Olivia Rose runs away with Ballade Stakes

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Little Teddy was all the rage in the betting at 4-5 in Sunday’s $100,000 Ballade Stakes, but it was archrival Olivia Rose who stole the show while giving Rafael Hernandez his third stakes win of the weekend at Woodbine.

Olivia Rose ($6.20) was the lone speed on paper and the six-furlong sprint for Ontario-sired females played out that way. She set honest fractions before Little Teddy took a run at the quarter pole, and then she pulled away in the lane to prevail by 7 1/2 lengths, in a time of 1:09.70 seconds.

Little Teddy faded in the stretch, but held on for second, ahead of a closing Talk to Ya Later. Taquanyah and Silent Sky completed the order of finish.

“I like her and made sure we broke on top and set the pace,” said Hernandez, who swept both 2-year-old stakes on Saturday. “I wanted to get the jump before (Little Teddy) was coming and getting closer to me. She stretched her legs down the stretch and the rest is history.”

Olivia Rose and Little Teddy took turns beating each other in last year’s Ontario Sired Heritage Series for Ontario-sired 3-year-old fillies. In their first meeting this year in the Ballade, Olivia Rose earned $60,000 for owner-breeder Gabe Grossberg. Mark Casse, who’s closing in on 4,000 career wins, trains the daughter of Silent Name.

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