Feature Race | Auction | Breeding | General | Hall of Fame | Harness | Interviews | Mixed Breed | New Players | Racing | Site Updates | Steeplechasing | Steward's Cup | Triple Crown
Wild Horse Race hit her stride in the far turn and put on a great performance winning the $2 million Grade I Steward’s Cup Filly and Mare Turf by three widening lengths over In the Doldrums. The dark bay filly romped the 1 ¼ mile distance on the grass at Toronto Racecourse in 1:59.40.
After her warm down gallop, jockey Makayla Boyd rode her to the winner’s circle amid a crowd of enthusiastic supporters where they received their accolades. Bred and owned by Carolyn Eaton, Wild Horse Race had won 11 out of her 14 starts going into the Steward’s Cup. She had broken her maiden first time out over a mile and hit the board in her next two starts including when she finished third in the Test My Heart Stakes. She returned the following year with a victory in the Hyde Park Cup, looking impressive enough.
But something didn’t appear quite right to Eaton because in her next start, her filly had begun wearing blinkers and the end result of that was a very speedy win in the Premio Ristorante. After that race, she won four straight stakes races including the German, Irish and London Oaks. Her bold and successful efforts led to her winning the title of European champion three year old filly.
The following season she came back just as boldly. It didn’t start off that smoothly as she failed to hit the board in the Canterbury Stakes, finishing fourth while facing her male counterparts in the Canterbury Stakes. She rebounded off that loss very strongly when she dominated in the stretch of the Prix La Liberte and then followed that up with wins in the Crown Princess Stakes and the Premio Bugie Sotto. The Yorkshire One Thousand Guineas loomed as her next big test but she took that one home too defeating Wada by a length.
That made her a solid choice for the Steward’s Cup Filly and Mare Turf and Wild Horse Race left her European haunts and headed up to Canada. She’s a nicely built daughter of South Pacific Champion Three Year Old Colt Untamed who’s turned out to be a very nice sire though he doesn’t have much time left in the shed.
Broodmare Sea Horse Racing is a daughter of North American Champion Male Turf Horse Fish who’s got a slew of fine racing sons heading off to prove themselves at stud. This daughter of his won stakes before producing offspring including a stakes winning son of Trafalgar named Race to the Island.
Wild Horse Race would have her work cut out for her in the Steward’s Cup facing a field of 11 other horses including some of the heaviest hitters in her division.
In the Doldrums, bred and owned by Norman Architecture had come into the race on a three race winning streak. Last time out she had defeated Forgave by a neck in a nail biter of a race called the Beverly B Stakes. She’s by the very popular and now pensioned sire Streamer out of a daughter of Vernacular named Dead in the Water. The diminutive dynamo of a dark bay filly looked ready to close out her year and her career with a huge effort.
All eyes were on Stardust who the previous year had been undefeated in ten lifetime starts and closed out her season with a sensational win in the Steward’s Cup Filly and Mare Turf. But when she returned last year for breeder and owner Lisa Strummer, the North American champion turf female just wasn’t the same competitor that she had been. She struggled in most of her races and came in the Breeder’s Cup with a stirring win in the Spa Steward’s Cup which her fans hoped would put her back on the winning track. Still she’s a beautiful bay filly sired by European Horse of the Year Oversized Heart and is out of Deep Impact mare Tempel.
Jolene Danner bred and owns Stargate who dominated racing action in the South Pacific before she headed to the Steward’s Cup. The daughter of South Pacific Horse of the Year Fact Not Fiction and Acapulco mare, A Life Saved had won all six of her starts since her debut. Those included wins in stakes races like the Australian and Melbourne Oaks before she kicked it in from last place to capture the Northern Australian Oaks.
Also looking very formidable was Basset, a homebred for Mary Yamada who’s a striking daughter of Vernacular out of the stakes winner Gone To The Dogs. Leading up to the Steward’s Cup, she had put together a string of pretty solid performances including wins in three stakes like the Queen’s Cup where she defeated her half sister Chidori.
Those watching the race remained silent as the horses loaded in the starting gate. When the gates opened, people began cheering on their favorites. Manatee Stakes winner Take Care grabbed the lead by a half length over Basset who enjoyed a quarter length advantage over In the Doldrums while Wild Horse Race hung out in the fourth spot. As the horses raced down the backstretch, Take Care proved to be stubborn, holding onto a narrow lead over In the Doldrums who had edged Basset by a nose. Wild Horse Race fell two lengths off of Basset but kept her in her sights.
As they zoomed around the far turn, Wild Horse Race accelerated mightily to take the lead by 1 ½ lengths almost before anyone was aware of it. Take Care kept the second spot by a half length over Basset and as the field hit the stretch, Wild Horse Race kept pulling away all the way to the wire. In the Doldrums launched her kick in the stretch to finish second by 1 ¼ lengths over a late closing Stargate who finished third.
Wild Horse Race celebrated with her connections in the winner’s circle but she soon had a date with the mightily successful stud Feat to keep. The outcome of that matchup was a dark bay colt named Race to the Beat who’ll be coming to a racetrack in a couple of years to race hopefully against the best the sport has to offer.
All the way to the starting gate of the Steward’s Cup and his own date with destiny just like his dam.