Woodbine roundup: She Feels Pretty holds on in E. P. Taylor

Toronto

She Feels Pretty felt a little more than beautiful in the US$545,981 E. P. Taylor Stakes, but the now five-time Grade 1 winner recovered to take the Breeders’ Cup win-and-you’re-in race Saturday at Woodbine.

With John Velázquez up, She Feels Pretty looked relaxed pressing the pace through moderate fractions. She got brushed at about the half-mile pole, and the Hall of Fame jockey said that keyed up the 2-5 favorite.

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That meant it was go time, and She Feels Pretty made the lead willingly turning for home. Company came in the form of Diamond Rain, Godolphin’s invader from Great Britain, with William Buick aboard. Velázquez shifted She Feels Pretty off the rail to make sure she was aware of that foe, holding her at bay by a head with a final time of 2:00.80 for 1 1/4 miles on firm turf.

“That caught me off guard, so I had to get her to focus on relaxing,” Velázquez said. “She’s such a natural that she was able to settle down until I gave her a cue. Unfortunately she got a little lonely in the final sixteenth of a mile and lost out there, so I had to remind her someone was coming. I probably would have waited longer to push her, but I didn’t want to wrestle her.”

Long shot Hurricane Clair set moderate fractions of 25.08, 49.56 and 1:14.11 with last year's King’s Plate winner Caitlinhergrtness tracking. She Feels Pretty made the lead after a mile in 1:37.50 and was up by as much as 2 1/2 lengths before holding off Diamond Rain.

“I sure was sweating it out, but that’s part of the game,” said Roy Jackson, who with his wife Gretchen owns She Feels Pretty via their Lael Stables. “We wanted firm ground, and we got it here. We were debating whether to run here or Saratoga, and we don’t think she loves soft ground, and you just never know what you’re going to get at Saratoga with the rain.”

Trainer Cherie DeVaux said the weather was secondary to She Feels Pretty training well coming out of her narrow defeat in the Diana Stakes (G1) last out. How she trains coming out of this will determine if she trains up to the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf on Nov. 1 at Del Mar or if she has another prep.

“We talked about running in either the Flower Bowl (G2) or the E. P. Taylor and then the Breeders’ Cup, but we have plenty of time to regroup and decide,” DeVaux said.

“She runs well fresh,” Gretchen Jackson said. “We like to run, but we want to win a Breeders’ Cup.”

It was 10 1/2 lengths back to Ready for Shirl in third. The win was Velázquez’s 10th Grade 1 at Woodbine and his record fourth in the E. P. Taylor.

Gas Me Up takes King Edward for Attard

Gas Me Up completed a double for trainer Kevin Attard after winning the US$173,454 King Edward (G2) one race after Mansetti’s upset triumph in the King’s Plate.

Gas Me Up was ridden to victory by Flavien Prat in the one mile race for 3-year-olds and up on the Woodbine turf. The 5-year-old gelded son of Hard Spun out of Smart Strike mare Chic Thrill edged Wyoming Bill by three-quarters of a length with a final time of 1:33.85 in what was something of a six-horse calvary charge to the wire in the field of nine.

Sent off at 5-2, Gas Me Up paid $7.40.

“This is a nice horse,” Attard said. “He was a little bit plagued by some issues earlier in his career, and now he’s been able to get in a bit of a rhythm, and he’s showing his talent.

“We’re glad now that he’s healthy and doing really well. ... He really has an affinity for this E. P. Taylor course, which is a little sad now that he’s not going to see it again for a while.”

Attard reference the fact that the Woodbine turf course will undergo reconstruction starting Monday.

Off for all of 2023, Gas Me Up is 3: 2-0-0 this year and 35: 8-5-3 overall for owners Exline-Border Racing, Michael Jawl, Aaron Kennedy and Tom Zwiesler. The gelding was bred by Sam-Son Farm and bought for US$140,000 at the September 2021 Keeneland yearling sale.

Gas Me Up has earned $163,694 this year and $279,389 lifetime.

The King Edward is the leading local prep for the Woodbine Mile (G1) on Sept. 13.

Simcoe wires field in Bold Venture

Simcoe stormed to the lead early and then powered away down the stretch to take the US$122,874 Bold Venture (G3) for 3-year-olds and up.

Simcoe dueled briefly with Old Chestnut a few strides out of the gate in the 6 1/2-furlong event contested on the synthetic track. Old Chestnut backed off to settle into second with Junior Hot Shot in third and Ice Chocolat fourth.

After clocking an opening quarter-mile in 22.40 seconds, Simcoe under Rafael Hernández widened his advantage to three lengths through a half-mile in 45.01 seconds. Then he played catch me if you can heading into the turn for home.

On top by four lengths in early stretch, the Katerina Vassilieva trainee was five lengths clear of his closest pursuer at the stretch call as the race was on for second.

Simcoe crossed the wire a 5 3/4-length winner. Victory Achieved rallied to finish second, 1 1/4 lengths ahead of I’m A Gambler. Playmea Tune, a stablemate of Simcoe, was fourth.

The final time was 1:15.42.

It was the first stakes victory for the dark bay son of Uncle Mo out of Pulpit mare Aurora Lights.

“He’s a consistent horse since the end of last year, and he’s been running huge every single time,” Vassilieva said. “I did expect a good effort today, maybe not for him to win quite so much, but I knew that it was possible for this horse.

“I just think he gets really confident when he’s on the lead. Rafi made sure he got the lead today, and it seems like when he gets it, he just doesn’t look back.”

An Ontario homebred for Chiefswood Stables, the victorious 5-year-old gelding is 18: 6-4-0. He had finished second in the Jacques Cartier (G3) on May 31. Now 4-4-0 in his last eight starts, Simcoe paid $13.10 for the win.

Horse Racing Nation coverage of King’s Plate day was made possible in part through a sponsorship by Woodbine Entertainment group.