Six Pack Sammy sprints in return
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Six Pack Sammy, one of the better 2-year-old fillies at Woodbine in 2007, makes her season debut in Friday's seventh race, a first-level allowance for 3-year-old fillies.
Six Pack Sammy turned heads when she debuted in the Sept. 3 Muskoka, a seven-furlong stakes for graduates of local yearling sales. After breaking slowly from the outside post, she rallied very wide to finish second to Simple Sister.
"She should have galloped in there," trainer Mark Casse said.
Six Pack Sammy graduated in a maiden special route Sept. 30, and then finished a respectable fourth behind Pure Clan and Authenicat in the Grade 3 Pocahontas Stakes at Churchill. She was a dull seventh in her final 2-year-old outing, the Ontario Lassie Stakes.
Six Pack Sammy has never tried a distance shorter than seven-eighths, but Casse said he has no qualms with running her at 6 1/2 furlongs Friday.
"I'm not worried about it," he said. "I think it will be ideal for her. She was training strong all winter long, so she shouldn't have any problems."
Casse is pointing Six Pack Sammy toward the nine-furlong Woodbine Oaks on June 8, but he said he's not convinced that the daughter of sprinter Yonaguska is a legitimate Oaks prospect.
"Right now, we're heading in that direction," Casse said, "but her pedigree says that she's probably not wanting go to that far."
Casse also entered Britten's Beauty, who was a well-beaten sixth in the OBS Sprint Stakes for 3-year-old fillies on Feb. 11. After commencing her career at Calder, she won her maiden at the Fair Grounds in December.
Mrs. Began graduated in the 1 1/16-mile Princess Elizabeth Stakes in October before ending up eighth in the Ontario Lassie. She wintered in Florida with trainer Reade Baker.
Haveubeentoldtoday was an impressive maiden winner on opening day of the meeting, April 5. She was shuffled back at the three-eighths pole after being steadied, and then rallied strongly to nail front-runner Sarcasm in the final strides.
Bedarra was claimed for $50,000 on Nov. 1 by trainer Sid Attard, who sent her out to finish a front-running second in her season opener.
The pick-seven carryover is $2,242.