Woodbine Racetrack in Etobicoke promises quite an eventful weekend for Thoroughbred racing as the oval will be hosting the Grade 2 CA$175,000 Autumn Stakes. The race will field eight horses who will battle for the big prize, with multiple graded stakes champions amongst them, such as Special Forces, Mighty Heart, Sir Winston, and several others.
The Grade 2 CA$175,000 Autumn Stakes at Woodbine Racetrack, will be numbered as race eight for the day. The whole day will feature a race card with a total of 11 thrilling events. The first race is scheduled to begin with post time of 12:55 p.m. Fans of the sport can place their bets on the exciting event via HPIbet.com or through the Dark Horse Bets app.
Fierce Competition
Special Forces is one of the crowd’s favorites for the crown this Sunday. The 6-year-old son of Candy Ride will compete for his second Autumn Stakes win, after winning the 1 1/16-mile Tapeta event for three-year-olds and upward two years ago. The chestnut bred in Kentucky has a record of 6-6-2 and on Sunday it will start from post position 1 with Justin Stein at the reins.
The horse will face opposition from the reigning Canadian Horse of the Year, Mighty Heart, who will be starting from post positions number 8. The horse will be ridden by jockey Patrick Husbands and will compete for trainer Josie Carroll. The 2019 Belmont Stakes champ Sir Winston will also compete at Sunday’s event for trainer Mark Casse, with driver Antonio Gallardo at the seat.
The rest of the participants are Vanzzy, who will start at post position two right next to Special Forces, for trainer Michael Pino. The horse will be driven by jockey Rafael Hernandez. Then at post number three, Primo Touch will race for the main prize, with driver Eswan Flores, and the horse is trained by Harold Ladouceur.
The rest three field positions will be taken by the following horses, at number five Faraway Kitten, followed by Halo Again at spot number six, and Embolden at the remaining slot seven. Faraway Kitten will compete for trainer Denyse McClachrie, with Luis Contreras at the seat. Halo Again will be guided by Shaun Bridgmohan for driver Steve Asmussen. And Embolden will join the contest for trainer Sandra Dominguez, with Mauricio Malvaez at the reins.
The Queen’s Plate
In the summer, Woodbine Racetrack operated by Woodbine Entertainment hosted once again the prestigious The Queen’s Plate event. The race with total purses of CA$1 million was won by the son of Bodemeister – Safe Conduct. Trained by Phillip Serpe and owned by WellSpring Stables, the horse bested Riptide Rock and Take a Chance, and recorded a final time of 2:02.85.
New Winter Events
Recently, Woodbine Entertainment announced that it will be adding four more events to its Winter Series program for its other Ontario track – Woodbine Mohawk Park. The four new events are a pair of claiming series for Ontario-sired four-year-olds, and the events Ontario Boys and Ontario Girls for Ontario-sired four-year-olds. The new additions will join the already-familiar already familiar Niagara, Valedictory, Blizzard, Snowshoe, Wine & Roses, and Family Day from the Winter Series.
Source: “Special Forces looks like a force (again) in Grade 2 Autumn”, Woodbine Racetrack, November 11, 2021
