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Author of the article:
The Canadian Press
Danny Ralph
Published July 23, 2023 • read for 3 minutes
Patrick Husbands rode Paramount Prince to a convincing wire-to-wire victory in the $150,000 King’s Plate Trial on a wet, windy Sunday. Husbands throws flowers from a garland as he celebrates winning the 155th Queen’s Plate over Lexie Lou at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto on Sunday, July 6, 2014. Photo by Chris Young /The Canadian Press
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TORONTO – Trainer Mark Casse could have a formidable 1-2 punch in next month’s $1 Million King’s Plate.
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Casse-trained horses won both the $500,000 Woodbine Oaks and $150,000 Plate Trial on Sunday. That puts the veteran conditioner in the enviable position of potentially holding the top two favorites for the first jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown on August 20 at Woodbine Racetrack.
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“Yeah, that’s pretty nice,” said Casse, a two-time record winner. “I don’t mind that at all.”
Elysian Field won the Oaks impressively, overtaking stablemate Ticker Tape Home and jockey Patrick Husbands in deep stretch en route to a 2 1/4 length victory. Elysian Field, a 5/1 pick with Sahin Civaci on board, won the 1 1/8 mile race on Woodbine’s Tapeta course in 1:49.83 despite a stiff breeze.
Civaci moved Elysian Field into sixth to start the race and left the horse sitting seventh, but running very comfortably after three quarters of a mile.
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“Honestly, the horse was great,” Civaci said. “I was just having a good trip overall and she came running.”
Earlier, Husbands rode 11/1 long-shot Paramount Prince to a convincing five-length, wire-to-wire Plate Trial victory. Paramount Prince completed the identical 1 1/8 mile distance on the Tapeta course in 1:49.99 despite a stiff breeze and rainy conditions.
Husbands earned a fourth Trial win.
“Looking at the race, seeing how it would go, all the trainers will say, ‘Take back,’ and I can have whatever I want,” said Husbands. “And the race unfolded that way.”
Stanley House, the even-money favorite ridden by Luis Contreras, finished sixth.
Casse, 15 times Canada’s top thoroughbred trainer, said if both of his horses come out of the races well, they will take it up at Woodbine next month.
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“They’re both big, strong horses and they ran almost equal times,” said Casse. “I’d say as long as they’re happy and healthy, there’s only one King’s Plate… this is what it’s all about.”
Casse said one of the factors working in Elysian Field’s favor regarding a performance at King’s Plate is a month off to recuperate and prepare for the 1 1/4 mile race. Both of Casse’s previous Plate wins have come from fillies (Lexi Lou in 2014, Wonder Gadot in 2018), but the two horses did so just three weeks after running in the Oaks.
In ’14, Lexi Lou completed the Oaks-Plate double. Wonder Gadot’s Plate win came after a second-place finish in the Oaks.
“It’s a difference,” Casse said of the extra week. “We’ve won the plate twice with fillies, so fillies can do it.”
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Wickenheiser, with Kazushi Kimura on board, took second in the 14-horse Oaks field. Fortyfiveseventy, ridden by Ryan Munger, came third.
After relinquishing the lead, Ticker Tape Home finished fifth, five lengths behind Elysian Field.
“I knew there was going to be some serious pace,” said Casse. “I thought Patrick did a great job with Ticker Tape Home.
“I told everyone who asked me that I thought Ticker Tape Home was the most talented, but I didn’t know if she would get a mile and an eighth. She had a great journey, that’s just a little too much for her I think, so we’ll focus on her again.
Sivaci rode Cool Kiss to second place in the 12-horse Plate Trial field. Twin City, with jockey Gary Boulanger, was third.
Elysian Field took her second win in five starts and second win in six career races this year. Shortly after Team Valor International and Gary Barber purchased Elysian Field in 2022, the horse required medical treatment for colic.
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“We had her for about two days before she went to the clinic for about a week,” Casse said. “It took some getting used to and I think it has taken its toll.
“But we took her home and she got bigger and stronger. Both horses (Elysian Field, Paramount Prince) on a scale of 1 to 10, where 10 looks good, they are both a nine or a ten.”
Husbands rode Paramount Prince to a maiden win of 2023 in three starts and a second career win in five races. Paramount Prince has not finished penniless (two wins, two second, third) during his racing tenure.
“I think maybe we should see what he wants to do and he wants to go out,” said Casse. “He’ll run all day.”
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on July 23, 2023.
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