Babbo took the early lead and was never challenged en route to winning the $250,000 Coronation Futurity on Saturday at Woodbine.
The 1 1/8-mile event for 2-year-olds foaled in Canada is a significant race on the road to the 165th running of The King's Plate on Aug.17, 2024, the first jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown.
Babbo, trained by Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Famer Sid Attard for owner Lou Tucci, will certainly be one to keep an eye on going forward.
Off at 5-1 in the field of 10, Babbo bumped with a rival at the start but crossed over quickly from post eight and struck front with Eswan Flores at the controls.
The bay held a one-length advantage over favorite Piper's Factor through an opening quarter in :24.63, with Vitality positioned third, followed by No More Options.
Babbo extended his lead to three lengths over that same rival through a half in :48.77 and was still running along comfortably through three-quarters reached in 1:13.78.
The son of Kantharos out of Calling Rhy Rhy, by City Zip, appeared to have plenty in the tank coming off the turn for home and proceeded to dash away from his pursuers in early stretch. Ahead by two at Robert Geller's stretch call, Babbo crossed the wire 2½ lengths clear of Piper's Factor.
No More Options, who won the Frost King Stakes last time out, was third, followed by Naptown.
The final time was 1:52.06 on the Tapeta main track.
“I was worried, he has shown a lot of speed in the past,” said Flores. “I didn't want to go too quick, but he was able to relax and was very professional throughout the whole race.”
It was the third straight win for Babbo, who was making his first stakes appearance in his sixth start. With the victory, the colt is now 3-2-0. He debuted this June at Woodbine and finished fourth in a five-furlong sprint over the Tapeta.
“He ran the seven-eighths easy,” said Tucci, of Babbo's four-length win on Nov. 4. “He reminded me of Midnight Aria (Tucci's 2013 Queen's Plate winner), he liked to take the lead and not give it up.”
Attard, in search of his first King's Plate triumph, won the 2007 Coronation Futurity with Kesagami and the 2011 edition with Maritimer.
Bred in Ontario by the Robert Harvey, who passed away in 2021, Babbo was a $95,000 purchase by Hidden Brook, agent, at the 2022 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall Yearling Sale, where Hill 'n' Dale Sales Agency consigned him.
“We do miss Bob Harvey and if he's up there, I'm sure he put a nice bet on him today,” said Tucci.
Babbo paid $12.20 for the win.
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Saffie Joseph Jr. and Victor Barboza Jr. finished in a dead-heat for the training title for the Sunshine Meet that came to a close Saturday at Gulfstream Park with 33 winners each.
Joseph saddled Mojave Desert ($9.20) for a victory in Race 1, to pull even with Victor Barboza Jr., who entered Saturday's card with a 32-31 edge. Barboza countered in Race 2 with Grand Daniel ($7). Joseph came back to tie it up in Race 6 with Breezero ($2.60).
Joseph has won eight consecutive training titles at Gulfstream Park, including the last two Championship Meet crowns.
Jose D'Angelo, who had been in the thick of a three-way battle for the training title, finished third with 30 winners.
Unlike Joseph and Barboza, jockey Edgard Zayas held a commanding lead throughout the Sunshine Meet that started Sept. 9. The 30-year-old Puerto Rico native, who rides first-call for Joseph, finished the meet with 59 wins, 21 more than runner-up Miguel Vasquez.
“It's been great. I've been getting support from all the owners and trainers,” Zayas said after riding Breezero to a six-length maiden victory in Race 6. “I'm so happy to be healthy.”
Zayas is looking forward to the Championship Meet that gets underway next Friday and runs through March 31.
“My agent (Tito Fuentes) always told me this is the most important meet of the whole [off-season], because you've got to go into the Championship on a roll,” said Zayas, who rode a pair of winners on the closing day program, “This is an important meet going into the Championship Meet.”
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Alpha Delta Stables' Kentucky homebred Raging Sea fended off the late bid of graded stakes winner Julia Shining to notch her first graded victory in Saturday's $200,000 Comely (G3), a 1 1/8-mile test for sophomore fillies at Aqueduct Racetrack.
Trained by Chad Brown, Raging Sea doubled up on victories after a last-out 3 1/4-length allowance score on Oct. 20 at Keeneland, which marked her first trip to the winner's circle since a debut graduation last August at Saratoga Race Course. The daughter of Curlin made her first appearance in stakes company since finishing third in last year's Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) at Keeneland.
“It's really nice to see her get that graded win,” said Brown. “It took her awhile to get her season going but we were all patient with her and I appreciate the patience from the owner, Jon Clay. He's a really good client of ours and a huge supporter of our stable. He always seems to send us a high percentage of stakes horses and he's a really wonderful man to train for. He bred this horse, so that's a good thing.”
Guided to victory by Manny Franco, Raging Sea delivered a stalk-and-pounce performance after breaking from the outermost post 8 and settling in behind rivals early. Ichiban showed speed from the inside post and took command over post-time favorite Defining Purpose and an eager Just Katherine through an opening quarter-mile in :24.62 over the fast main track.
Raging Sea rated patiently in fifth position as the field spread out down the backstretch behind Ichiban, who coasted to the half-mile call in :48.74 before Defining Purpose was nudged along by Junior Alvarado to loom a half-length behind the pacesetter. Franco was forced to tip his mount five-wide in pursuit of the top duo as Just Katherine made a brief bid in the three-path towards a retreating Ichiban, who marked three-quarters in 1:13.11 before Defining Purpose put a head in front at the five-sixteenths.
Defining Purpose clung to her precarious advantage at the top of the stretch with Raging Sea bearing down on her outside under strong left-handed encouragement from Franco, but the late-running Julia Shining, who trailed in last throughout, advanced with purpose down the center of the course under Kendrick Carmouche to join the fray. Raging Sea put her head in front of Defining Purpose at the eighth pole and dug in determinedly to the wire under a hand ride to find enough late and stave off Julia Shining by a nose in a final time of 1:50.86.
Honor D Lady put in a late run to nab show honors from Defining Purpose with Just Katherine and Ichiban completing the order of finish. Corningstone and Warrior's Ransom were scratched.
Franco, who notched his third stakes score of the Aqueduct fall meet, said Raging Sea reengaged when challenged by the Todd Pletcher-trained Julia Shining.
“When I passed the seven horse [Defining Purpose], she kind of slowed down and tensed a little bit – I said, 'Come on, filly,'” said Franco. “I know the Pletcher is going to come late. When my filly felt that, she gave me another gear.”
Raging Sea provided the first Comely victory for Brown, who said her wide run into the stretch was troubling.
“She got quite a wide trip on the turn and I was quite concerned deep in the stretch that she would get caught because of how wide Manny had to go,” said Brown. “When Just Katherine went at the same time as Manny was making his move, it forced her quite wide which was definitely going to take some energy out of her in the late stages and I thought she might get caught by quite a nice filly in her own right – Julia Shining. Both fillies ran really well down to the wire, we were just lucky we got our head down first.”
Brown added Raging Sea is slated to continue racing as a 4-year-old.
“We'll probably take her down south and map out a campaign for next year,” Brown said. “She has no trouble getting the mile and an eighth. She can even get a mile and a quarter, if needed. She's a quite a nice filly and hopefully we have a complete year with her next year.”
Raging Sea is a half-sister to the multiple stakes-placed Welcoming with her third dam being the multiple graded stakes-winning Reine-de-Course mare Weekend Surprise, who produced Hall of Famer and breed-shaping stallion A.P. Indy. Raging Sea banked $110,000 in victory, boosting her total purse earnings to $464,628 through a record of 7-3-1-1. She returned $6.30 on a $2 win wager.
The late-running Julia Shining, who won the Demoiselle (G2) last year at Aqueduct, posted her best result since finishing third to Defining Purpose in the Ashland (G1) in April at Keeneland. Carmouche said he is hopeful this effort is a step forward for the full-sister to dual champion Malathaat.
“She put herself closer than what I thought and she ran good,” said Carmouche. “She had every right to pass that horse, she just stayed next to her. That's what happens when you don't win so often, you get used to running second, third. Hopefully, with this effort, we can go in the right direction.”
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