Vella Joins Woodbine as Horse People Liason

Sovereign Award and Queen's Plate-winning trainer Dan Vella has joined Woodbine as Horse People Liaison. Vella will be a point of contact for owners and trainers as it relates to opportunities and feedback regarding race conditions, track surface matters, backstretch maintenance, equine safety and race day logistics.

“Dan is a highly regarded figure on our backstretch that has his finger on the pulse of our racing community,” Jim Lawson, Woodbine Entertainment CEO, said. “Having the ability to add someone like Dan, who has spent over 50 years on our backstretch and enjoyed success at our highest levels, is a big boost for our stakeholder relationships.”

Vella's first stakes victory came in 1985 with Bert James (Dom Alaric {Fr}) in the Sir Barton Stakes. He won his first Queen's Plate with Basqueian (Bounding Basque) in 1994 and a second in 2012 with Strait of Dover (English Channel). He was honored with the Sovereign Award as Canada's outstanding trainer in 1994 and 1995. Overall his runners won over 800 races for $39 million in earnings.

“I am so excited to have this opportunity to work for Woodbine and continue to be involved in the industry and sport that has given me so much,” Vella said.

Vella will begin his new role on Apr. 1.

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‘I Never Forget Just How Lucky I Am’: 50 Years In, Dan Vella Still Going Strong

Sitting comfortably in his living room on a bitterly cold January morning, Dan Vella embraced the opportunity to reminisce about his horse racing life, the one started 50 years ago on the Woodbine backstretch.

With the 2021 Thoroughbred season in the rear-view mirror and the start of the 2022 Toronto oval campaign a few months away, the 66-year-old Vella spoke passionately and proudly of a career that is still galloping along at a steady pace.

While certain names, both horses and people, might escape his recollections, how it all began for the man with 860 career wins, where he's currently at, and where he believes he's headed, couldn't be any clearer.

“When people say things like, 'Remember back in 1991 when you did this?' I don't always recall those things. My mind doesn't work that way, but I do remember a lot. And whenever I do recall those moments, it reminds me of how lucky I've been.”

Vella's introduction to horse racing came through his uncle, a relative whose passion for the sport was quickly noticed by his young nephew.

The pair soon bonded over a mutual love of all things horses and horse racing.

“I had an uncle, his name was Jim Saliba, and he was a vegetable farmer out near Streetsville [Ontario]. That was my mother's side of the family and he always owned racehorses. I used to spend summers out on his farm. His son Mike and I were best buddies when we were kids. So, I'd go out to Uncle Jim's farm and work there all summer. His family, they weren't big on racing. They liked it, but they weren't into it. I took to it right from the start. He'd work all day, run out and get the Racing Form, and that was his reading in the evening. He would handicap races. It became a thing for him and I to go to the races together. I have a win picture with him from 1961 at Fort Erie when I was about six. That's when my love of the sport started.”

Vella's initial work with equines wasn't with racehorses.

Eventually, however, he found his way to the Woodbine backstretch in 1972, a wide-eyed teenager bent on finding a gig in the Thoroughbred world.

“During high school, I worked on weekends and the summers with show horses. I worked for a great horse guy named Lorne Siegel. I worked part-time in that for a few summers in high school and once I finished high school – I was 17 – I went over to Woodbine looking for a job. My first job was with trainer Jerry Lavigne. He had a great outfit, not a huge one, but he had a bunch of good horses. I started out walking hots and I learned to ride out in the fields on the old pony named Donald Duck. By the fall, I was grooming horses.”

Although he didn't know it then, Vella was well on his way to becoming a fixture at the racetrack.

If he had any trace of doubt as to whether horse racing was his true calling, one of the most prolific stars in the history of the sport cemented his decision.

“I was grooming Fabe Count, who raced against Secretariat in his final race, the Canadian International, at Woodbine. It was exciting, but I think I was too young to truly understand how exciting it was. It was a big deal. I still have a couple of win tickets. I bet a few dollars on Secretariat and kept the tickets that say 'Big Red' on them. If I look hard enough, I'd probably find three or four of those tickets.”

The sight of Secretariat pulling away from the pack with ease, the fans streaming across the dirt track to get a front-row look at the champion in his finale, the crescendo of the crowd growing as the brilliant chestnut strode back to the winner's circle – Vella remembers the sights and sounds as though it were yesterday.

One specific moment remains etched in his mind.

In the minutes leading up to the race, before Secretariat had stepped onto the racetrack, Vella found himself an arm's length away from the awe-inspiring superstar.

“I remember being in the paddock with Secretariat and a lady pulling a hair out of his tail and he didn't even bat an eye. I saw that with my own eyes, but I couldn't believe it.”

A few years after his brush with greatness, Vella's career started trending upwards.

The more he immersed himself in the sport, the more he became enamored with the training side.

He also enjoyed any chance to get in the irons.

“One of the guys who taught me to gallop horses was Chris Rogers. I was working for a trainer named Jerry Moreman, and I had just started galloping. I had the great fortune of working with two of the best in Chris and Jerry. Chris was an absolute genius on a horse and Jerry was a great trainer and great guy. They understood horses and I learned so much from being around them.”

That would include the good-natured give-and-take that's commonplace on any backstretch.

“I'm breezing horses with Chris one day and I'm on a stakes horse. I'm on a good horse and he's on a much cheaper horse. I turn into the stretch, and I chirp at my horse. I think, 'I'm going to start pulling away.' Well, I don't move an inch, and Chris and his horse are about a head or a neck off me. I chirp again and tap him on the shoulder, and again, my horse doesn't move an inch. These two horses are going along stride-for-stride and I'm starting to wonder what the heck is going on. I look over sideways and there is Chris, who has a hold of my saddlecloth, grabbing on to the back corner of it. He's just giggling and laughing at me. It's another one of those things that makes you love the sport.”

And Vella certainly did.

He remained relentless in his quest to join the training ranks.

“It [training bug] hit me right away. From the time I was 17 until I was about 20 or 21, I didn't miss one race run at Woodbine. I used to keep the programs and the Racing Forms. I really analyzed the racing. I was into it from the start. I got sent down to New Jersey when I was around 20 and lived down there for 10 years. That was my next step. I came back up to Woodbine and worked for [trainer] Paul Buttigieg for a short time and started working my way up. It all really came together when I started working for [Knob Hill Farm owner] Steve Stavro. Pat Collins was training for him too. We worked as a team together on it. I was with Mr. Stavro for a while. Pat, unfortunately, passed away in a car accident in Florida. I took over and things kind of snowballed from there.”

Did it ever.

Vella was soon the go-to trainer for some of racing's top owners, including Stavro and Frank Stronach.

Wins, high profile ones, were soon the norm. He was credited with his first stakes win when Bert James took the 1985 Sir Barton.

Training for Stronach between 1993 and 1998, Vella spent the majority of those years competing in the United States, where he sent out Explosive Red to win the 1993 Hollywood Derby and American Derby. Vella also excelled at Woodbine, punctuated by his 1994 Queen's Plate triumph with Basqueian. He was voted the Sovereign Award as Canada's outstanding trainer in 1994 and repeated the feat in 1995. After parting ways with Stronach Stables, he remained in the United States before he returned to Woodbine in 2003.

“Basqueian is one of my all-time favourite horses. He was very talented, but very personable. He was a tough horse. He won the Durham Cup three or four times. He was an average-bred horse, but he's a very good one. As talented as he was, he had this amazing focus. Over the years, you have horses that are talented and others that are overachievers. He was both. He didn't miss much. He would go inside, outside, around, at the front – he could do anything. He won the Plate, was second in the Prince of Wales, and won the Breeders'. Just a great horse.”

1994 Queen's Plate winner Basqueian. (Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame)

Other stable stars Vella has campaigned include King Ruckus, Wild Zone, All Firmed Up, Miners Mirage, and Mysteriously. He also had two Breeders' Cup starters: Honky Tonk Tune, in the 1994 Juvenile Fillies; and Dargai, in the 1990 Sprint.

In 2012, he sent out Strait of Dover to win the Queen's Plate, a front-running score engineered by jockey Justin Stein on a rainy, grey day at Woodbine.

“It was a mess that day, but you don't remember it that way. You're out there and it's pouring… I felt bad because the owner's elderly mother was there, and she was soaking wet. We all were. When you have that kind of win in that kind of race, you don't really care about what's up in the sky. It was a great ride by Justin and just a great day all around.”

There have been other triumphs beyond the two Plate crowns.

Last year, Vella sent out 13 winners from 97 Woodbine starts, including stakes winners Marie MacKay, The Minkster, and Where's Neal.

A son of English Channel, The Minkster capped off a sensational rookie campaign with a victory in the 118th edition of the Coronation Futurity, a key race on the road to the Queen's Plate.

“We have some nice young horses in the barn and we're hoping to take a run at some big races. It's fun to have good horses and it makes getting up in the morning a little easier for everyone in the barn. They're all different. Horses, they may blossom at different times, but we're lucky to have them with us.”

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David Moran, who rode both Marie MacKay and The Minkster, praised Vella in the form of five words.

“Danny is a natural horseman,” lauded the veteran jockey.

Those who work for him, including assistant trainer Silvio Abela and groom Janeen Lalsingh, have similarly high praise for the conditioner.

“He is very respectful to his staff and truly enjoyable to work for,” said Abela.

Added Lalsingh, “What stands out for me is that every horse matters to him in the barn and how patient he is with both horses and his staff.”

Mentoring people, just as many others had done for him, is a treasured role for Vella.

“I like to think that over time, I've had a positive influence on the industry, as far as helping people. When you employ people, you are an important part of their life and there is a lot of pressure in that. Taking care of people and the horses, it's something I take very seriously.”

Vella always has.

Yet there is no trace of conceit in his tone when he speaks of his golden anniversary in racing.

“Fifty years… it's hard to believe time has gone by that fast. I can say that I'm very proud of my career and I can also say that I've had some good help over the years. Steve Stavro, and Frank and Frida Stronach have been fantastic to me and to my career. They changed everything for me. I've always felt very lucky to be a person that others could trust to train their horses. That's a big thing. These people invest in their horses, they breed them, they put their love into them – there is a lot of emotion involved in this. It's more than just money. I've always felt I've been very lucky to have good horses in my barn. I learned a long time ago – I'm not taking anything away from horse trainers – that being a good trainer is quite easy. You just need great horses. Great horses do great things, they make careers, and they make us very happy.”

And make no mistake, Vella is happy.

Lucky is a word he uses often.

“When I look back on my career, I never forget just how lucky I am. Winning two Queen's Plates… for a Canadian trainer, born and raised here, brought up around horse racing, I don't think it gets any better. To be quite honest, for a young kid working on the racetrack, to win the Queen's Plate, it's what you dreamed about.”

Soon, the pounding of hooves over the Woodbine racetrack will return, preparations and plans for his barn will begin, and the pursuit of more victories will be at the forefront of Vella's thoughts.

But for now, even briefly, the chance to look back in time is a welcome distraction from the cold and snow.

“Sometimes I flip through pictures and wish I would have kept more photos of stakes races and things like that. When you look back at the photos of the horses, you remember the wins, but you also remember their personalities. It's great to look back and remember those moments. It really is very enjoyable.”

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The Minkster Takes On 13 Rookie Rivals In Saturday’s $250,000 Coronation Futurity

Fourteen hopefuls, including Dan Vella's charge The Minkster, are set to square-off in the $250,000 Coronation Futurity, which headlines a trio of stakes on Saturday at Woodbine.

The 1 1/8-mile Tapeta event for Canadian-foaled two-year-olds is a significant race on the road to the 163rd running of the Queen's Plate, the first jewel of the OLG Canadian Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing. The $125,000 Display Stakes, for two-year-olds, and the $125,000 Glorious Song Stakes, for two-year-year-old fillies, will go as races three and nine, respectively. Both are seven furlongs on the Tapeta.

Dan Vella, in search of his first Coronation Futurity crown, will send out The Minkster. The bay son of English Channel impressed in his career bow on October 2, a 6 ½-furlong sprint over the E.P. Taylor Turf Course.

Under David Moran, who will be in the irons again on Saturday, The Minkster, at 5-1, broke inward and bumped with a rival, but recovered to hold a slim lead along the backstretch. After forcing the pace from the rail on the turn, the colt took the lead in the stretch, widened his advantage down the lane and coasted home a 6 ¼-length winner.

The final time over good ground was 1:17.19.

“I was expecting a really big effort,” said Vella. “You never quite expect it to be that easy. That win was even easier than it looks on paper. He was pretty much geared down and ran green, but he's a very talented horse. I don't know what the limit is on him. I don't know if there is one. When they came back, David said that he still had a lot of horse. He said, 'Wait until he figures out how to run in a straight line.'”

Bred by Dr. Tan Hyka and owned by Sea Glass Stables LLC, The Minkster will now tackle a series of firsts, including two turns and a run over the Tapeta.

Vella, a lifetime winner of 858 races, is confident his juvenile, a $52,000 yearling purchase at the 2020 CTHS Ontario Sale, can handle the assignment.

“I couldn't ask him to get ready any better. He's very happy with the time between races. He's not a really big horse. He's very athletic, but he's not a giant. I was very happy to have the four weeks to get him ready to where I want him. We're ready and we're excited.

“I've had a few English Channels and they are late to mature mentally and physically. He matured a lot from that race, but he has a lot more to do. Very few English Channels reach their peak in the first race of their life. They get nothing but better with age and racing. He's got some learning to do yet, but he can run.”

Vella has similar high praise for his Glorious Song contender Marie MacKay.

The bay daughter of Noble Mission (GB), bred and owned by Donald Whalen and Track West Racing, took the Shady Well Stakes on October 8 at Woodbine.

“We're going to take a shot at the open company and seven-eights. She's a lovely filly. We don't know what her limits are. We haven't reached them. She has a load of talent. She's training super, so we're going to give it a go.”

Other Coronation Futurity starters include a trio of Mark Casse starters, Fast Feet, God of Love, and Lament, and three Kevin Attard trainees, Hidden Honor, Kiddie Holiday, and Laraque, as well as Stronger Together, trained by Sid Attard.

Stronger Together, a chestnut son of Liam's Map, has posted a pair of bronze medal finishes in his two career starts.

Bred by Jim Dandy Stable and owned by Spruce Park Stable, the colt's most recent effort came in the Cup & Saucer Stakes on October 10 at Woodbine.

With Justin Stein in the saddle, Stronger Together stumbled at the start of the 1 1/16-mile turf event, but was able to regroup and finish third, 2 ¾-lengths behind God of Love.

One race prior, the chestnut, steadied at the start of the 1 mile and 70-yard Tapeta race, then ninth and 12 lengths behind the leader at the half-mile junction, rallied to net the show award, only a neck behind the winner, Shamateur, at the wire.

“This is a very nice horse,” said Attard. “I thought he has run two very good races. He's doing very well coming into this race and hopefully he builds off those first two starts and has a big race.”

Ayrshire Lad won the first running of the Coronation Futurity in 1902. The late Avelino Gomez won four straight (1964-67) editions of the race, a feat duplicated by Sandy Hawley (1973-76). The last horse to notch the Futurity-Plate double was Norcliffe in 1975-76.

The 118th running of the Coronation Futurity is slated as race eight on Saturday's 11-race card. First post time is 12:55 p.m. Fans can also watch and wager on all the action via HPIbet.com and the Dark Horse Bets app.

$250,000 CORONATION FUTURITY

Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer

1 – J M R Best of Turf – Christopher Husbands – Steven Chircop

2 – Brutality – Daisuke Fukumoto – Michael De Paulo

3 – Dancin in Da'nile – Shaun Bridgmohan – Gail Cox

4 – Shamateur – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Michael Doyle

5 – Laraque – Eswan Flores – Kevin Attard

6 – God of Love – Rafael Hernandez – Mark Casse

7 – Mad Mocha – Sahin Civaci – Stuart Simon

8 – Kiddie Holiday – Antonio Gallardo – Kevin Attard

9 – The Minkster – David Moran – Dan Vella

10 – Fast Feet – Kazushi Kimura – Mark Casse

11 – Rum Cup – Patrick Husbands – Barbara Minshall

12 – Lament (S) – Gary Boulanger – Mark Casse

13 – Stronger Together – Justin Stein – Sid Attard

14 – Hidden Honor – Luis Contreras – Kevin Attard

$125,000 DISPLAY

Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer

1 – Ironstone – Ademar Santos – Willie Armata

2 – Heat Merchant – Gary Boulanger – Ralph Biamonte

3 – Optigogo – Kazushi Kimura – Eoin Harty

4 – Souper Legacy (S) – Patrick Husbands – Mark Casse

5 – Hicksy – Antonio Gallardo – Kevin Attard

6 – Twenty Four Mamba – Rafael Hernandez – Mark Casse

7 – Dancin in Da'nile – Shaun Bridgmohan – Gail Cox

$125,000 GLORIOUS SONG

Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer

1 – Aubrieta – Patrick Husbands – Mark Casse

2 – Chocolateaddiction – Luis Contreras – Josie Carroll

3 – Elegant Joy – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Eoin Harty

4 – Howdyoumakeurmoney – Antonio Gallardo – Michael Trombetta

5 – Fulminate – Patrick Husbands – Mark Casse

6 – Fifth Anniversary – Keveh Nicholls – Ricky Griffith

7 – Skylerville – Kazushi Kimura – Jonathan Thomas

8 – Marie MacKay – Justin Stein – Dan Vella

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Vella Pair Primed For Cup & Saucer Stakes Challenge Sunday At Woodbine

Trainer Dan Vella will send out the duo of Spring Mountain and Where's Neal in Sunday's $250,000 Cup & Saucer Stakes, at Woodbine.

A 1 1/16-mile event for Canadian-bred 2-year-olds run over the E.P. Taylor Turf Course, the Cup & Saucer has drawn 11 starters, including Spring Mountain, a son of Silent Name (JPN), and Where's Neal, a son of Society's Chairman. The Grade 3 $150,000 Durham Cup (1 1 /16-miles on the Tapeta), for three-year-olds and upwards, and the Grade 3 $150,000 Ontario Matron (also 1 1/16-miles on the Tapeta), for fillies & mares, three-year-olds and upwards, are also on tap.

Bred in Ontario by Linda Mason, Where's Neal heads into the Cup & Saucer off a maiden-breaking victory in the Bull Page Stakes, contested over one mile on the Inner Turf, on September 17. The gelding set the pace and crossed the line a three-quarters of a length winner in a time of 1:40.05 over firm ground.

Vella was surprised to see where Where's Neal began his Bull Page journey but pleased with how it concluded.

“I was a little worried after a few 100 yards when he ended up on the front end,” admitted Vella. “I really didn't want that. We were hoping to sit in behind the speed, but down the backside you could see that he was going pretty easily and he was kind of on cruise control, just going along nicely. Considering he did all the hard work and still got the job done we were very pleased. We'd much rather see him sit behind the pace a little bit rather than be on it, but it was what it was. They're just learning.”

Owned by Sea Glass LLC, Where's Neal debuted on August 29 in the Simcoe Stakes, a 6 ½-furlong Tapeta event, finishing second to Ironstone, who is set to contest the Shady Well Stakes on Saturday at Woodbine.

Spring Mountain has had two eventful starts to his career, including his career bow on September 2 at Woodbine, when he ducked out and then lugged in during the 6 ½-furlong race on the E.P. Taylor.

One race later, in the Bull Page, he hopped at the start before recovering to rally and net third spot in the race won by his stablemate.

“The hop, it wasn't much,” noted Vella, who co-owns the gelding with Stephan and Rita Shefsky, Willy and Toby Kruh, and Solomon Pillersdorf. “I don't think it was much of a problem. He did a little hop out of the gate… they're young horses, so those things happen. I think the sharper turn didn't help his chances. Without that sharp turn in the Cup & Saucer, I think he'll be much better.”

Vella, who has 856 career wins to date, saw promise in both horses early on.

“These two, you knew right from the start that they had potential. Where's Neal had the benefit of going to Florida. Mike Cooke had him down there for me and he told me that this was a pretty nice horse. We knew that. The horse came up here to Woodbine six weeks before I ran him the first time.

“Spring Mountain stayed here and he was out at CamHaven Farms all winter. Right from the start… big, strong horse and big stride. He does everything kind of aggressively. His mother [Moonlit Beauty] was a great horse. We bought him mostly on looks. He's just a big, good-looking horse.”

Do the young horses make the veteran trainer grow a few more grey hairs or keep him young?

“Is it possible they do both?” offered Vella. “You certainly look forward to going to work when you have nice horses. There's no doubt about that. But good horses are always a little more stress, that's for sure.”

Personality-wise, Spring Mountain and Where's Neal are polar opposites.

“They're very different animals. Spring Mountain is a big, strong, kind of coarser horse. He's a bit of a bull. Where's Neal is a more refined horse. Both are about the same size, good-sized horses. Where's Neal has a very easy-going attitude where he wants to do things right and Spring Mountain is more, 'Let's just go and we'll figure the rest out later.'”

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Other contenders include Dancin in Da'nile, a Sam-Son Farm homebred trained by Gail Cox.

The son of Pioneerof the Nile made his debut a winning one, eking out a neck victory in a seven-furlong Tapeta race originally scheduled for the turf.

“I thought his first start was very impressive,” praised Cox. “He was a little bit green, but really ran a very good race. I think he should take a step forward from that.”

Stronger Together, bred by Jim Dandy Stable and owned by Spruce Park Stable, heads into his second lifetime start and first stakes appearance off a third-place finish on September 5.

Sent off at 5-1 in the one mile and 70-yard Tapeta race, the son of Liam's Map, trained by Sid Attard, was steadied at the start finding himself 11 lengths behind the leader at the quarter-mile pole. Fifth at the stretch call, Stronger Together netted the show award, beaten just a neck for top spot.

“He's been doing really well,” said Attard, two wins shy of 2,100 for his career, as of October 6. “He came out of the gate slow, but he ran a huge race. I was very happy with how he recovered from that start and how hard he was running at the end of the race. He was really running hard. He's coming into this race in very good shape. He had a work last Sunday (October 3, five furlongs, 1:01.60, breezing) and he worked very, very good. He's doing very well ahead of this race. He's a very nice horse.”

Hall of Fame trainer Jim Day has won 10 editions of the Cup & Saucer, including seven straight runnings from 1984-1990.

The Cup & Saucer is slated as race eight on Sunday's 11-race card. First post time is 12:55 p.m. Fans can watch and wager on all the action via HPIbet.com and the Dark Horse Bets app.

$250,000 CUP & SAUCER STAKES

Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer

1 – Spring Mountain – Luis Contreras – Dan Vella

2 – God of Love – Rafael Hernandez – Mark Casse

3 – Hidden Honor – Antonio Gallardo – Kevin Attard

4 – Shamateur – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Michael Doyle

5 – Dancin in Da'nile – Shaun Bridgmohan – Gail Cox

6 – Mentoring – Keveh Nicholls – Philip Hall

7 – Stronger Together – Justin Stein – Sid Attard

8 – Fast Feet – Kazushi Kimura – Mark Casse

9 – Brutality (S) – Gary Boulanger – Michael De Paulo

10 – Where's Neal – David Moran – Dan Vella

11 – Chairman Bob – Patrick Husbands – Kevin Attard

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