ETOBICOKE, Ontario - The Bill Mott-trained Hold Me Back ($9.20) turned back a stern challenge from 11-1 shot Pool Play to take the Grade 3, $216,400 Dominion Day Stakes at Woodbine Thursday.
Hold Me Back raced in mid-pack on the outside in the 1 1/4-mile route, as Mast Track set honest fractions of 24.42. 48.12, and 1:12.31 before tiring.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Indian Apple Is, closing strongly on the outside under Chantal Sutherland, ran down the odds-on Tribal Belle to capture Thursday's $113,000 Sweet Briar Too at Woodbine.
Indian Apple Is, a 9-1 chance in the field of six for the Sweet Briar Too, prevailed by three-quarters of a length, with Tribal Belle ending second after looking like a winner in deep stretch.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Hotep, one of three Sam-Son Farm entrants trained by Mark Frostad, has been made the 3-1 morning-line favorite for Sunday's $1 million Queen's Plate at Woodbine.
A field of 13 was announced at the annual Queen's Plate breakfast here Thursday morning, with the connections of each entrant first drawing for their order of selection and then choosing a post position.
Frostad, with the eighth pick, chose post 11 for Hotep in the 1 1/4-mile showpiece for Canadian-bred 3-year-olds and will have regular rider Patrick Husbands aboard.
ELMONT, N.Y. - The last time Haynesfield attempted to prove himself with the better horses of his generation, he failed miserably, finishing eighth, 26 1/4 lengths behind I Want Revenge in the Grade 3 Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct.
That was March 2009. Sixteen months later, Haynesfield will try to prove he belongs with some of the better horses in the handicap division when he takes on I Want Revenge and Regal Ransom in Saturday's Grade 2, $300,000 Suburban Handicap at Belmont Park.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Trainer Dino Condilenios isn't sure what he is going to do with Burj Dubai after he followed up his sensational debut with another impressive performance last week. Burj Dubai could be something special. He destroyed a field of maidens in his debut May 29 and then jumped up to face some of the best sprinters on the grounds in a $50,000 optional claimer last Sunday.
Woodbine will be offering advance wagering on Sunday's Queen's Plate Day program beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday at all WEG locations.
Pick three, pick four, and pick six wagering will not be available Saturday until the conclusion of the live Woodbine program at approximately 6 p.m.
Stamina will be a requisite for Queen's Plate Day, and not just for the horses running in the Queen's Plate.
Woodbine will present a 12-race card beginning with an early post time of 12:25 p.m. and concluding at 6:45 p.m. The Queen's Plate is the 10th race, scheduled for
5:38 p.m.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Owner Dom Romeo already has his share of encounters with representatives of England's royal family in his Queen's Plate memory book.
"I had my first Queen's Plate starter in 1985, when the Queen Mother was here," said Romeo, 80, who has been involved in horse racing as an owner and breeder for more than 30 years. "I have a picture of myself with her at home, in my office."
OCEANPORT, N.J. - Rachel Alexandra is headed for a Jersey Shore encore.
According to Jess Jackson, who owns Rachel Alexandra in partnership with Harold McCormick, the defending Horse of the Year is scheduled to make her next start at Monmouth Park in the $400,000 Lady's Secret Stakes at 1 1/8 miles on July 24.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - After mulling all the options, trainer D. Wayne Lukas decided Thursday to enter 2009 Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird in the Grade 2, $175,000 Firecracker Handicap, the closing-day feature Sunday at Churchill Downs.
Lukas said Mine That Bird would not necessarily start in the Firecracker, a one-mile turf race, but that owners Mark Allen and Leonard Blach "thought they'd go ahead and spend the $875 entry fee and keep our options open."
QUEEN'S PLATE PREVIEW
The 151st running of the Queen's Plate, Canada's most famous race, will be run Sunday with Queen Elizabeth in attendance. A 1 1/4-mile event, the Queen's Plate is worth $1 million and is for Canadian-bred 3-year-olds. It has been won by such standouts as Northern Dancer, Awesome Again, and Dance Smartly.
