        |
|
 |
Closing Day at Del Mar Japan Cup & Cattleya P. Elizabeth & Coronation Desi Arnaz Stakes Kennedy Road Stakes |
|
|
 The trophy presentation for the Kennedy Road Stakes |
With 4 weeks remaining in the Woodbine Thoroughbred season and turf racing already ended, there are few stakes opportunities left to convince the Sovereign Award voters, as some of the top stables have begun to ship south for the winter. The last Grade 2 stakes in Canada for 2025 was contested on Saturday after sunset. Conditions were typical for mid November in Toronto with rain most of the day and a race time temperature of 5.7 C (42.3 F).
The $175,000 bet365 Kennedy Road Stakes (G2) features older horses sprinting 6 furlongs on the Tapeta main track, a race which factors in Sovereign voting in the male sprinter category. Last year's winner and track record holder Nobals was sent off as the 9-10 favorite in the field of 6 off his close second in the Nearctic (G2) after finishing 7th in the Kentucky Downs Turf Sprint (G2). In to challenge him included 3-1 second choice Lucky Score off an allowance win after 5th place finishes in the Connaught Cup (G2) and King Edward (G2), and 7-2 third choice Western Whirl, thrd in the Nearctic.
 Nobals leads while Awesome Bourbon rallies on the outside in the stretch. |
Wetern Whirl and 13-1 Reload's Rascal dueled for the lead out of the chute and around the turn through fractions of 22.26 and 44.85 while stalked by Nobals. Turning for home, Reload's Rascal tired as Western Whirl led through 5f in 57.12 before also fading. Nobals, confidently ridden by Rafael Hernandez, came out 4 wide to gain the lead and then held off late-running Lucky Score to win by 1/2 a length in 1:09.85. It was a neck back to Awesome Bourbon third. Jockeys Pietro Moran aboard Awesome Bourbon and Jose Campos aboard 4th place finisher Society's Thunder both claimed foul against Eswan Flores aboard Lucky Score. After a lengthy inquiry (which continued after the winner's circle ceremony) the stewards disqualified Lucky Score and placed him 4th behind Society's Thunder.
Pgm Horse Jockey Win Place Show 1 Nobals Hernandez 3.60 2.90 2.10 5 Awesome Bourbon Moran 7.60 3.50 6 Society's Thunder Campos 3.80 Winning Time: 1:09.85 $1 Exacta 1-5 13.95 $2 Trifecta 1-5-6 148.00 $2 Superfecta 1-5-6-4 347.50Results chart |
Left: Nobals in the winner's circle. Winning jockey Rafael Hernandez said, "My plan was that the two (Western Whirl), obviously he's going to go, and the three (Reload's Rascal) is going to show a lot of speed. In case the three didn't go, I was going to sit right next to the two. But it set up perfect."
Right: Nobals's in the post parade.
Left: Nobals returns after the race. Hernandez added, "This horse loves this track. Larry is an excellent trainer. They make the job easy - when you can do whatever you want with the horse. He has a lot of class."
Right: Nobals heads back to the barn after the race.
Left: Second place finisher Awesome Bourbon in the post parade. The Abraham Katryan trainee improved his record to 6 wins, 7 seconds, and 3 thirds in 21 starts, earning $304,944 for owners Carlo D'Amato.
Right: Third place finisher Society's Thunder heads out to the track. He improved his record to 4 wins, 6 seconds, and 8 thirds in 30 starts, earning $222,442 for owner-trainer Dominic Polsinelli.
Back to Horse-Races.Net main page
| Search Horse-Races.Net: |
