What’s On Track- Woodbine, Aqueduct, & Churchill Downs Highlight Horse Racing Stakes Action This Weekend

TORONTO — By Matthew Lomon

Treat Yourself

We all deserve a sweet treat every now and then. For some that could be ice cream, others candy, but for Awesome Treat it’s the $175,000 Bessarabian Stakes (G2).

Running this Saturday at Woodbine, the seven-furlong affair presents another shot at stakes win number one for the 5-year-old mare, who came oh so close in last month’s Ontario Fashion Stakes (G3).

Missing out by a half-length to Spun Glass, Awesome Treat will try to get over the hump in what will be her third attempt at graded-stakes glory. The Steve Attard trainee ran to a fourth-place finish in last year’s edition of the Bessarabian.

Sporting a line of 2-4-1 in 16 career starts, Awesome Treat enters at 20-1.

Legends of the Leaf

There’s another stakes race taking place at Woodbine this Saturday, but instead of a confectionary connection, this one will forever be linked to Toronto Maple Leafs royalty.

The aptly named Maple Leaf Stakes (G3) is a $150,000 contest that has Conn Smythe’s name written all over it. The former Maple Leafs foreman and builder of Maple Leaf Gardens is the winningest owner in the race’s history, pulling in seven Maple Leaf titles.

Among those aiming to replicate Smythe’s past success are Kevin Attard trainee’s Angelou (8-1) and Inventing (20-1), who both enter the race in strong form. The former is 1-1-1 in her previous three runs, while the latter sports a 1-0-1 line in that same stretch.

Heading in, Millie Girl leads the 13-horse field at 3-1.

Knocking at the Door

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.

That’s what multiple Grade 1 stakes-placed Soldier Rising (GB) and top trainer Christophe Clement will be doing this Saturday at Aqueduct. The duo is seeking their first Red Smith triumph (G2T) in what will be their third try in as many years.

Attempt number one yielded a third-place result in 2021’s edition of the $300,000 event, which proved to be a far cry from last year’s disappointing ninth. Since that out-of-character effort, the 5-year-old gelding has gone 0-4-0 in five tries. Notably, all four second place runs came in Grade 1 affairs, accounting for all but two of Soldier Rising’s six career Grade 1 placing’s.

Early odds are in the pair’s favour, as Solider Rising leads the 12-horse field at 3-1.

The Stitched Experience

A dozen turf specialists will converge on Churchill Downs this Saturday for the 44^th running of the River City Stakes (G3T).

The $300,000 competition features a 4-year-old Kentucky-bred who’s had an interesting start to his career. Through 15 lifetime starts, Stitched owns a laudable 6-1-0 line, highlighted by a triumph in the Wise Dan (G2) Stakes at Ellis Park this past July.

The colt followed up the career-defining score with a second in September’s Kentucky Downs (G3) but faltered to a seventh-place result in the Coolmore Turf (G1T) event which featured eventual Breeders’ Cup Mile champion Master of the Seas (IRE).

At 15-1 on the opening line, oddsmakers are expecting a performance in line with his Coolmore showing, but Stitched has shown he is more than capable of stringing an upset together.

A Pebble’s Throw Away

Sacred Wish has been throwing pebbles at the window of her first graded stakes victory since early April.

Luckily, the filly has another shot at graded glory this upcoming Saturday at Aqueduct when she competes in the $200,000 Pebbles Stakes (G3T) for sophomore fillies. The one-mile affair will be Sacred Wish’s tenth run in a 2023 campaign that has so far produced a respectable 2-3-1 line.

Her most recent victory happened to come in strikingly similar circumstances to the Pebbles. The filly took to the Aqueduct turf for the Winter Memories Stakes (Listed) on Sept. 15, besting the field of 10 to take the $135,000, one-mile dash.

Sitting at 5-2 on the opening line, Sacred Wish will have to outduel 2-1 favourite Rhiannon in order to score graded win number one.