Yoshida has no problem with dirt in Woodward Stakes

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Going into Saturday’s Grade 1 Woodward Stakes, trainer Bill Mott didn’t have a firm opinion either way whether Yoshida would handle dirt as well as he had turf, a surface over which he was a Grade 1 winner. Mott just wanted to find out if he could.

“Well, we got our answer,” Mott said.

And it was an emphatic yes.

Yoshida, despite having to go from the rail to the nine path under Joel Rosario, outfinished favored Gunnevera and 12 others to win Saturday’s $750,000 Woodward Stakes at Saratoga by two lengths. Gunnevera, who was 10 wide under Edgard Zayas, finished second by a nose over Leofric.

Officially, Yoshida had to withstand an objection from Antonio Sano, Gunnevera's trainer, who felt his horse was bumped by Yoshida turning for home. But the stewards quickly dismissed the claim, opting to not even talk to Rosario.

“I went to the phone, but I guess they didn’t allow it,” Rosario said. “I didn’t talk to them.”

The victory was the third straight graded stakes victory on the card for Rosario, who won the Grade 3 Saranac on Raging Bull and the Grade 1 Spinaway on Sippican Harbor.

The victory also could put Yoshida in the mix for the $6 million Breeders’ Cup Classic at Churchill Downs on Nov. 3.

“After seeing this, you’d have to say so,” Mott said. “He ran well enough to keep him on the dirt.”

Mott trains Yoshida for the partnership of WinStar Farm, China Horse Club International, Head of Plains Partners, and SF Racing. Last year, these same connections won the Grade 2 Jim Dandy with Good Samaritan, a horse who prior to that start had never raced on dirt.

Breaking from the rail in a 14-horse field Saturday, Yoshida was able to save all the ground early in the Woodward while Leofric and Rally Cry, breaking from posts 11 and 14, respectively, went at each other through fractions of 24.00 seconds for the quarter, 47.69 for the half, and 1:11.56.

Around the far turn, Rosario began to move Yoshida off the rail and, by the time he hit the head of the lane, he was in the nine path, with Gunnevera to his outside.

Straightening away down the lane, Yoshida still had run and drew away from the field late. Gunnevera persevered to get second by a nose over Leofric.

It was a length back to Rally Cry in fourth. He was followed, in order, by Patch, Term of Art, Hence, Tapwrit, Sunny Ridge, Zanotti, Kurilov, Discreet Lover, Seeking the Soul, and Imperative.

Yoshida, a Japanese-bred son of Sunday Silence out of the Grade 1-winning dirt mare Hilda’s Passion, covered the 1 1/8 miles in 1:48.94 and returned $14.40 to win.

“This was a pretty impressive run actually,” Mott said as he watched the replay from the winner’s circle. “He was cruising. There was nobody getting to him. He looked like he was finishing stronger than anybody.”

Zayas said he didn’t like his position from the start on Gunnevera. Breaking from post 9, he had to check off heels entering the first turn and was about five wide around the opening bend.

From there he remained rather wide down the backstretch and was so when he launched his bid. Still, he did keep coming and was game to get second.

“I was carried super wide, probably cost him, but at the end of the day [Yoshida] beat him clearly,” Zayas said. “He opened up at the end. [Gunnevera] ran his race, but he can run better than that.”

Sano said Gunnevera would return to his base at Gulfstream Park West and be trained toward a start in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.