Accidental Hero and Sunbird —respectively third and fifth in the Canadian Derby (G3) Aug. 26 at Century Mile—lead a field of six in the 1 1/8-mile British Columbia Derby (G3) Sept. 16 at Hastings Racecourse.
Sunbird, a 3-year-old son of 2013 Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Orb , is favored in the CA$125,000 race at 6-5 on the morning line under jockey Antonio Ambrosio Reyes. The gelding lost for the first time in five starts in the Canadian Derby.
He is now back at Hastings, where he is 3-for-3 over the local surface for trainer Terry Jordan and owners Pauline Felicella and the Estate of Nick Felicella. Among his Hastings wins was a 1 3/4-length score in the Aug. 7 BC Cup Sir Winston Churchill Derby Trial Handicap.
Saturday's card at Hastings also includes the CA$75,000 British Columbia Oaks, a 1 1/8-mile race led by Jamies Inheritance and Air Force .
Hastings Racecourse, Saturday, September 16, 2023, Race 8Entries: British Columbia Derby (G3)
PP
Horse
Jockey
Wgt
Trainer
M/L
1
1Kystone (KY)
Amadeo Perez
126
Steve Henson
10/1
2
2Riverside (KY)
Silvino Morales
126
Gonzalo Anderson
8/1
3
3Space (KY)
Brian Boodramsingh
126
Mel Snow
4/1
4
4Accidental Hero (KY)
Kimal Santo
126
Larry Grieve
2/1
5
5Sunbird (KY)
Antonio Ambrosio Reyes
126
Terry Jordan
6/5
6
6It's a Fact (KY)
Fraser Aebly
126
Carson Frey
12/1