justin stein | Horse Racing Free Tips

Silent Poet Dashes To Victory In Highlander Stakes At Woodbine

Trying Grade 1 stakes company for the first time, Caravel darted out to the lead early in the Highlander Stakes, but Silent Poet was fastest at the end in the last of the stakes races on the Queen's Plate card at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. The Stronach Stables 6-year-old gelding hung back in third for the first five furlongs of the six-furlong Highlander and took over the lead in the stretch to find the wire first and get his first Grade 1 victory.

Chuck Willis was fastest out of the gate, but Caravel, fresh off her Grade 3 win in the Caress at Saratoga, took over in the first quarter of the Highlander, leaving Chuck Willis in second on the rail and Silent Poet in third on her outside. The filly held on to the lead through early fractions of :22.35 for the first quarter and :45.16 for the half-mile, but, as the field hit the top of the stretch, Silent Poet kicked into gear, passing the filly to take the lead with Admiralty Pier out toward the middle of the track mounting his challenge. At the wire, Silent Poet was a half-length in front, with Admiralty Pier passing Caravel for second, the filly holding off City Boy for third. Honey Won't, Chuck Willis, Old Chestnut, and Turned Aside rounded out the field.

The final time for the six furlongs over a firm E.P. Taylor turf course was 1.07.98. Find this race's chart here.

Silent Poet paid $21.90, $9.80, and $4.70. Admiralty Pier paid $9.60 and $5.20. Caravel paid $2.10.

Bred in Ontario by Adena Springs, Silent Poet is by Silent Name, sired by Sunday Silence, out of the unraced mare Cara Bella, by Ghostzapper. Trained by Nicholas Gonzalez, he was ridden by Justin Stein. The G1 Highlander is Silent Poet's first win in three starts in 2021 for a lifetime record of 11 wins in 21 starts.

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Munnyfor Ro Best In Woodbine Oaks

Munnyfor Ro, under a patient ride from Justin Stein, took the 66th running of the $500,000 Woodbine Oaks presented by Budweiser Sunday at Woodbine Race Track in Toronto, Ontario.

Trained by Kevin Attard for Raroma Stable Inc., Munnyfor Ro was the last to load in the first leg of the Triple Tiara for Canadian-bred 3-year-old fillies, but was first when it counted most, perhaps setting herself up for a shot at Queen's Plate glory on August 22.

It was Lorena, undefeated in three starts coming into the Oaks, who was put on the front end by Gary Boulanger. Emmeline, under Emma-Jayne Wilson, settled into second, with Miss Marie and Il Malocchio racing side-by-side just off the leaders.

After a quarter-mile in :24.35, Lorena was still in command as Emmeline, to her outside, remained squarely in contention. Munnyfor Ro, with Justin Stein aboard, was cruising comfortably in the eighth spot, and was still there after a half-mile clocked in :48.41.

As the field began to envelop Lorena, Stein and Munnyfor Ro, sixth after three-quarters in 1:12.35, began to pick off their rivals one-by-one and were full of run around the turn for home. At the stretch call, the pair was a half-length ahead of a determined Emmeline, who continued to fight on along the rail.

At the wire, Munnyfor Ro was a 1 ¼-length winner. Emmeline stayed on for second, a nose ahead of Il Malocchio, with 85-1 Youens taking fourth. The final time was 1:50.31.

Munnyfor Ro, the 3-1 third choice, returned $8.70 for the win.

“I was told the key with her is to have her settled,” noted Stein. “The pace… it looked like there was probably some possibility of them stopping, which we didn't want to be in behind them. I put her in a spot that we could tip out in the turn when it came time to ask her to run from the quarter-pole home. We had a dream trip; worked out perfect.”

It was an Oaks first for Attard and a second for Stein, who teamed with Academic to take the 2015 running.

“We were expecting a good performance out of her,” said Attard. “She came up here this season in good shape from [trainer] Brian Lynch – had a great campaign over the wintertime. She ran a fabulous race [second] in the [Grade 3] Selene. I thought she'd move off that race forwardly enough to kind of be really competitive here today. Had a good interim breeze and put it all together.”

For owner Rajendra Maharajh, it was a perfect day from start to finish.

“My good buddy Art Fisher from Ocala picked her out for me,” said Maharajh, who named the horse for his son 'Ro.' “She came up here [last year] and ran two races. She was a little immature at the time. We sent her down to Florida and gave her the winter off and then with COVID, my other trainer, Brian Lynch, took her over and prepped her up and we were always planning for this race. Brian did a fabulous job getting her ready and then she came over just about a month ago and Kevin did the final touches on her and he did a fabulous job.”

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The Oaks win wasn't the only icing on the cake.

“It's just a wonderful story and today's my mom's 80th birthday,” shared Maharajh. “Everybody is here with us, so it's a family day and a lovely day.”

The decision to run Munnyfor Ro, now 2-2-2 from nine starts, in the $1 million Queen's Plate, will be made by the filly's connections in the coming days.

“These are the races you want to win growing up as a kid here in Ontario,” said Attard. “With Woodbine my home, the Oaks and the Plate are obviously those pinnacle races for those 3-year-olds – just really happy and satisfied to get it done today.

“A mile and a quarter is going to be her trip; I'm not worried about the distance. We'll see how she comes out of the race and then we're going to have to sit down and talk, and see if supplementing her is the next move.”

The Woodbine Oaks has served as a Queen's Plate stepping-stone for fillies. Oaks-Plate champions include Holy Helena (2017), Lexie Lou (2014), Inglorious (2011), and Dancethruthedawn (2001). In 2018, Oaks runner-up Wonder Gadot went on to win the Queen's Plate.

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Amalfi Coast Nips Jeanie B At Wire To Win Royal North

Riding the rail throughout much of the six-furlong Grade 2 Royal North, Amalfi Coast dug in and nipped Jeanie B at the wire, the margin of victory a nose in a photo finish at Woodbine Race Track in Toronto, Ontario.

Hanging out mid-pack throughout much of the race, Justin Stein kept Amalfi Coast steady behind front runners Sister Peacock and Jeanie B until the field of eight hit the stretch on the E. P. Taylor Turf Course at Woodbine. In the straight, Jeanie B took over the lead, with the favorite Change of Control sprinting on her outside. Stein and Amalfi Coast made their big run on the inside, steadily shortening Jeanie B's advantage in the last sixteenth of a mile. At the wire, the two seemed to be on even terms, a photo deciding the winner. In only her second start of 2021, Amalfi Coast gets her first win of the year in the G2 Royal North, with Jeanie B second and Change of Control third.

The final time for the six-furlong turf stakes was 1:09.15. Lady Grace, Fairywren, Sister Peacock, Lead Guitar, and Jeannie's Beepbeep rounded out the field.

Find this race's chart here.

Amalfi Coast paid $9.60, $6.30, and $2.60. Jeanie B paid $7.30 and $3.10. Change of Control paid $2.10. Wagers on Lead Guitar, who broke awkwardly and was never a factor, were refunded after the stewards declared that she did not get a fair start.

Bred in Ontario by Terra Farms, Amalfi Coast is by Tapizar out of Include Katherine, by Include. The 5-year-old mare was third in the Grade 3 Whimsical Stakes last out, with her win in the G2 Royal North improving her to 1-0-1 in 2021 and 6-2-3 in 15 lifetime starts for career earnings of $480,367.

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Outadore Rallies To Win Woodstock Stakes At Woodbine

Jockey Justin Stein doubled up in this weekend's stakes action at Woodbine when the Wesley Ward-trained Outadore rallied to victory in the $125,000 Woodstock Stakes for three-year-olds on Sunday afternoon.

“I'm just fortunate to be on the right horse on the right day,” said Stein, who also won the first stakes of the meet on Saturday, with Star Shoot winner Can't Buy Love for conditioner Michael Trombetta.

In the Woodstock, Stein had Outadore positioned mid-pack before sending the Outwork colt three-wide into contention on the turn and kicking clear down the lane to win in 1:09.77 over six furlongs on the Tapeta.

Outadore paid $5.90 to win as the slight second choice to Jaxon Traveler, who appeared on the lead briefly at the start and finished 1-1/4 lengths behind the winner in second. Ward also picked up third money with Chasing Artie closing from the back under Kazushi Kimura. They were followed by Sky's Not Falling, Master Spy, Derzkii, and pacesetter Saturday George (:23.21, :45.82).

“He broke sharp, he broke hard, but we were out-run, out-footed early,” said Stein. “He settled into stride in behind and when I called on him, he really kicked. He dug in, he's a runner. He's a nice horse.”

Following up a victory in the Animal Kingdom Stakes in late March at Turfway Park, Outadore is now two-for-two to start his sophomore season. Owned by Breeze Easy LLC, the Kentucky-bred gave way to finish third in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf last year and now has four wins from six career starts and more than a half-million dollars in purse earnings.

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