Rookies Race in Coronation Futurity
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Photo: Michael Burns
Racing at Woodbine
Eight hopefuls, including Barb Minshall trainees British Royalty and Threefiftyseven and Gail Cox charge Tio Magico, square off Nov. 1 in the CA$250,000 Coronation Futurity Stakes at Woodbine.
Slated as Race 8 on Sunday's 11-race card, the 1 1/8-mile Tapeta event for Canadian-foaled 2-year-olds is a significant race on the road to the 162nd running of the Queen's Plate, the first jewel of the OLG Canadian Triple Crown.
Bruce Lunsford's British Royalty, an Ontario-bred English Channel gelding, impressed in his Oct. 11 career bow at Woodbine. Under Jerome Lermyte, who gets the return call, British Royalty was pinched back at the start of the mile-and-70-yard main-track race. Last of nine early, he steadily gained on his eight rivals, and was traveling well around the final turn. Sixth at the stretch call, he continued to gobble up ground and went on to a 1 3/4-length score in a time of 1:43.74.
"It was quite the effort," Minshall said. "His effort is almost exactly him. He's a very tall, lanky, green horse. He was bought later in the year, so he wasn't as advanced as my other babies. He was the only baby that I've had in probably 10 years who had a bit of a shin. So, I had to stop on him for 45 days. He definitely got a little bit behind the eight ball."
Bred by Richard Lister, British Royalty now gets a sterner test in his second outing, but Minshall believes her young pupil is up to the task.
"He has a lot of ability and he showed it," she said. "Being an English Channel, I think, definitely as he gets older, things should really start to come together. Here, there's not really anywhere else we could run him, if I want to give him another race. So, he'll race in here and then we'll go from there."
The multiple graded stakes-winning conditioner also sends Threefiftyseven postward. The Run Away and Hide gelding, whom Minshall owns and also co-bred with Lunsford, has won once and twice finished second in four starts. His most recent effort was a runner-up result Oct. 10 in the 1 1/16-mile turf Cup and Saucer Stakes, 3 1/4 lengths behind the Mark Casse-conditioned winner Master Spy, who will also compete in the Coronation Futurity.
Finishing fourth in his debut, a five-furlong race on the inner turf July 12, Threefiftyseven finished second in his following start Aug. 9 and broke his maiden the next time out with a 1 1/4-length triumph at 6 1/2 panels on the Toronto oval Tapeta.
"(British Royalty) is the total opposite of Threefiftyseven, who has had a few races," noted Minshall. "(Threefiftyseven is) a very professional horse, a very strong horse. He hasn't put—knock on wood—a foot wrong since he's started. He's also going into the race in really good order."
Cox, also in the midst of a successful season, will turn to Tio Magico to deliver her first Coronation Futurity. The Sam-Son Farm homebred finished sixth to Threefiftyseven in his debut Sept. 7.
"He got in a bit of trouble early," noted Cox. "Then he made a great, big middle move, and I think he just got a little bit tired."
The dark bay son of Uncle Mo was magic in his second start, a 1 1/16-mile main-track race that was originally scheduled for the turf. Tio Magico, despite ducking in twice, held a 5 1/2-length lead at the stretch call, and secured a half-length victory in a time of 1:44.85 ahead of the Kevin Attard-trained Coronation Futurity contender Stephen.
Woodbine, Sunday, November 01, 2020, Race 8Entries: Coronation Futurity
PP
Horse
Jockey
Wgt
Trainer
M/L
1
1Master Spy (ON)
Patrick Husbands
122
Mark E. Casse
2/1
2
2Tio Magico (ON)
Luis Contreras
122
Gail Cox
3/1
3
3One Flint (ON)
Emma-Jayne Wilson
122
John P. LeBlanc, Jr.
20/1
4
4Giant Waters (ON)
Rafael Manuel Hernandez
122
Daniel J. Vella
10/1
5
5British Royalty (ON)
Jerome Lermyte
122
Barbara J. Minshall
6/1
6
6Threefiftyseven (ON)
David Moran
122
Barbara J. Minshall
8/1
7
7Flex (ON)
Slade Callaghan
122
Michael P. De Paulo
20/1
8
8Stephen (ON)
Justin Stein
122
Kevin Attard
7/2
