Woodbine: Regal Conqueror can enhance credentials in Princess Elizabeth

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Regal Conqueror, who was scratched from last Saturday’s Fanfreluche Stakes, will go 1 1/16 miles for the first time Saturday at Woodbine in the $250,000 Princess Elizabeth Stakes.

Regal Conqueror’s trainer, Darwin Banach, won the Fanfreluche anyway, with longshot Executive Allure. Regal Conqueror would be a contender for Canadian champion 2-year-old filly honors if she wins the more important Princess Elizabeth, which is limited to Canadian-breds.

Regal Conqueror has won both of her races on the lead, including a Sept. 7 maiden special. Three weeks later, she captured the Victorian Queen Stakes, another six-furlong sprint for Ontario-sired fillies.

“We liked her from the start,” Banach said. “We don’t want to do too much with her this year. We just want to give her a little experience, put a little money in the bank, and go from there. I don’t think that a mile and a sixteenth is out of her realm.”

Banach trained both her sire, Canadian turf champion Sky Conqueror, and her dam, Grade 2 Canadian Stakes winner Classic Stamp.

Trainer Roger Attfield entered Llanarmon and Unspurned, who finished first and sixth in the Grade 2 Natalma Stakes, a Breeders’ Cup Win and You’re In qualifier.

Natalma winner Llanarmon would have had to have been supplemented to the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf, and Attfield felt she wasn’t ready for such a race.

“She’s not mature enough to do that,” Attfield explained. “She’s still a learning filly. She’s been working quite well on the Poly, but I think she is better on the turf.”

Unspurned returned to finish second in the Grade 3 Mazarine Stakes, a mile and a sixteenth route on the Polytrack.

“She’s a nice filly,” Attfield said. “She’s got to just settle a little bit, and I then think she’ll run very well.”

Casse has pair for Maple Leaf

Trainer Mark Casse will send out a formidable twosome for Saturday’s Grade 3, $150,000 Maple Leaf with Dixie Strike and Sky High Lady set for the 1 1/4-mile stakes for fillies and mares.

Dixie Strike, third in the Queen’s Plate and victorious in Fort Erie’s Prince of Wales last year, recorded her first win of 2013 when competing under allowance terms at 1 1/16 miles here Sept. 22.

Sky High Lady also is coming off a win, having notched her first stakes score in the 1 1/16-mile River Memories here Oct. 19.

Both 4-year-old fillies are owned by John Oxley and were ridden by Patrick Husbands in their last starts.

“I gave Patrick his choice,” said Casse. “He worked Dixie Strike the other day, and he wants to ride her.

“Her last race was decent. She should be back to her best now.”

Dixie Strike finished seventh as the favorite in last year’s Maple Leaf, which came at the end of a long campaign.

Sky High Lady will be ridden by Luis Contreras.

“She just seems to be getting better and better,” said Casse. “She’s just looking like she wants to settle, and make a big run.”

Moonlit Beauty, who went wire-to-wire in the 1 1/16-mile Classy ‘n Smart for Ontario-sired fillies and mares here Sept. 29, led into the final furlong of last year’s Maple Leaf before finishing third, beaten 3 1/2 lengths.

“They had to do some running to catch and beat her,” said trainer John LeBlanc, who conditions the homebred 7-year-old Moonlight Beauty for Bill Gierkink.

“We’re hoping for a similar performance. She came out of her last race great.”

Phil’s Dream switches surfaces

Phil’s Dream, winner of the Grade 1 Nearctic over six furlongs of turf here Oct. 13, returns to the main track for Saturday’s $100,000 Ontario Jockey Club at six furlongs.

The Ontario Jockey Club, an overnight stakes, is extremely competitive with the field of nine also including reigning two-time Canadian sprint champion Essence Hit Man, the graded sprint stakes winner Go Blue or Go Home, and the two-time stakes-winning 3-year-old Black Hornet.

Paul Buttigieg, owner, trainer, and breeder of Phil’s Dream, sent out the 5-year-old gelding to breeze a bullet five furlongs in 59.60 seconds here last Saturday.

“He’s pretty sharp. He came out of the last race good,” said Buttigieg.“There’s some speed in there. I like that.”

Essence Hit Man and Black Hornet figure to hook up on the front end and Phil’s Dream should indeed get a nice stalking trip under his regular rider Justin Stein.

Trained by Larry Cappuccitti, the 6-year-old gelding Essence Hit Man is 2 for 3 this year and will be making his first start since capturing the Grade 3, 6 1/2-furlong Bold Venture on July 17.

“We sent him to the farm. There were no races for him,” said Cappuccitti, who sent out Essence Hit Man to breeze five furlongs in 59.60 on the training track last Saturday.

“He’s a machine. He’s in very good order.”

Go Blue or Go Home, trained by Reade Baker, is coming off a solid third-place finish behind the Breeders’ Cup Sprint-bound Sum of the Parts in Keeneland’s Grade 3 Phoenix at six furlongs.

– additional reporting by Bill Tallon