Woodbine: Blue Heart rewards Solis's patient ride in Bison City

ETOBICOKE, Ontario—Blue Heart split rivals around the sixteenth pole before drawing off to take the $250,000 Bison City Stakes under Alex Solis at Woodbine on Sunday.

Blue Heart stalked the leaders along the inside in the 1 1/16-mile route, as Casa Loma and Simple as That vied through slow fractions. The favored Black Bird Rock made a wide bid into contention on the far turn, but couldn’t match strides with Blue Heart, who kicked in strongly when she got clear en route to a 1 3/4-length tally in 1:45.77.

Black Bird Rock nosed out Casa Loma for second in a field reduced to five with the scratch of Northern Passion.

The Bison City is the second race of the Canadian triple tiara, a lucrative series for Canadian-bred 3-year-old fillies. Solis won the first leg aboard Irish Mission, who subsequently ran second in the Queen’s Plate.

“I had to be patient,” said Solis. “I waited down on the inside. When I asked her to go at the three-sixteenths [pole], she responded nicely. I felt like she had an easy race. She saved all the ground, and only ran 300 yards.”

Blue Heart ($6.20) banked $150,000 for Amerman Racing and trainer Brian Lynch.