America's Best Racing. The Jockey Club.

For the second consecutive year, it would appear that the girls trumped the boys, at least when comparing Woodbine juvenile turf stakes from last weekend – the Natalma and Summer Stakes.  Spring Venture, a filly trained by Mark Casse and ridden by Patrick Husbands, made it two-from-two in impressive fashion, winning the Natalma by almost two lengths.  I’m Boundtoscore managed to make all the running in the Summer, tallying a 10-1, ground-saving upset.  Simply observing the final official times (1:37.27 – Natalma, 1:37.75 – Summer) is one thing, but a more specific look at the closing sectional times widens the gap between the two races.

Some suggest juvenile fillies are a bit more mature than juvenile colts.  Maybe that could be one hypothesis for the second consecutive year of divergent race-ending performances between the Natalama and Summer.  This year’s Natalma was faster at every point of call over the rain-softened going, listed as yielding, while the 2011 version was the same over firm ground.  Below are the first four finishers in each race from the last two seasons, with their final quarters and eighths listed in seconds as tracked by Trakus.   

Spring Venture went off as the Natalma favorite, just shy of 5-2, and deserved the support given the impressiveness of her career debut.  In that mid-August race, the daughter of Godolphin Mile winner Spring At Last broke from the extreme outside in a seven-furlong event and covered the most ground in a field of 12.  Specifically, she traversed 28 feet more than the second-place finisher Sure Would, who came back and ran 13th in the Natalma. Using the Trakus stats to adjust for added ground traveled, Spring Venture’s final official margin of 4.25 lengths seemed more like a 7.5-length tally.  Nancy O, fifth in Spring Venture’s maiden score covering 41 feet less than Spring Venture, came back to run a strong third in the Natalma, and match Spring Venture’s final eighth in 11.89 seconds. 

From top to bottom, but specifically as the sectional times above suggest, the Natalma was meaningfully faster than the Summer. The fastest closing fractions in the Summer were slower by 0.58 seconds for the fastest final quarter and 0.54 seconds in the final furlong.

Speaking Monday on “At the Races with Steve Byk,” Casse suggested the Mazarine Stakes on October 6 at 1 1/16 miles on Polytrack would be the likely next stop for Spring Venture. 

“[Her jockey] Patrick Husbands said she was the best 2-year-old he’s ever been on,” Casse said. 

Spring Venture could make for an interesting autumn.

Ricoh Woodbine Mile (Can-G1)

The versatile Wise Dan was never in danger, but second-choice Cityscape lost the most ground of any horse in the Ricoh Woodbine Mile, finishing third.  Under James Doyle, who guided Cityscape to victory in the Dubai Duty Free this March, the colt by Selkirk was beaten 4.25 lengths, but covered the equivalent of almost three lengths more than the winner. 

Riding the River, last at the quarter pole, rattled home on the grass, which was rated firm for the first time all weekend, getting the fastest final sectionals of the Grade 1 event.  While only home to finish fourth beaten just more than six lengths, Riding the River traversed the final quarter in 23.11 seconds, and a final furlong in 11.68 seconds, which were respectively faster than Wise Dan by 0.46 and 0.38 seconds.

Northern Dancer Stakes (Can-G1)

Wigmore Hall ran off for his second consecutive narrow victory in the Northern Dancer Turf Stakes, and sizzled home in doing so.  Traveling 28 feet wider than second-place finisher Al Khali and 29 feet more than third home Forte Dei Marmi, Wigmore Hall had the fastest final quarter in the race, home in 22.36 seconds. 

Canadian Stakes (Can-G2)

All Star Heart, second to Barefoot Lady in the Canadian Stakes, was fastest in the key closing factions, while both had significant ground-saving trips.  Ridden by Brice Blanc, the Ron McAnally trainee covered marginally more ground than Barefoot Lady, and was about a fifth of a second faster in the final furlong.  Kapitale, well-backed but fourth off a first-up run in the Beverly D. Stakes (G1) at Arlington Park, covered the most ground (25 feet more than the winner).

Ontario Derby (Can-G3)

Stealcase was roughly five-wide leaving the front-stretch and continued to cover more ground than any in this Polytrack renewal, finishing on top despite traveling 62 feet more than third-placer River Rush and 68 feet more than superfecta-filler Gung Ho. Second-place finisher Any Given Royal was planted wide throughout as well, and actually covered three feet more than Stealcase.