Successful claim Last American Exit a top contender in Pink Lloyd Stakes

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Last American Exit, an astute claim by trainer Harold Ladouceur, will try to notch his first stakes going six furlongs in Sunday’s $100,000 Pink Lloyd at Woodbine.

Last American Exit finished third last year in the inaugural Pink Lloyd, which is an Ontario-sired event named after the popular five-time Canadian champion sprinter. After getting claimed from Pink Lloyd’s trainer, Robert Tiller, for $50,000 in September 2022, Ladouceur haltered him for $25,000 from his final race that year. The 7-year-old banked $121,418 for owner Kirk Sutherland in 2023, during which he went winless while placing in two graded stakes.

Last American Exit ended his drought by winning a second-level allowance/optional claimer two starts ago under Rafael Hernandez. He just missed second to current rival Mason’s Gamble most recently in a tougher conditioned allowance. Ladouceur likes his chances on Sunday.

“He’s gonna run big,” Ladouceur predicted. “He’s a good horse. I used to gallop his mom for Tiller, Where Oh Where. I would just dread riding her, because she would drop her other riders. She was like riding three horses at one time. It was unbelievable the amount of power she had.”

Ladouceur has lots of admiration for Last American Exit, who had hanging tendencies early in his career.

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“He’s so honest,” Ladouceur said. “He puts out for us. I gallop him. He loves the way I ride him. The only bad race he ran for us was on the grass in the Nearctic Stakes last fall. He didn’t like the grass.”

The marquee runner in the eight-horse field is the Tiller-trained Patches O’Houlihan, who was voted the 2023 Sovereign Award for champion male sprinter after going 6 for 7 on the year, which included four stakes scores. The Frank Di Giulio Jr. homebred is returning from an eight-month layoff and figures to need a race.

“He came up with a foot issue before he was supposed to run in the first stakes this year,” Tiller explained. “At first, it looked like it wasn’t going to be much of an issue, but it kept getting worse and worse. He had a badly bruised heel. We always knew he’d be fine – it was just a matter of when.

“It’s all gone now. We need to start somewhere. I wish I had another work into him. I don’t know if this will be his best race – I don’t think it will be. We can no longer stay in the barn. He’s very sound and happy.”

Sofia Vives, who won the Woodbine Oaks and Grade 2 Connaught Cup last weekend, has the call on Patches O’Houlihan, the 126-pound highweight.

Mason’s Gamble might be ready to peak in his third outing of the season and Reload’s Rascal beat allowance company in his only start this spring. Both can put up a 90 Beyer Speed Figure when in the zone.

Secret Reserve is going back to the Tapeta off a non-threatening fifth in the Grade 2 Highlander on the main turf and should be a factor.

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