Rafael Hernandez | Horse Racing Free Tips

The Beat Goes On: Shepperton Win Gives Pink Lloyd 21st Stakes Triumph

The incomparable Pink Lloyd deployed his usual tactics, powering past the competition in the stretch to add more hardware to his collection as he won the 45^th edition of the $100,000 Shepperton Stakes on Thursday at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario.

Winning his third Shepperton title, Pink Lloyd ties Paso Doble with the most wins in the main track stakes event, which has been run at a distance of 6 1/2 furlongs for all but two editions.

The Robert Tiller trainee also won this race in 2017 and 2019, and finished third in 2018. Paso Doble took the 2011, 2013 and 2014 events.

Carrying a field height weight of 128 pounds, Canada's reigning three-time Champion Male Sprinter stalked the leaders along the rail before jockey Rafael Hernandez maneuvered him outside in the stretch and took off.

Stopping the clocked in 1:16.44 nearly two lengths in front, Pink Lloyd paid $2.60 to win as the overwhelming 1-9 favorite in the six-horse field. There was no place or show wagering.

Early trailer Silent Jimmie chased the champion home and got up for second just ahead of the front-runners, Dun Drum and Not So Quiet, who had set fractions of :23.25 and :45.88. Magical Man and Souper Success completed the order of finish.

“He's got the heart and desire to be probably the best sprinter in Canada the last 50 years,” said Tiller, who has won the Shepperton a record six times for a trainer. “He is amazing. He was in trouble all the way. We got the box trip with the one-hole, and it worked out well. Rafii waited and waited.”

“We're very proud of him and I love him dearly,” said the Hall of Fame horseman.

Bred by John Carey and owned by Entourage Stable, the 8-year-old Ontario-bred son of Old Forester now boasts 24 career wins from 29 starts and is approaching the $2 million mark in career earnings.

A 21-time stakes winner, Pink Lloyd previously put together an 11-race win streak in stakes action, beginning at the start of his 2017 Horse of the Year campaign. Pink Lloyd's current streak is now at eight after going six-for-six in 2019 and winning a record fourth Grade 3 Jacques Cartier Stakes in his season's debut on June 25.

“Last time, he gave me a little hard time – he had to work hard to get there – but after the race, I told Bob, 'Now he's ready 100 per cent,'” said Hernandez. “He showed up today. He just broke out of the gate, sat behind good and he just did the best thing he knows how to do… he just switched the lead in the stretch and 'let's go.'

“He knows how to do it, he knows how to win.”

And so does Hernandez, who is the leading rider at the 2020 Woodbine meet and won half of Thursday's eight races.

Live Thoroughbred racing continues, without spectators, on Friday at Woodbine Racetrack. Post time for the first of eight races is set for 1 p.m.

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Rafael Hernandez Rides Five Winners, Sweeps Queenston, Eclipse Stakes At Woodbine

Leading jockey Rafael Hernandez swept the back-to-back stakes features as part of a five-win performance on Saturday at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario, with Halo Again a popular winner in $125,000 Queenston Stakes and Skywire pulling off a 17-1 upset in the $175,000 Eclipse (Grade 2).

Returning to the scene of his 2019 Coronation Futurity victory, Steve Asmussen trainee Halo Again delivered another winning performance on the road to The Queen's Plate (September 12), prevailing in the 65th edition of the $125,000 Queenston Stakes on Saturday afternoon.

With Hernandez aboard in the seven-furlong sprint for Canadian-foaled 3-year-olds, Halo Again pressed the pace three-wide through panels of :23.35 and :46.29 before eventually switching leads down the lane and drawing clear for the victory in 1:23.63.

Halo Again paid $4.70 to win as the 6-5 favorite. Golden Wave, who emerged along the rail with a short lead after the first quarter, stayed for second finishing 1 1/4 lengths behind, while Glorious Tribute headed See Forever for third another three lengths back. Dotted Line, Tecumseh's War, Deviant, Perfect Revenge and Ennis the Menace competed the order of finish.

“The main thing was putting him in a good position,” said Hernandez, noting the colt has matured since his juvenile campaign. “It was clear all the way. We've got a long backstretch. So he just broke good, kept him comfortable, clear and he did the rest. Turning for home, he switched leads. He's a big horse, he's got a nice heart, good stride. He's does everything good.”

After going two-for-two last year for owners Winchell Thoroughbreds and Willis Horton Racing, Halo Again was assessed as the 8-1 fourth choice in the 2020 Queen's Plate Winterbook. He opened his sophomore season in a pair of Grade 3 stakes events stateside, finishing eighth in the Lecomte in January and fourth in the Grade 3 Jeff Ruby Steaks last time out on March 14.

Bred by Anderson Farms Ont. Inc., the son of Speightstown and Halo's Verse was a $600,000 yearling purchase at the Keeneland sale. He is a half-brother to 2017 Wonder Where Stakes champion Inflexibility (by Scat Daddy), who was a top three finisher in both the Woodbine Oaks and Queen's Plate.

The most recent winner of both the Queenston Stakes and the Queen's Plate in the same year was Not Bourbon in 2008 for Hall of Fame trainer Roger Attfield, who also campaigned Norcliffe — the last horse to complete the rare Coronation Futurity and Queen's Plate double in 1976.

Skywire put Hernandez back in the stakes spotlight one race later as he hauled down the popular Josie Carroll trainees, Avie's Flatter and Mr Ritz, to spring a 17-1 surprise in the $175,000 Eclipse Stakes (Grade 2).

The Mark Casse trainee, who was the beaten favorite in last year's Queen's Plate, earned his first win since taking the Wando Stakes in April 2019 for owners Gary Barber and Lou Tucci.

Racing near the back the entire way while tracking Avie's Flatter along the rail, Skywire followed that foe wide turning for home in the 1-1/16-mile affair for older horses then hauled down the late leader in the stretch for the victory in 1:44.12.

The winner's stablemate, Uncle Bull, had set fractions of :25.16, :48.32 and 1:12.17 to three-quarters with 3-5 favourite Mr Ritz pressing the pace and Avie's Flatter stalking inside. Avie's Flatter tipped out three-wide on the final turn and took command in the stretch before Skywire came flying late on the far outside to finish 1-1/4 lengths in front. Mr Ritz held third while Journeyman, Uncle Bull, Solidify and Cooler Mike rounded out the field.

Overlooked by the betting public at 17-1, Skywire returned $36.10 to his backers while notching his fourth career win from 10 starts.

“You can't worry about [the odds] when you've got Casse in the race. He put him in there because he knows he belongs and he showed up,” said Hernandez, who noted the race set up perfectly as he was able to track Avie's Flatter the whole way while two horses set a good pace on the lead. “As soon as I put him clear, he just turned on and kept going.”

Bred in Ontario by William Graham, the 4-year-old Afleet Alex–Meandering Stream gelding helped Casse to successive scores in the Eclipse. Casse won this race in 2019 with Souper Tapit. He also trained the 2006 winner Arch Hall.

Hernandez, who concluded the 10-race card with five wins, picked up his second Eclipse title having also guided the Attfield-trained Are You Kidding Me to victory in the 2018 edition.

Live Thoroughbred racing continues, without spectators, on Sunday afternoon with a star-studded Fury Stakes for 3-year-old Canadian-foaled fillies headlining the 11-race card. Post time for the first race is 1 p.m., with the $125,000 seven-furlong stakes feature scheduled as the ninth race.

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‘He Knows How To Win’: Pink Lloyd Wins 20th Stakes In 8-Year-Old Debut

Canada's reigning three-time Champion Male Sprinter Pink Lloyd kicked off his eight-year-old campaign with a record fourth straight victory in the $125,000 Jacques Cartier Stakes and recorded his 20th stakes win overall on Thursday at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Jockey Rafael Hernandez, who partnered with Pink Lloyd for his previous 1:08.05 track record victory in the 2018 edition of the Jacques Cartier, was reunited with the chestnut gelding for the 67th running of the Grade 3 six-furlong sprint.

Pink Lloyd, carrying 124 pounds, stalked three-wide just off the lead through fractions of :22.23 and :44.53 before taking over command down the stretch to score by two lengths in 1:09.61. Malibu Secret finished second off a ground-saving trip ahead of Not So Quiet while pacesetter Circle of Friends completed the finish order in the compact field of four.

“He broke well, he did his thing,” said Hernandez. “He's older, he knows how to win. He can come from anywhere, he just does his thing. He showed up today. He's one of the best, he does his job. He don't give up, never.”

Hernandez, who has competed against Pink Lloyd in 20 prior starts, noted it was nice to be aboard for the win instead of chasing the revered Old Forester gelding.

“That's right, you know how many times I've tried to figure out how I can put my horse in different positions to try to beat him,” said Hernandez. “The only way I can [win] is when I'm on him.”

Bred in Ontario by John Carey, Pink Lloyd now boasts 23 wins from 28 starts lifetime with his purse earnings soaring over $1.8 million for his Entourage Stable ownership group.

Hall of Famer Robert Tiller's beloved trainee now counts the Jacques Cartier grand slam among his impressive list of accomplishments.

“This is one of the greatest sprinters that's ever raced in Canada and I think his record speaks for itself,” said Tiller of the six-time Sovereign Award winner, who was named Canada's Horse of the Year in 2017. “He really has a lot of heart, a lot of desire. He wants to do it, he loves winning and I don't know if there will ever be another one like him… not for me, that's for sure.

“A lot of hard work at the barn, there's a lot of details that go along with him. But when you're standing here like this, it all works out. He's such a champion, such a sweetheart and I love him dearly.”

Sent postward as the overwhelming 1-5 favourite, Pink Lloyd paid just $2.50 for a $2 win ticket. There was no place or show wagering.

The field was reduced to just four starters with Dixie's Gamble scratched, making it one of the smallest fields that Pink Lloyd has faced.

Often scaring away the competition, he's conquered small four-horse fields on three other occasions but has successfully competed in a field as big as 12 horses when winning last year's Jacques Cartier Stakes. His initial Jacques Cartier win in 2017 was his first stakes victory and the start of an unprecedented 11-race win streak.

Essence Hit Man won three consecutive editions of the Jacques Cartier Stakes from 2011-2013.

Live Thoroughbred racing continues, without spectators, on Friday afternoon. Post time for the seven-race program is 1 p.m.

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Canadian Hall Of Famer Tiller Saddles 2,000th Career Winner

Canadian Hall of Fame horseman Robert Tiller celebrated a career milestone on Friday afternoon at Woodbine Racetrack near Toronto, Ontario, as he earned his 2,000th training win when Have a Souper Day crossed the wire on top in the seventh race.

With Rafael Hernandez aboard, the Tiller-owned 3-year-old Have a Souper Day ($2.90) wired the field of six for his first career win, clocking seven furlongs in 1:24.62. The Souper Speedy gelding prevailed by 1 3/4 lengths over first-time starter Beyond the Budget and Valuable Pillow.

Woodbine Entertainment made a special winner's circle presentation to Tiller following social distancing protocols currently in place because of the coronavirus pandemic.

“It's a great honor,” said Tiller, 70, of the milestone moment. “It's been a lot of years. The biggest thing I like about this is most of these starts were right here at home at Woodbine because I don't winter-race usually. I've been training [since the 1970s] and 2,000 wins is a wonderful honor. I just wanted to get it out of the way and I'm very, very honored and pleased.”

The multiple graded stakes winning trainer won his first race in 1972 courtesy of Royal Greek Ship and has since campaigned winners of more than $66.6 million in purse earnings. He has earned three Sovereign Awards as Canada's Outstanding Trainer (2001, 2003 and 2004) and the highest achievement in the sport as a 2008 inductee in the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame.

Tiller still manages a 45-horse stable that includes Canada's top sprinter Pink Lloyd, who will make his season's debut in Thursday's $125,000 Jacques Cartier Stakes (Grade 3) at Woodbine.

Live Thoroughbred racing continues at Woodbine without spectators on Saturday afternoon. First race post time is 1 p.m.

Feature on Robert Tiller.

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