Shirl's Speight Returns to Track in King Edward

Shirl's Speight , freshened since a winter campaign consisting of starts in Japan and Dubai, returns to action at Woodbine in the Aug. 19 $200,000 King Edward Stakes (G2T).

A field of 11 will contest the King Edward, a one-mile turf race for 3-year-olds and upward, which is the major local stepping-stone to the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series "Win and You're In" CA$1 million Woodbine Mile (G1T) Sept. 16.

"He's doing great," said Roger Attfield, who conditions Shirl's Speight for owner and breeder Charles Fipke.

"He's still carrying a bit more weight than I'd like him to, but I need to run him in this race to get to the (Woodbine) Mile, anyway," said Attfield. "He's working lights out, but he always does."

Shirl's Speight, a Kentucky-bred 6-year-old horse, became a grade 1 winner in the Makers Mark Mile Stakes (G1T) at Keeneland last April and concluded his campaign there with a strong second-place finish behind recently retired Modern Games  in the Breeders' Cup Mile (G1T).

Modern Games also had won the Woodbine Mile, with Shirl's Speight fourth in what was his second start (seventh in 2020) in the fixture.

Making the long trek to Tokyo for the February Stakes (G1T), Shirl's Speight finished a non-threatening ninth in a rare start on dirt but rebounded with a solid fourth in Meydan's Dubai Turf (G1T) at 1 1/8 miles.

"He handled the trip better than I've ever seen a horse do it," said Attfield. "He never left an oat anywhere—on an airplane, a van, a stable. It's amazing, how well he did."

Back in Kentucky, Shirl's Speight regrouped with designs on a fall campaign.

"He was off for two months," said Attfield. "He was turned out for a month, but then he got a little too fat."

Attfield will be seeking his fourth King Edward crown after scoring with Tower of Texas, in 2015; Eccentric, in 2007; and Perfect Soul, sire of Shirl's Speight's dam, Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf winner Perfect Shirl, in 2003.

Shirl's Speight will be the 126-pound topweight in the King Edward with Emma-Jayne Wilson named to ride.

Trainer Mark Casse will be looking for his fourth straight win in the King Edward after clicking with Filo di Arianna , Olympic Runner, and March to the Arch through the past three years.

Casse's candidates this year are Lucky Score  and Conglomerate .

Purchased privately here last fall following his victory in the six-furlong Vigil (G3), Lucky Score joined the Casse outfit in Florida at season's end.

And Lucky Score has continued to run well in his three starts here this year, including a victory in the Highlander Stakes (G2T) over six furlongs of E.P. Taylor turf and a close third in the seven-furlong Connaught Cup (G2T) over the same surface. The Ontario-bred 5-year-old gelding will be traveling as far as a mile for the first time.

Conglomerate, claimed for $50,000 from a second-place finish at Woodbine July 30 in a 1 1/16-mile optional claiming race on the inner turf course, debuts for owner Gary Barber after being supplemented to the King Edward for $3,000.

The CA$125,000 Sweet Briar Too Stakes, a six-furlong turf event for fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up, is also part of Saturday’s 10-race card.

British-bredClitheroe  is the current morning line favorite at 7-5 odds for trainer Graham Motion. The daughter of Ribchester , shipping in from Fair Hill Training Center in Elkton, Md., enters the Sweet Briar Too off a runner-up finish in the July 22 Hendrie Stakes (G3T) at Woodbine. After setting fast early fractions in the Hendrie, Clitheroe was caught late by Loyalty in the final furlong. She notched a second-level allowance victory at Belmont Park in her North American debut for owner Andrew Stone May 7.