Wonder Gadot Primed for Prince of Wales

Fresh off her stunning 4 3/4-length victory in the historic Queen's Plate Stakes, Gary Barber's Wonder Gadot will look to keep the momentum going when she heads to Fort Erie July 24 for the $400,000 Prince of Wales Stakes.

 A little less than a month since Canada's champion 2-year-old filly took the 159th running of Canada's oldest Thoroughbred race, trainer Mark Casse said Wonder Gadot couldn't be more wonderful.

"(She's) super. We are extremely happy with her," Casse said.

Despite initial plans to send the millionaire daughter of Medaglia d'Oro  back to Saratoga Race Course to train for her start in the Prince of Wales, Casse said plans quickly changed when he saw just how contented his champion filly was in her native Canada.

"I ended up not doing it. She was just so happy at Woodbine, and especially when we decided we were going to go to Fort Erie to run in the Prince of Wales, it just made sense to leave her there."

Wonder Gadot's win in the Queen's Plate snapped a season-long, six-race losing streak. The Casse trainee has turned in one timed work since her June 30 win, going four furlongs in :48 1/5 on the Woodbine all-weather surface. 

The 7-5 morning-line favorite for Tuesday's test, Wonder Gadot is the only filly entered in a six-horse field that includes the Queen's Plate's second- and third-place runners, Aheadbyacentury and Cooler Mike.

Though she had an outside post in the Queen's Plate—post 11 of 16—Wonder Gadot will have the rail this time under regular rider John Velazquez. Should everything go according to plan, Casse said the filly will likely make the trip stateside for the 1 1/4-mile Alabama Stakes (G1) Aug. 18 at Saratoga before setting her sights on Kentucky in November. 

"That's our goal currently. Hopefully, it'll be a big race on Tuesday and then the Alabama. And if everything goes well, we are hoping to make it to the Breeders Cup."