top two finished well clear of the rest, English Bee checking in third, about 3 1/4 lengths behind Mouillage. Then came huge longshot Noble Indy, with 1-5 favorite Never Surprised fading to finish fifth.
Never Surprised wants to lead and control the pace, but Jose Ortiz sent Clear Vision hard out of the gate Saturday and Never Surprised couldn’t match his early speed. Never Surprised pulled hard for his head, trying to run off as Luis Saez maneuvered him outside Clear Vision around the clubhouse turn.
The quarter-mile went in 23.76 seconds, the half in 47.54, and as Never Surprised went up to take on Clear Vision at the half-mile pole, Noble Indy came three wide to make Never Surprise the meat in a three-horse sandwich. Never Surprised was done at the top of the stretch, the pace taking its toll, too, on Clear Vision, who would wind up a distant sixth.
Mouillage, a Chad Brown-trained French import, stalked the lead pack under Irad Ortiz Jr., getting what looked like a fine setup as the leaders began to tire. Ortiz moved wide at about the five-sixteenths pole, slightly too soon, perhaps, as things worked out.
Mira Mission had won a maiden race and an allowance last year in his first two Gulfstream grass starts, and in January made it 3 for 3 at Gulfstream, landing a third-level allowance. The improving 4-year-old clearly excels on the local lawn, and it turned out he and Julien Leparoux got the perfect Canadian Turf trip.
“I was glad the big favorite got some pressure early,” Leparoux said. “I didn’t know what was going to happen with the pace scenario. If they didn’t go fast, I’d have been right behind them.”
Instead, Mira Mission, relaxed and cozy, ran down the backstretch several lengths behind Mouillage with only longshot Sigoloso behind him. Leparoux stoked up his mount at the three-eighths pole, got onto Mouillage’s tail past the quarter pole, and Mira Mission simply finished a little better than Mouillage, who showed a nice turn of foot and ran well in his North American debut.
Tom Bush trained Mira Mission during 2020 and 2021, but the gelding now races for trainer Ian Wilkes. A homebred owned by the Mary Abeel Sullivan Revocable Trust, Mira Mission is by Noble Mission and is the most successful offspring of the Dynaformer mare Kazamira. Mira Mission was timed in 1:41.43 and paid $18.80 to win. Mira Mission was given a 100 Beyer Speed Figure.