TORONTO — It wasn't perfect but My Boy Prince still showed Saturday he deserves to be considered among the favourites for next month's $1-million King's Plate.
My Boy Prince, with Sahin Civaci aboard, reared at the start but still recovered to win the $150,000 Plate Trial Stakes on Saturday at Woodbine Racetrack. The 1-5 favourite earned a 1 1/4-length victory in the 1 1/8-mile race in 1:51.12.
Also on the same card, jockey Sofia Vives guided Kin's Concerto to victory in the $500,000 Woodbine Oaks for three-year-old fillies. Her winning time in that 1 1/8-mile race was 1:51.18.
My Boy Prince broke awkwardly before settling into stride as Friendly Ghost went to the front. Civaci had my Boy Prince, trained by Mark Casse, sitting fifth in the seven-horse field in the opening quarter but rallied his horse into contention heading into the final turn.
Ultimately, Civaci was able to keep Rafaroo, a 26-1 long-shot, at bay for the victory. Friendly Ghost was third ahead of Piper's Factor.
“Today, he broke (a) little badly, but he pulled through,” said Civaci. "It is a little worrisome if they get away from you, but the pace was going a little easy and he has tactical speed.
"I didn’t mind him sitting off the pace today because the King’s Plate (Aug. 17) is going to be a lot of horses, and anything can happen. Sometimes, you can’t be on the lead, so I wanted to see him relax a bit."
My Boy Prince earned his sixth win from 10 career starts (twice second, third).
Kin’s Concerto captured the Oaks with a spirited stretch run to finish a neck ahead of 3-1 favourite Caitlinhergrtness. Kin's Conerto was making her stakes debut in the 14-horse field for Chiefswood Farms.
Hurricane Clair was third ahead of A Little Frisky.
"We just wanted to break in early position," said Vives. "We wound up right on the rail.
"Perfect trip in the turn, I got to get into a two-path, followed the horse that I thought was going to be a tough one, it opened up all the holes, and we shot right through."
Trainer Josie Carroll earned her 999th career victory and praised both Vives and Kin's Concerto.
"This young lady has improved leaps and bounds this year," Carroll said. "She suits this filly very, very much, she listens to instructions, which is what I really like about her.
"She (Sin's Concerto) has always shown some talent, she's just had some unfortunate luck. Different things that have gone wrong and problems in races. A horse that closes and hooks big fields and has to get through — it’s always a challenge."
Rob Landry, Chiefswood's GM, earned a fifth Oaks crown. The Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Famer earned three victories as a jockey and now has two as Chiefswood’s general manager.
“(Kin’s Concerto) just shows you the signs and Josie’s team has done a tremendous job with her as well," Landry said. "Sofia rode her great.
"It was well deserved. I'm happy for the owners, they put a lot into this game and especially when you're in the breeding operation, these types of races are really big."
Kin’s Concerto has two wins, two second-place efforts and a third-place finish from five starts.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 20, 2024.
The Canadian Press