Sadler looks to stamp successful meet with Ron's Gizmo in Steady Growth

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Trainer Ron Sadler has had a memorable Woodbine meet, winning several allowances with the speedy Souped Up and sending out the popular 10-year-old Northern Ruby to win her swan song last week before heading off to the breeding shed.

Sadler could win Sunday’s closing-day feature, the $100,000 Steady Growth Stakes, with his aptly named stable star Ron’s Gizmo. Sadler was the original trainer of the 7-year-old son of Giant Gizmo, who has banked nearly $300,000 over the past two years.

“I had him as a 3-year-old, when he was a giant just growing into himself,” Sadler recalled. “We knew long was going to be his thing. He went elsewhere for his 4-year-old year, and then we claimed him at the end of his 5-year-old year.”

Ron’s Gizmo was never better than in September, when he lost the Grade 3 Durham Cup by a head to the crack 3-year-old Dresden Row after blowing away tough conditioned allowance company. The gelding was a flat fifth most recently in a 1 3/8-mile conditioned allowance around three turns on the inner turf, which wasn’t his preferred trip.

“It was a little too far, and he really doesn’t appreciate that course,” Sadler explained. “The turns are too tight for him to be comfortable. He’s over 17 hands. He’s a huge animal. He wound up a respectable fifth.”

Sadler has been pointing Ron’s Gizmo to the 1 1/16-mile Steady Growth, in which he was beaten just three-quarters of a length in 2023. Rafael Hernandez rides him for owners Linda Theil and Harri Hosein and was aboard for a recent work.

“We were third in it last year and he’s training well,” Sadler pointed out.

Secret Reserve won the 2023 Steady Growth in a thriller over a charging Grandson. The Giant Gizmo gelding has gone winless in eight starts this year while keeping some tough company, which included a third on turf behind Filo Di Arianna and War Bomber in the Grade 2 King Edward. Secret Reserve was a belated fifth most recently in a seven-furlong conditioned allowance, the same type of performance he posted leading up to last year’s Steady Growth.

Eswan Flores replaces the suspended Leo Salles on the Mike Mattine-trained Secret Reserve, a three-time stakes winner.

Others contenders in the nine-horse field of Ontario-sired runners include Rapid Test and Lac Macaza.

Victorious in the 2023 Elgin Stakes, Rapid Test cleared the second allowance condition at 58-1 in August. Trainer Catherine Day Phillips sent him out to finish a closing second most recently in a seven-furlong conditioned allowance.

Lac Macaza took the Sept. 7 Niagara Stakes and has been idle since a sagging sixth Oct. 5 in the Grade 3 Singspiel, another longer turf route. The 1 1/16-mile distance on the Tapeta has been a successful trip for the son of Giant Gizmo.

Post time for the expanded 13-race card is 1:10 p.m. and the nightcap is scheduled for 7:17 p.m.

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