October Ready!
The stars come out to play at Hastings on Saturday as BC's best take aim at the day's two $100,000 Stakes purses
CLASS CODE makes her first appearance for new connections since being claimed following a fine win over Counteract and Gunfighter last time and a repeat of that effort would make her hard to beat. MATSQUI and ABOVE AVERAGE take each other on here rather than tangle with Infinite Patience and co later in the day. Both have been mixing it in the toughest company at times this season and will be big dangers with enough pace to run at. WIRLY GIRLY would have a leading chance on her best Hastings form this season, although her single try at this distance, at Del Mar last year, didn’t go well.
INFINITE PATIENCE will be a warm order to land her third consecutive Ballerina Stakes but, in order to do so, will need to reverse placings with BUNNY and AIR FORCE, who were ahead of her when finishing one-two respectively in last month’s Delta Colleen Handicap. However, that race came just two weeks after Infinite Patience’s victory in the Northlands Distaff in Edmonton and she may be a different proposition today; especially over a distance at which her two main rivals have yet to win. VIVA LA DIVA, the sole three-year-old in the race, has been staring at the rear end of sensational stablemate Avana all season, but she seemingly remains in excellent form and should have no stamina issues.
CURLIN ROCKS takes a step down in class after splitting the useful Vector and Deal Em last time and should be the one to beat if able to repeat that standard. CHICKASAW had FRASER LANDING behind when runner-up to Brian’s De Leight last time and that came on the heels of a nose defeat by the same horse the previous month. A repeat of either effort would put him in the firing line here. WISELY PLAYED usually does his best work late and would benefit from even a smattering of luck after falling foul of the racing gods regularly this term, while SLOOP JOHN B is always a threat at this level and a win certainly wouldn’t be coming out of turn.
MR MORRIS has been out of action since July but goes for his fourth straight victory of the season here. He went gate-to-wire again last time, holding off today’s rival DEAL EM in a similar contest and he sets the bar today. An eight-length winner of his maiden back in August, HORATIO returns to claiming company after a tilt at the BC Derby last time and should be more of a factor here based on his second to Fraser Landing (with today’s rival BECKETT’S BEST in third) in August. Barn-mate PISCO, meanwhile, was just a nose behind Deal Em when they chased home the smart Vector last month and was second to Mr Morris when they met in July.
The classy APPREHEND made light work of his opponents when going gate-to-wire to land the S W Randall Plate last time and the son of Arrogate, who mixed it in Santa Anita G1 company a couple of seasons ago, bids for a fourth straight victory. SUNBIRD finally got some clear track in which to strut his considerable stuff last time and a repeat of that effort, where he took down the fleet-footed Bold Arch, would make him the biggest danger to Apprehend. SETTECENTO proved his longshot George Royal win no fluke when finishing close-up in each of his subsequent three Stakes appearances. He’ll need some pace ahead of him, but should be rallying late alongside the ever-reliable AT ATTENTION.
FRANKIE MACHINE has had an extraordinary season, hitting the first three in each of his nine races. Only narrowly beaten by stablemate SELF SERVING and FORT LANGLEY last time, he remains a credit to his connections and is unlikely to be far away again in what is a wide-open finale. Both READY HERO, who makes his first appearance for new connections since being claimed, and FAMILY BIZ looked pinched for room at vital stages of their effort when fourth and fifth respectively behind Self Serving and could easily be a lot closer again here with some racing room.
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Trainer Terry Jordan believes Sunbird is ready for another win at Hastings Racecourse
Randy Goulding: Horses trained by Terry Jordan have won Sovereign Awards for being the best of their respective divisions in Canada five times.
Randy Goulding • Special to Postmedia
Sunbird, very impressive winning an allowance race at Hastings Racecourse on Sept. 22, will try to win the Grade 3, $100,000 Premiers Handicap for the second year in a row this Saturday at the track on the PNE grounds.
Sunbird is trained by Terry Jordan, who likes the way the four-year-old Kentucky-bred son of Orb is coming into the mile and three-eighths race for three-year-olds and up. Sunbird’s latest victory was his first this year.
“He’s run good races all year, but until his last start he got stopped just about every time,” said Jordan. “I think he’s one of the best horses I’ve trained.”
That is saying a lot considering horses trained by Jordan have won Sovereign Awards for being the best of their respective divisions in Canada five times.
Jordan ranks True Metropolitan as the best of them all. True Metropolitan won back-to-back Sovereign Awards for being the top older male in Canada in 2006-07. The classy Florida-bred handled any surface. His first win came on turf at Gulfstream Park in Miami Florida. He won on dirt at Arlington Park in Chicago and at all the tracks in Western Canada. His best races came on the synthetic track at Woodbine. He retired with earnings of $1,246,631.