Just as TIFF ’18 winds-down, one of the biggest weekends in Horse Racing in Canada took place this past weekend at Woodbine Racetrack, including the Grade I $800k RICOH WOODBINE MILE, plus two Breeders’ Cup Win and You’re-In races, the Grade I Natalma and Grade II Summer Stakes. The trio of races are seen as springboards to Horse Racing’s championship days, the Breeders’ Cup to be held this November at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky.
Saturday’s headlining Ricoh Mile proved a thrilling race, running deep in quality and class. Ultimately it would be former Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf winner OSCAR PERFORMANCE who would deliver that Academy gold in the one-mile race on the turf. The four-year-old son of top stallion Kitten’s Joy trained by Brian Lynch, would boost his earnings to $2.34 million for owner Amerman Racing LLC, stopping the clock at 1:33.1, winning by 1 1/2 lengths under red-hot U.S.-based jockey Jose Ortiz. Bettors were reward $7.20 to a $2.00 bet.
Giving the victor a fight for his money was Woodbine-based hero MR HAVERCAMP, finishing in second spot for owners Sean & Dorothy Fitzhenry and trainer Catherine Day Phillips. Eurico Da Silva was aboard the brave performance, for the same connections as 2018 Woodbine Oaks winner DIXIE MOON. British invader STORMY ANTARCTIC (GB) took third spot for Mr. P.K. Siu and trainer Ed Walker.
Watch the race here:
The excitement continued into Sunday with the Grade I Natalma Stakes highlighting the day. The one-mile turf race for fillies has spawned several champions including Alywow, Dance Smartly, Arravale, Wavering Girl, Kirby’s Song, Ginger Gold and Victory to Victory. This year’s Queen’s Plate champion Wonder Gadot finished third in the race last year.
The race was taken by British import, LA PELOSA (IRE), an Irish-bred daughter of Dandy Man, owned by international racing giant, Godolphin. Trained by Charles Appleby and ridden by Englishman Jamie Spencer, the filly kicked home a length clear of the field in a time of 1:33.7, less than a click slower than much more seasoned veterans in the Woodbine Mile one day prior. Bettors were rewarded with a return of $8.50 to a $2.00 bet. Woodbine-based filly MY GAL BETTY was an impressive second as the post-time favourite for Hall of Fame trainer Roger Attfield, her chances compromised by a wide run. Another promising local filly BOLD SCRIPT would run third. The winner is expected to be Kentucky-bound early November for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.
See the race:
The boys would not be outshone as exciting Chad Brown trainee FOG OF WAR would score in the Summer Stakes by 3/4 of a length under jockey Javier Castellano, defeating a game WAR OF WILL, who comes from the barn of leading trainer Mark Casse. The winner paid $4.20 on a $2.00 bet and is owned by Peter M. Brant, finishing in a time of 1:33.9, just marginally slower than the fillies earlier in the Natalma. The top two finishers are by in-demand stallion WAR FRONT, whose stud fee stands at $250k U.S. Both colts can be expected to square-off again in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf. Local colt NASHTRICK, trained by Josie Carroll, finished third.
See the race:
The Breeders’ Cup takes place November 2-3, 2018. Catch it on TSN in Canada.
(Photo/video credit: Mr. Will Wong/Woodbine Entertainment Group/TSN)
Goodbyes are always a hard thing. Amidst all the bustle of the Queen’s Plate Festival this past weekend, we sent-off our dear Princess, A PIC BY MRWILL to begin her new life outside the Racetrack.
Some of you might remember Emily Fisher (@EmiFisher) who helped take care of Princess late in her two-year-old season. We played dress-up for Halloween together! Back then, she befriended Miss Emily‘s star athlete, multiple stakes winner Don’s Folly (Dons_Folly on Facebook), who went on to be crowned 2015 & 2016 Royal Winter Fair Thoroughbred Stallion Grand Champion as an eventer.
After announcing her retirement in May, Miss Emily offered kindly to take ownership of Princess right away after a few options were examined for her aftercare. She has been a daily part of Princess‘ day, visiting her often in-between runs in her work day on the backstretch at Woodbine, coming with cuddles and treats. We know that Princess will be living her best life possible and be cared for with the special attention and love she deserves. She won’t be far from Woodbine, which makes it easier for us to visit her and we love this.
Miss Emily says: “I am beyond excited to have Princess join our family, I cannot thank John and Cathy enough for entrusting me with her rehabilitation and her life after racing. She has had a few setbacks, but I believe that she has a bright future ahead of her and I can’t wait to see what this girl is capable of! We have a long road ahead of us but it is looking bright. She handled her move so well and has settled into her new home. I have nothing but positive thoughts about how she will come out of this. There will be big things in this Princess’ future.”.
Motherhood definitely is in the books next for Princess after she gets the rest of the year to focus on healing, although her being developed into an eventer is a possibility too given that she has the perfect composition and demeanour for it. Whatever path fate leads her, we are thrilled for it and we will be there for her every step of the way with all our support.
We’ve also expressed interest in sharing some of the future breeding costs together with Cathy, Princess’ previous Co-Owner, to pair her with an Ontario stallion. Believe me, we could go on all day about who would make the perfect father – the possibilities are infinite! Of course, Don’s Folly also is looking to establish himself as an Ontario stallion too and we would be happy too to see Princess be the mother of his first foal. There are several options, but all this is contingent on Princess‘ recovery and we place her wellness first.
We had one last hurrah at Woodbine with Princess this weekend and she was thrilled to get a visit from one of her biggest fans, Sean (@SPNation74) who was visiting from Massachussetts for the Queen’s Plate Festival.
Sean x Princess:
Some Snaps:
We also are thrilled for Princess‘ family at the John Ross barn and Aheadbyacentury on their fantastic second-place finish in the Queen’s Plate. He is all business and they all worked so hard for this!
See some Snaps of Princess’ goodbye to Woodbine. She got the quick go-ahead from Doctor Pete and boarded the truck like a true professional. Miss Emily and her friend Miss Chelsea came ready with Princess’ favourite haynet and some aromatherapy fly spray to keep those flies at bay.
While we’ll miss seeing Princess in her stall at Woodbine, this is only the beginning of forever for Princess and we are excited for her! We got so choked-up seeing her drive away.
Miss Emily checked-in with us last night to let us know that Princess has settled in nicely at her new home, “She’s great! She has settled in like a champ, cleaning-up her feed tub no problem. She had a sponge bath yesterday and will probably get another one today!”. That’s our Princess!
We’ll continue updating you on Princess‘ journey:
Twitter: @apicbymrwill
Facebook: /apicbymrwill
Instagram: @apicbymrwill
(Photo/video credit: Mr. Will Wong)
The party of the Summer for us always has been the Queen’s Plate. Now in its 159th edition, the historic $1 million affair brings together Canada’s best with a distinction of being the most historic horse race in North America. Social circles collided at the bash, now a three-day Festival at Woodbine Racetrack, as Horse Racing reunited once again with fashion, cocktails and entertainment, highlighted by a headlining performance by Country star Brad Paisley on Festival Friday and Sam Roberts Band following the big race Saturday. Betting was an all-time high tallying-in at $14,625,756, surpassing a 2017 record, proving that the Queen’s Plate is here to stay.
The big race itself went to superfilly WONDER GADOT, who overcame the opposition with ease for her owner Gary Barber, former Chairman and CEO of MGM Entertainment. He last won the Queen’s Plate in 2014 with another brilliant filly, Lexie Lou. Ridden by U.S.-based John Velasquez and trained by reigning champion Mark Casse and his team led at Woodbine by David Adams and Kathryn Sullivan, she was crowned top two-year-old filly in the land this April before almost winning the prestigious Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs in a dramatic finish. The daughter of Medaglio d’Oro named after Wonder Woman star Gal Gadot, boosted her career earnings just shy of the $1.2 million-mark and she was bred by Toronto’s David Anderson of Anderson Farms. A box office smash just like her namesake! Superheroes all need their gear and it is said that the addition of blinkers helped the filly focus and she soared the skies.
The Tragically Hip fans would be delighted that John Ross co-owned trainee and hit namesake Aheadbyacentury, got up second for newcomer co-owners Jack of Hearts Racing, followed by second runner-up Cooler Mike and his owner/trainer Nick Nosowenko.
Wonder Gadot likely is to be seen next at Fort Erie Racetrack Tuesday, July 24, 2018 in the Prince of Wales Stakes, before heading possibly to Saratoga for the Alabama Stakes. Her win in the Queen’s Plate secures her a spot at Horse Racing’s championship days, the Breeders’ Cup, this fall at Churchill Downs with this now being considered a qualifying “win and you’re in” race.
2018 continues to be Barber‘s year. He recently was in the news reaching a $260 million settlement with his former employer and he won another stake on Festival Sunday, the $225k Bison City Stakes with 2016 CTHS Premier Yearling Sale topper SAFE TO SAY. The filly is co-owned by Windway Farms (Jeffrey and Annabelle Begg), giving French jockey Jerome Lermyte his first stake win locally. Casse, who trains the filly, kicked-off his string of stakes scores on Festival Saturday in the Charlie Barley Stakes with John Oxley/My Meadowview LLC-owned RIDE A COMET.
Other big winners this weekend at the Queen’s Plate Festival include Brad Cox trainee LONG ON VALUE who also earned a berth at the Breeders’ Cup with a win in the Highlander Stakes; the impressive Chad Brown mare SANTA MONICA (GB) powering through the heat in the Dance Smartly Stakes to deny her stablemate, Canadian-bred INFLEXIBILITY; DELTA PRINCE, a half-brother to the late and great Royal Delta won the King Edward for Frank Stronach; TIZ A SLAM, a former Queen’s Plate entrant, upset the Dominion Day Stakes; SILENT SONET roared in the Zadracarta Stakes; and FAIRY HILL, a $25k claim for Bruno Schickendanz by trainer Norm McKnight, sprinkled some magic and won the Lady Angela Stakes on Festival Friday.
See some Snaps:
Entertainment and Fashion also were front and center at the Queen’s Plate Festival. Bold type names attending included fix-it gurus Mike Holmes and Mike Holmes Jr., beauty queen and popular horse racing personality Acacia Courtney, Letterkenny stars Andrew Herr and Nathan Dales, County singer Natasha Zimbarro, The Umbrella Academy star Tom Hopper, media personalities Jennifer Valentyne, Sangita Patel and Rick Campanelli, plus members of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and more. Lieutenant Governor of Ontario Elizabeth Dowdeswell once again too graced us with her presence.
See more below:
And let’s not forget the fashion! Bri Mott and Fashion at the Races once again were at the Queen’s Plate engaging attendees to show-off their #QP18 style!
Princess (@APicbymrwill) and I in our matchy Festival Friday outfits:
More #QP18 sights and vibes:
We are thrilled to have featured the top two finishers in this year’s Queen’s Plate in our Webseries, MR. WILL’S PATH TO THE PLATE. We apologize the Series ended prematurely this season due to scheduling conflicts, but hope to bring you more in 2019.
Wonder Gadot
Aheadbyacentury
Missed it this year? Follow @WoodbineTB on Twitter to stay up to date on all updates Woodbine and Queen’s Plate-related.
Want more? We’ve got a Facebook album full of #QP18. Click here to see!
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
What good is some sun on a weekend if it can’t be enjoyed right? We spotted some stars out and about this weekend including the hotly-buzzed Greenwood Stakes at Woodbine Racetrack, some returning back to work after a breather.
Our second home Woodbine Racetrack, was where it was at this past Saturday as Toronto’s A-List gathered under the sun trackside for cocktails, racing, music, fashion and fun at the Greenwood Stakes. Celebrating the 10th anniversary of Vancouver’s Deighton Cup, the affair saw socalities abound including the likes of Suzanne Rogers, Glen Baxter (Fashion Television), Shadowhunters’ Dominic Sherwood, The Umbrella Academy‘s Jordan C. Robbins and more! Sherwood tells us he neither won or loss at the races, but does appear to know a thing or two having been to Royal Ascot in his native England.
We hope the bustling event which takes its inspiration from both Royal Ascot and the Kentucky Derby, will come back again soon!
See some Snaps. Hover cursor left and right below and click arrows to navigate slideshow:
We posted a complete Album on Facebook here.
Also don’t forget to check-out our Webseries with Woodbine Racetrack, MR. WILL’S PATH TO THE PLATE, as we near our favourite Festival of the Summer, the Queen’s Plate! Episodes are out every Thursday leading-up to the Festival and each week we meet a new Contender and the unsung heroes in their success stories!
Catch-up on episodes 1 though 4 here.
Emmy Raver-Lampman already is a star of the stage having appeared on Broadway in Wicked and Hamilton. She has landed a high-profile gig as Allison in Netflix‘s upcoming Series The Umbrella Academy based on My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way‘s Comic Books. While the Series isn’t due till 2019, it will continue to film till July in Toronto.
Three-time Grammy winner Ben Harper plays The Mod Club tonight in support of 14th Studio Disc No Mercy in this Land. The veteran Singer/Songwriter was all smiles arriving from L.A. with his Band and Crew.
We’ve had the pleasure of meeting Pablo Schreiber a few times now but it’s always nice seeing him, a class act. He returns to Toronto to begin work on season two of AMERICAN GODS after some delays. You know him as Pornstache from acclaimed Netflix Series Orange is the New Black, something which on paper seems unflattering but believe us, that is a good thing!
We have come so close to meeting Emily Browning a few times but we’re thrilled finally to get a Selfie with the talented Australian-born Actress. She filmed Pomepeii opposite Kit Harington (Game of Thrones) a few summers back and we missed her again when she promoted Legend alongside Tom Hardy at TIFF! While she was in a bit of a rush after waiting on all her luggage she was kind to stop for a rush of fans off her flight. Like Schreiber, she also stars in Series American Gods.
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
Taking place Saturday, May 26, 2018, the GREENWOOD STAKES is set to go off at Woodbine Racetrack. The Event brought to us by Parade Agency and the Social Concierge, celebrates the 10th anniversary of the Deighton Cup. Highlights include art installations, mixologists, gourmet food, live music, lawn games, high fashion and of course, exciting horse races highlight the afternoon featuring ten races. Something vintage and classic for this Instagram generation.
The Greenwood Stakes pays homage to beloved Greenwood Raceway formerly in the City’s Beaches area. Expect plenty of seersucker suits, fascinators and Southern Belle inspiration. There even will be two $500 cash prizes for best-dressed!
See a Trailer here:
Proceeds from tickets (starting at $75) sold will go the motionball for the Special Olympics Canada Foundation. Tickets are on-sale Tuesday, March 27, 2018 here.
(Photo/video credit: Greenwood Stakes)
We hope your 2018 has been going amazing so far! It’s about time we checked-in with our favourite Princess, A PIC BY MRWILL. After a very cozy winter up in Waterdown under the wonderful care of Miss Tasha, Princess has returned back to Woodbine at long last.
We felt her struggle seeing her at the farm, anxious to get outside and do some running. Seeing her out this past Sunday going for her first jog in quite some time made us incredibly happy. We saw her jump for joy as soon as she stepped onto that dirt training track. As you might remember, Princess spent the fall and winter nursing an injury following her first win last August at Woodbine. She has literally been on stall rest since then.
She hit the track at 10:30 AM under her new exercise rider Richard who actually was amazing to pick-up our cell phone and give it back to us after seeing we dropped it near the training track. What can we say? We were so overcome with Princess Power that we got careless!
Princess went for an easy jog and her Daddy John Ross will have her take her time getting ready for an eagerly-awaited 2018 campaign now. John was pleased with the jog and she did everything just right. There is no set date for the return as Princess will tell us when she’s ready. Meanwhile, she looks in great shape and it shouldn’t be long before she’s fit enough to race. She is so happy to reunite with her Caretaker, Errol and he keeps telling me “She’s gonna win first time! Just watch!”. Joining the Ross Family is Zach, whom Princess is seen with below.
See some Snaps of her first 2018 jog:
Princess feeling fresh:
We celebrated Princess‘ fourth birthday in February, her birthday falling on February 5th. Our friends Bailey (@Starting_Gate) visiting from California, Keith (@TripleDeadHeat), Julie (@RedDogCW), Coco and Billy all came out for the occasion marked by lots of dress-up for Princess, apples, cupcakes and affection! Princess knows her Godbrother Billy who is going through Chemotherapy right now, is giving it his all and as always gives him a big kiss when he visits…which he secretly loves!
We look forward to sharing more Princess updates with you as they come! In the meantime, remember to follow her on the following channels as she readies her 2018 debut:
(Photo/video credit: Mr. Will Wong)
It’s been a while since we’ve posted a Princess Diary, but on behalf of our dear filly A PIC BY MRWILL, we’d love to wish a Happy Holiday to you and your loved ones!
Princess along with her stablemates from the barn of John Ross, has been wintering out in Flamborough, Ontario under the amazing care of Miss Tasha and Mr. Clayton (seen below). It was a fantastic year for the Team who not only won the prestigious Prince of Wales Stakes with Cool Catomine, but nabbed also the top two-year-old race in Canada, the Coronation Futurity with Aheadbyacentury (also seen below). The latter is Florida-bound as he prepares for his Queen’s Plate Trail in 2018!
While Princess wintered in Florida last winter, she remains on stall rest healing from her injury and will be staying here until her training resumes in a couple months. She continues to grow and seemed well-adjusted, watching over her stablemates as the queen of her predominantly-male barn.
2017 was an amazing year where we not only saw Princess break through for the first time in a route race, but also great consistency from her bringing home a cheque six out of eight races!
Let’s re-live that special day in August again!
We’re excited to see Princess thrive in 2018 now that she finally is getting what this game is all about! We don’t believe she’s turning four already, which is like 20 in human years. Soon she’ll be a Woman!
Billy and I popped by along with some of our special friends to surprise her today with some festive cheer! She even got a new Teddy to snuggle with since she misses her Woodbine Teddy! 🐻 She missed Billy so much, showering him with kisses.
See some Snaps from today:
No matter where you are, may you be surrounded with love this Holiday. To all your wishes coming true in 2018!
Follow Princess on Social Media:
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong | Video: Woodbine Entertainment Group)
Another year of phenomenal racing has concluded in Ontario and while we have been a fan of the races for many years, 2017 stands out among all the others. This would be the year that reigning leading Trainer Mark Casse was surpassed by Norm McKnight in win standings and while the latter didn’t have any stake wins in that total, this is a sign of change and mobility on the circuit. We are seeing up-and-coming names like Denyse McClachrie, Martin Drexler and Tony Gattelaro make their presence known, the former two landing in the year-end Top Ten standings at Woodbine. Also more than ever, females – equine and human – are front and center in the sport.
The caliber of horses in Ontario has never been stronger. While undisputed Woodbine star PINK LLOYD had a flawless seven-race stakes win streak in 2017, there were many other heroes who rose. Some used racing at Woodbine as a springboard to success abroad whether it be on the track or in the sales ring where they’d begin the next stage of their careers in the breeding shed. Need we mention the likes of Tepin, Quidura, River Maid, Catch a Glimpse, Mississippi Delta, Crowley’s Law, Dacita, Moonlight Sky and Enstone, all Woodbine-raced and selling for a substantial sum at the November Sales in Kentucky?
Fillies and mares shined and among them fittingly-named WONDER GADOT, a namesake of Actress Gal Gadot and her revered Wonder Woman role, would perform well at the Breeders’ Cup en route to a victory in the Grade II Demoiselle at Aqueduct. Her two-year-old filly stablemates WIN THE WAR and ROAD TO VICTORY also would turn heads with flashy stakes scores, the latter winning the Grade II Golden Rod at Churchill Downs.
Trainers Josie Carroll, Barb Minshall and Catherine Day Phillips also had so much talent among their trainees that the Sovereign Awards honouring Canada’s best in Horse Racing, will prove rather tough for voters. Carroll‘s AMI’S MESA would make us proud almost taking home the top prize in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint under Luis Contreras but stablemates MOONLIT PROMISE and GAMBLE’S GHOST also would find stakes success this year, the former going undefeated in 2017. Day Phillips had a superb year with several stars in her barn like Mr. Havercamp, Financial Recovery and Guy Caballero, but her DIXIE MOON would crush the boys in the important Cup and Saucer Stakes before faring respectably at the Breeders’ Cup, having just enough left to win the Ontario Lassie late in the year. Watch out for the immensely-fast GRACE AND DIGNITY, one of the quickest fillies we’ve seen here in years who’s knocking on the door of greatness. We also cannot forget Barb Minshall’s stellar two-year-olds ADMIRALTY PIER and DREAM IT IS, the outstanding Shackleford filly who slayed the competition at Saratoga in the Grade III Schuylerville this summer. The runner-up in that race went on to perform well in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.
The Queen’s Plate is confirmed for Saturday, June 30, 2018 with Country Star Brad Paisley set to take the stage the night before at Woodbine. The historic race looks a wide open affair at this point with several making a case for their potential including John Ross and Jack of Hearts Racing’s Coronation Futurity winner AHEADBYACENTURY (named after The Tragically Hip hit). Ken & Sarah Ramsey’s HEMP HEMP HURRAY fared well in the Grade I Summer Stakes at Woodbine and has yet to run on anything but grass. His connections certainly know how to win the race having taken the 2016 edition with Sir Dudley Digges.
SILENT STING also just nabbed the Kingarvie Stakes for Sid Attard and Stronach Stables, the latter of course scoring a 2017 Woodbine Oaks-Plate double with exceptional filly HOLY HELENA. Any other year she would be a cinch for Horse of the Year if it weren’t for an exceptional year.
Chiefswood Stables’ PIPERS WARRIOR seems to be improving into an athlete of note for Trainer Mike DePaulo. FLAMEAWAY found success at Saratoga also in the Skidmore Stakes for Mark Casse and comes into 2018 with a real shot at Plate glory with stablemates NEEPAWA and ROSE’S VISION, the latter two owned also by Chiefswood Stables.
Iconic Sam-Son Farms have a couple interesting possibilities with talented two-year-olds, the blue-blooded Tapit colt STRIKE ME DOWN who is based in the U.S. and also promising gelding KITTEN’S BOY.
2017 was a year of many emotions. These are my top moments in Ontario Thoroughbred Racing seen through my lens.
See you 2018? Happy Holidays!
(Photo/video credit: Mr. Will Wong | Audio: Sony Music Entertainment)
Is this real life? Even a couple days after witnessing our dear PRINCESS’ (A PIC BY MRWILL) big breakthrough win, here we find ourselves still on cloud nine! Maiden no more!
We couldn’t believe our eyes as we tried multitasking cheering and snapping pics of her as she grinded her way home under amazing Luis Contreras in her first race ever race at 1 1/16 miles. Princess fought bravely to surge ahead of expensively-bred Mark Casse trainee Cosmic Ruby and Patrick Husbands. This is one moment we’ll remember forever… unless we go senile!
Who would’ve thought after success sprinting, she’d throw a curve ball revealing that her hidden talent is running long? Okay, we know the race could have been run faster, but still. A win’s a win!
People were asking why I didn’t snap one of my signature Selfies with Princess in the Winner’s Circle and my answer simply is that I was so overcome with joy. I was ready for it, but so not! Me forgetting to snap a Selfie for once in a my life. Imagine that! LOL
There’s always next time right? She looks like she’s got a win or two left in her.
The overwhelming support we’ve received for Princess is humbling and we’re touched by all your messages and notes of congratulations. None of this would have been possible without the generosity and hard work of Team John Ross and Cathy Wong!
Princess and I have read every single Tweet and comment and we are so appreciative. We also want to thank all the patient bettors who keep making her the race favourite at post time. We’re so happy they finally got their reward. We’ve certainly burned enough of their money, right?
Come, let’s watch the race again. Can you hear those loud shrieks as she crosses the finish line??!
The filly 3-A Pic By Mrwill BSP: 2.16 ($4) doesn't disappoint as heavy favorite in @WoodbineRacing opener and breaks thru in start No11. pic.twitter.com/08ko42Ausi
— BetfairUS (@BetfairUSA) August 27, 2017
While the tone of the day was celebratory on Sunday afternoon, it would prove bittersweet fittingly for our tough-luck Princess. As you might remember, she has overcome quite a bit to be here today including battling for her life when just a yearling due to a persistent sinus infection requiring multiple operations. Above this, repeatedly she has found herself in against tough types, several who have either gone on to step-up and win at the Allowance level or gain Black Type in stakes races. She was always right there with them, just missing that punch that made her run past them. That was yesterday.
We are sad to report that Princess will be out for the rest of the season due to an injury. The silver lining is that she can be treated with some stall rest for a few months. We didn’t want to take away from the moment, but felt the timing was a bit better now to be transparent.
John & Cathy have issued the following statement to all her fans:
“We want to say thanks for all the support. It was fun to see Princess progress throughout the year and that she finally got it done! Being named after Mr. Will made it doubly-fun and we can’t wait to see her back next year. She is one tough filly and has overcome many obstacles up till today. We always believed in her that is why we gave her the best care. She will be well cared for in her time off.”.
Our thoughts are with dear Princess on her path to wellness again and she is receiving the best care possible under Dr. Daryl Bonder of Toronto Equine Hospital, resting comfortably in her cast. We wanted so bad to celebrate with her following her win and were heartbroken we couldn’t even give her a treat to tell her she did a great job, but we promise to see her tomorrow with plenty of her favourite Fuji apples to make up for it!
While we were fine most of the afternoon, both Cathy (Princess‘ mom) and I head home when the emotions began to hit. One, we are touched how hard she has fought all year for us, but also terribly saddened how this filly can’t have it easy just for once. Her first big celebratory moment just had to be marred by a bit of tragedy. She is our little fighter and we are moved to tears by her courage and desire to be better. If you think she’s improved a lot at age three, just wait till you see her next year. We even have an inkling that dirt, on which she has trained so well without incident, might be better for her than Tapeta.
She’s finally getting what it’s all about!
See a slideshow of Princess’ victory (hover left and right to navigate) and our heartfelt note of gratitude below:
A post shared by Princess 🍎 (@apicbymrwill) on
We appreciate so much your love and support and are confident our girl will be fit to fight next spring! Thank you ‘priends’!
Stay in touch with Princess on Social Media as she recovers:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/apicbymrwill
Twitter: @apicbymrwill
Instagram: @apicbymrwill
(Photo/video credit: Mr. Will Wong/Emily Shields/Julie Wright)
We couldn’t enough of Princess (A PIC BY MRWILL) in July and neither could the bettors! After two solid runner-up efforts in her last two starts as the prohibitive favourite last month at Woodbine, Princess returns after a quick freshening in her on-going quest for that first victory. We’re so close. So, so close!
See Princess’ last race on Wednesday, July 26th:
Last night. pic.twitter.com/aepoNhMgn4
— Princess 🍎 (@APicByMrWill) July 27, 2017
Our girl is back this Sunday, Race 1 at 1:00 PM, although we had hoped to run a bit sooner. Some unforeseen race scheduling delays held us back but she is up and running finally! One thing’s different this time though. In this her eleventh trip to the post, she tries a route race for the first time ever after finding success, hitting the money in 4 out of 7 starts in sprint races this season.
Princess’ Papa, John Ross tells us she’s been coming back from each of her starts with plenty left in the tank which gives us every indication she will prefer some added ground versus being hustled quick at shorter distances. Her tall, lean stature also suggests she just may have a bit of stamina in her. We even did a bit of research on her Dosage Index which totals 2.50, suggesting she might thrive at longer distances. Horses with higher Dosage Indexes tend to trend towards shorter distances, while lower Dosage Indexes tend to indicate more stamina. We’re beginning to wonder why we haven’t tried a long race sooner!
A post shared by Keith Reid (@kgr_showjumping) on
In all, Princess’ bankroll keeps building, already having earned five times her purchase price at the 2015 September CTHS Sale and she will continue to add to it again soon! We’re totally with you in that Princess’ first win has taken longer than expected, but how can we be disappointed when she keeps showing true grit?
.@TripleDeadHeat: A Pic By Mrwill (named for @mrwillw) is the 2nd most popular maiden at Woodbine behind Starresha. #EQcon17
— Joe Nevills (@DRFNevills) August 14, 2017
The Ross barn still is riding the high of their huge score in the $500k Prince of Wales Stakes at Fort Erie, the second jewel in Canada’s Triple Crown, with the amazing COOL CATOMINE. We’ve known from the start he’s something special and we’ve got the receipts to prove it! He’ll bounce back soon from his Breeders’ Stakes experiment. 1 1/2 miles on the turf isn’t for everyone.
#WALES82! Cool Catomine under Luis Contreras, makes it look effortless in an upset victory in the second jewel in Canada’s Triple Crown! pic.twitter.com/kefjZOZfSX
— MR. WILL WONG (@mrwillw) July 26, 2017
Congrats to John Ross, Jack of Hearts Racing, Luis Contreras + Cool Catomine, our #Wales82 victor! Have had my eye on him from the start! pic.twitter.com/GjnWm8tmt1
— MR. WILL WONG (@mrwillw) July 26, 2017
Also, pay attention to Princess’ promising young stablemate AHEADBYACENTURY, named after that popular The Tragically Hip tune. He just finished a strong third in his debut with stakes company in the Clarendon Stakes earlier this month.
In addition to a @thehipdotcom Documentary at #TIFF17, John Ross trainee Aheadbyacentury makes his debut Saturday at @WoodbineRacing! pic.twitter.com/JvZoAQipZX
— MR. WILL WONG (@mrwillw) August 2, 2017
See you all Sunday! Will this be our Maiden Queen’s big day? We’ll find out at 1:00 PM! If we’re victorious, you’re coming into the Winner’s Circle with us!! Don’t forget to check out RIBFEST at Woodbine too this weekend! Mmmm.
(Photo/video credit: Mr. Will Wong/Woodbine Entertainment Group)
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