Safe Conduct's status for Prince of Wales Stakes remains undecided
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Trainer Phil Serpe said a decision has yet to be made regarding whether Queen’s Plate winner Safe Conduct will return to Ontario for the second leg of the Canadian Triple Crown, the $400,000 Prince of Wales Stakes over 1 3/16 miles on dirt on Sept. 14 at Fort Erie.
Safe Conduct made his first start on Tapeta in Sunday’s $1 million Plate against 12 other Canadian-bred 3-year-olds. Irad Ortiz Jr. angled Safe Conduct off the inside early to track the leading Take a Chance and they took control on the far turn. Safe Conduct turned back a bid from Keep Grinding in the stretch, and held on for a head score over a charging Riptide Rock, earning an 88 Beyer Speed Figure.
Neither Serpe nor owner Robert Vukovich were at Woodbine on Sunday. Serpe’s longtime partner, Lisa Bartkowski, accompanied the horse from Saratoga. Serpe said the son of Bodemeister, a $45,000 weanling purchase from breeder Mitch Kursner, exited the race well.
“He came back to Saratoga Monday, safe and sound,” Serpe said. “He looks great. We’re going to give it a couple days, get him back out on the track, see how things are. Then, I’ll talk to Dr. Vukovich and make a decision. We just want to make sure that the horse is in good shape and eating well. He ate well [Monday] night.”
Serpe gave Ortiz credit for a skillful ride from the tricky post 1 in the 1 1/4-mile Plate.
“My hat’s off to him.” Serpe said. “He did a masterful job of getting [Safe Conduct] out of that slot and getting him where he needed him, without really using a lot of horse. The first part of the race may have been when the deciding factor was on that horse winning.”
A turf specialist, Safe Conduct finished fourth in both of his dirt races, including a 13-length loss over a sloppy track in the Grade 3 Pennine Ridge on May 29 at Belmont.
“He just hated the slop,” Serpe recalled.
Trainer Sid Attard also was non-committal regarding the Prince of Wales status for Riptide Rock. After getting pinched back early in the Plate, he trailed in 13th, about nine lengths off the pace, before mounting an eye-catching wide rally under David Moran.
“He ran huge,” Attard said. “I was so proud of him. With a little luck, he could have gotten there.”
Attard said he would like to run back in the Prince of Wales, but the decision on Riptide Rock’s next race will be made by those involved with owner Stronach Stables.
“I’ll leave it up to them,” Attard said.
◗ Sunday’s wagering total of $16.1 million on the 13-race card was the second-highest Queen’s Plate Day handle ever, after the $18 million bet in 2019. It was an 11 percent increase over last year’s handle of $14.5 million.
◗ Ten were entered in the third leg of the Woodbine Turf Sprint Series, which heads Friday’s eight-race card. Post time is 4:50 p.m.