The largest field in 21 years will hit the dirt oval in Fort Erie for the 88th Prince of Wales Stakes on Sept. 12.
All 11 nominations plus a supplemental horse will be loaded into the gate for a 12-horse race. They'll be taking a run at the $400,000 stakes, the largest purse run on a dirt track in Canada.
To make things even more exciting, there will also be a Canadian Triple Crown contender in the mix, with Paramount Prince heading down from Woodbine to take a shot at the crown.
Following his impressive win at the King's Plate in August, the favorite remains Paramount Prince, who was at 8-5 for the morning line odds during the post position draw on Sept. 7. Paramount Prince drew the number eight gate position which puts him near the middle of the pack.
He'll have to contend with Velocitor just two gates over in the number 10 position, who will be looking for a rematch after finishing fourth in the Plate. At 6-1, the oddsmakers think both Velocitor and fellow Plate contender Stanley House (4-1) have a good shot at dethroning Paramount Prince.
Prince of Wales Stakes drawmaster Larry Attard was on hand Thursday to pick the post positions and offer up advice for would-be Triple Crown contender Paramount Prince.
“The first thing you need is the right horse, because without that, you won't be going anywhere,” said Attard, who knows a thing or two about the Triple Crown, having won two of the three races during his prestigious career. Attard won the Queen's Plate in 1983, and the Prince of Wales Stakes twice, in 1992 and 1995.
“The other thing you need is confidence,” said Attard. “You have to come in here with a lot of confidence and ride the horse and give 100 per cent while trying to make no mistakes, because one little mistake can cost you the whole race.”
The field is rounded out by Cool Kiss (8-1), Stayhonor Goodside (10-1), Twin City (12-1), Kakokaipuu (12-1), Tiburon (15-1), Ottawa (20-1), Morstachy's (30-1), Trinity Park (30-1), and Armaline (30-1).
Live racing for the big event begins at 1 p.m., with the Prince of Wales Stakes hitting the oval around 5:30 p.m.
The track will have food trucks on hand to keep the crowd fed as they take in the Prince of Wales, and the four other stakes races that day, including the Molson Cup, Le Cinquieme Essai Cup, The Rondeau Bay Stakes, and The Lake Erie Stakes.
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