Purely Hot continues Woodbine trend

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – A trend among stakes winners early at the Woodbine meet has been winter fitness, and that trend continued in the Whimsical Stakes on Saturday, as Purely Hot sprung the upset over top local female sprinters Youcan’tcatchme and Goldstryke Glory.

Purely Hot came into the Whimsical off a start in a $7,500 starter allowance at Keeneland on April 9, and having that race under her belt proved to be a key factor in the victory.

“We didn’t have her 100 percent when we prepped her at Keeneland; she kind of needed that race,” winning trainer Tevis McCauley said. “We just felt we had a big advantage over the rest of the field since nobody had a start since December.”

Purely Hot has made four starts for McCauley after being purchased for $225,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky select fall mixed sale in Lexington last year. Her first start for her new connections was a fourth-place finish in the seven-furlong, Grade 2 Bessarabian Stakes at Woodbine last December.

“I felt like if that race would have been [6 1/2 furlongs] or three-quarters, she probably could have won,” McCauley said. “We felt like we had her back to that form, so we felt like we’d take a shot.”

Purely Hot could be a big player in the female sprint division this season, and McCauley is targeting the Grade 3, $150,000 Hendrie Stakes at Woodbine on May 24 for her next start.

“That’s the race we have our eye on,” McCauley said. “We plan on eventually getting back to the Presque Isle Masters, where she ran second against Groupie Doll [last year]. She seems like she has an affinity for that surface at Woodbine as well.”