Casse, da Silva On Top at Woodbine

There were familiar names on top of the leader board at the end of Sunday's 14-race season-ending card at Woodbine which featured a record closing day handle of $6,546,737 as the 133-day meet came to a close, eclipsing the $5,406,444 wagered a year ago.

 

Mark Casse recorded his ninth straight training title and tenth overall, winning 80 races, after notching 93 wins in 2014. Casse recorded a record 119 wins in 2011. Casse also led in the purse earnings category, with $6,239,151 compared to $7,780,240 in 2014.

 

Trainer Kevin Attard, who sent out Melmich to a track record performance in the closing day Grade 3 Valedictory Stakes, landed in the top 5 of the trainer standings for the first time finishing second with 48 wins improving on his 29 triumphs in 2014. Nick Gonzalez and Mike DePaulo tied for third with 43 wins.

 

Eurico Rosa da Silva, a Sovereign Award winner as outstanding rider in 2010 and 2013, won four races on Sunday's card to finish as the leading rider with 201 wins in 2015 improving on his 144 wins a year ago.  It marks the second riding title for da Silva who led all riders in 2010 with 190 victories.  Luis Contreras, three times the meet's leading rider, finished second with 177 wins.

 

Mickey Walls' classic 1991 record of 221 wins remains the most victories posted in a single meet.

 

Sam-Son Farm led all owners at Woodbine with $2,270,899 in purse earnings, compared to $1,807,655 in 2014. The Milton, Ontario based outfit, who captured the Grade 3 Singspiel with Aldous Snow and the Grade 3 Durham Cup with Golden Sabre, also finished second in wins with 26. Sam-Son are five-time winners (2000, 2001, 2004, 2006 and 2010) of the Sovereign Award as the nation's outstanding owner. Bruno Schickedanz recorded the most wins with 34.  Conquest Stables finished second in purse earnings with $1,954,356 and third in wins with 24.

 

In July, Stronach Stables’ homebred Shaman Ghost ($8.60), ridden by Rafael Hernandez, hauled down Danish Dynaformer inside the sixteenth pole to win a thrilling 156th edition of the $1 million Queen’s Plate, Canada’s most famous horse race, by one and one-quarter lengths.

 

It marked the third Plate win for Frank Stronach, following two other homebreds, Basqueian in 1994 and Awesome Again in 1997, but it was the first for trainer Brian Lynch and the first for Hernandez, with his first Plate mount. Shaman Ghost went on to finish second in the Prince of Wales Stakes, second jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown, at Fort Erie, falling a neck shy of Breaking Lucky. 

 

Irish-bred Mondialiste ($9.60) and jockey Feargal Lynch rallied furiously down the stretch to edge favoured Lea and win the $1-million, Grade 1 Ricoh Woodbine Mile for co-owners Geoff and Sandra Turnbull and trainer David O’Meara. Mondialiste went on to finish second to Tepin in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Mile.

 

World champion jockey Ryan Moore took centre stage in October taking the Grade 1 E.P. Taylor aboard favoured Curvy ($6.90) and returned to the winner’s circle 45 minutes later after impressively winning the Grade 1 $1-million, mile and one-half Pattison Canadian International aboard another slight favourite, Cannock Chase ($7.50.)

 

It marked a record-breaking third consecutive win in the Pattison for Moore, after directing Joshua Tree in 2013 and Hillstar in 2014, the first rider to do so since the race became a turf classic in 1958. It was also the third International win for trainer Sir Michael Stoute, following champion Singspiel in 1996 and last year with Hillstar.

 

Both Mondialiste and Cannock Chase are slated to take part in the Longines Hong Kong International Races onDecember 14 at Sha Tin competing in the Group 1 Hong Kong Mile and Group 1 Hong Kong Vase respectively.

 

Miss Victoria, with six wins from eight starts in the claiming ranks, tied with Grade 3 Valedictory champ Melmich to lead all horses in wins at the meet. The Plate winner, Shaman Ghost, who also captured the Grade 3 Marine Stakes in May, was the leading purse earner with $690,000.

 

Live thoroughbred racing returns to Woodbine on Saturday, April 9.

Melmich, a $20,000 claim a year ago, put in a powerful performance to captureSunday's Grade 3 $153,000 Valedictory Stakes, the final stakes event of Woodbine’s 2015 thoroughbred season.

 

It was a dominating 10 1/4-length score for Melmich in the season-closing 1 3/4-mile marathon, stopping the clock in a track record 2:55.81, eclipsing the 2:57.62 set by Eagle Poise in the 2011 edition of the Valedictory.

 

Trained by Kevin Attard for owners Stephen Chesney and Cory S. Hoffman, Melmich, claimed for $20,000 on September 26, 2014, has now won eight of 11 starts for his new connections including a smart score in the Elgin Stakes, on September 2, which earned a 102 Beyer Speed Figure.

 

The four-year-old Wilko chestnut arrived at the 1 3/4-mile marathon from a two-length score in the Valedictory prep, on November 5, over rival Pender Harbour.

 

Royal Son and 2013 Queen’s Plate champion Midnight Aria set the pace in the Valedictory reaching the half in a swift :48.89 as Melmich, expertly handled by Eurico Rosa da Silva, tracked from third position.  Da Silva urged Melmich into contention down the back straight and rallied three-wide through the final turn to take the lead, opening up at will for a visually impressive score. Patrioticandproud closed to be second, 2 1/2-lengths in front of a rallying Pender Harbour. 

 

Da Silva, a runaway leading rider at the 133-day meet, was thrilled with the effort.

 

“He’s amazing,” da Silva said. “I worked this horse coming into the race, he was feeling great. He was very, very sharp. He was ready to run. He was galloping all the way. I could have gone way faster. I didn’t want to push him too hard.”

 

Though small in stature, the gelding had no problem stretching out to 1 3/4-miles.

 

"His heart is bigger than him," said da Silva.

 

The Valedictory marked the final career start of seven-year-old Pender Harbour, who captured two-thirds of the Canadian Triple Crown in 2011 taking the Prince of Wales and Breeders’ Stakes after a third-place run in The Queen’s Plate.

 

Trained by Mike DePaulo for owners Denny Andrews, Sandra Lazaruk, and Robert and Roberta Giffin, Pender Harbour retires with a record of 12-10-8 from 41 career starts and purse earnings in excess of $1.9-million. The gelding will now embark on a career as a riding horse in Western Canada where his owners are based.

 

“He put in a good effort. He tried right to the end and got another cheque. He’s been a great horse for us,” said DePaulo.

 

Melmich, bred in Ontario by Andrew Stronach, banked $90,000 in victory while improving his career record to 9-5-1 from 20 starts.

 

He paid $4, $2.70 and $2.30, combining with Patrioticandproud ($6, $3.10) for a $19 (2-1) exactor. A 2-1-8 triactor (Pender Harbour, $2.40 to show) was worth $51.80, while a $1 Superfecta [2-1-8-3 (Desvelo)] came back $189.50.

Don't Be So Salty, with Emma-Jayne Wilson up, went gate-to-wire to capture Sunday's co-featured $125,000 Display Stakes, at Woodbine.

 

Trained by Gary Contessa for owners Platinum Seven LLC, Dan Guarino and Julia C. Boutelle, the Tiz Wonderful bay set splits of :24.50 and :48.82 in the 1 1/16-mile 'Poly' route for juveniles with favoured Bear'sway, piloted by Justin Stein, pressing the pace from second position.  Greatest Game, settled comfortably in third position along the rail, advanced through the final turn but could not go past a game and determined Don't Be So Salty who stayed on strong to the wire for a neck win. Greatest Game held off a rallying Crescent Drive for place. Don't Be So Salty covered 1 1/16-miles in 1:43.60.

 

Wilson, aboard the gelding for the first time, was comfortable being on the lead with the New York shipper.

 

“We thought a couple of the inside horses would set the pace but Gary (Contessa) said, 'If he takes you there and he's happy let him do it,'" said Wilson. "Right from the break, this horse was on the bridle and wanted to be in the point position. His ears were up and he was happy. He was taking me there and I got the jump on the guys out of the gate, so it was just the way you want to get the lead."

 

That Greatest Game came up the rail was a distinct advantage for the winner.

 

"He (Don't Be So Salty) lost vision in his right eye as a baby when he was five-days old and he's managed to deal with it," said Contessa. "I'm just glad the one-horse (Greatest Game) came up the inside as that was on his good eye."

 

Last time out, Don't Be So Salty finished a disappointing seventh in the Awad Stakes at Belmont Park and nearly didn't make the trip to Toronto.

 

"We sent him hard last time on the grass. It was a soft turf course and it turned out to be a very dumb move. That happens, trainers make mistakes and we made a mistake that day," said Contessa. "I actually wasn't going to come here, but three days ago we worked him at Belmont and he worked so good that we changed plans and came to Canada."

 

Don't Be So Salty, bred in Florida by John A. DeVault III & Sue S. DeVault, banked $75,000 in victory while improving his record to 3-0-1 from five starts.