Summer Sunday holds on at wire in Eternal Search
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Summer Sunday barely got the job done in Friday’s $100,000 Eternal Search Stakes at Woodbine, scoring over 19-1 outsider Royal Wedding in a tight finish.
Originally scheduled for 7 1/2 furlongs on the inner turf, the Ontario-sired event was changed to seven furlongs on the Tapeta after Woodbine announced the end of turf racing at the meet on Friday morning.
Rafael Hernandez put Summer Sunday ($4.30) on the point, and they set slow fractions in the rain into a headwind, with Hello Friends chasing her around the turn and into the stretch.
Royal Wedding trailed in seventh exiting the turn before closing along the rail to finish a head short of Summer Sunday, who completed the distance in 1:23.74. A troubled November Fog finished another half-length back in third.
Trained by Stuart Simon, Summer Sunday earned $60,000 for owners Anne and William Scott, who are retiring the 6-year-old daughter of Silent Name at meet’s end.
“It seemed like she was going nice and easy up front,” Simon said. “She kicked on at the head of the lane. I don’t think she saw that horse coming inside. I think when the horse engaged her past the wire, she went off away again on the lead. She’s showing more and more that she wants to go farther and farther, to be honest – get in that stride and keep going.”