Summer Sunday will shift back to synthetic for next two races

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Summer Sunday returned to the work tab on Saturday for the first time since capturing her third consecutive victory in the Grade 2 Royal North Stakes on turf on July 21. She breezed five furlongs on the Tapeta in 1:01.00, and trainer Stu Simon said Summer Sunday would likely return to the synthetic for her next two starts.

Simon has targeted the Grade 3, $125,000 Seaway Stakes over seven furlongs on Tapeta on Aug. 24 for Summer Sunday’s next start, and if all goes well, she will head to Presque Isle Downs three weeks later for the Grade 2, $400,000 Presque Isle Downs Masters Stakes over 6 1/2 furlongs on Tapeta on Sept. 16.

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Simon said Summer Sunday bounced out of her Royal North victory well and began jogging on the track just a few days after the win.

With her victory in the Royal North, Summer Sunday is now a perfect 7 for 7 at Woodbine, with six of those victories coming on the Tapeta surface. In her most recent start on Tapeta, Summer Sunday became a graded stakes winner with her victory in the Grade 3 Hendrie Stakes on June 9, earning a career-high 93 Beyer Speed Figure. She matched that number in the Royal North, which was her turf debut.

A $95,000 yearling purchase at the 2016 Canadian premier yearling sale, Summer Sunday now sports a career record of seven wins from nine starts and has earnings of over $600,000, all for Simon and owners Anne and William Scott.