Casse Earns 12th Woodbine Training Title

Mark Casse topped the Woodbine trainers leaderboard for the 12th time with 93 wins during the abbreviated 2020 meet. Beginning June 6, the meet was originally scheduled to conclude Dec. 13, but was forced to end early Nov. 22 due to a government-mandated lockdown for the region of Ontario due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The jockeys’ race went right down to the wire with Rafael Hernandez edging out Justin Stein. It was the first riding title at Woodbine for Hernandez, who racked up 129 wins.

Barber was the leading money-winning owner of the meet with more than $1.56 million in purses followed by Stronach Stables ($1.24 million) and Live Oak Plantation ($1.14 million). Meanwhile, Bruno Schickedanz topped the win column with 35 successful starters, followed by Barber’s 17 victories.

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Uncle Mo’s Envoutante All by Herself in Falls City

Envoutante added to a big year for both her trainer and sire, turning in a dominant front-running performance under the Twin Spires Thursday. Wasting no time seizing the early advantage from her rail post, the dark bay doled out opening splits of :24.25 and :48.95. She shut the door on her competition heading for home, and cantered clear from there to assert her superiority. Odds-on Bonny South, who took the GII Fair Grounds Oaks earlier this term and was most recently second to Envoutante’s stablemate Swiss Skydiver (Daredevil) in the GI Alabama S. before a narrow second in the GII Black-Eyed Susan S. Oct. 3, again had to settle for second best at odds-on.

“It was my first time on her for a race, but I’ve worked her and worked against her before, too, with Swiss Skydiver,” noted winning pilot Brian Hernandez, Jr. “She really kicked away from the field today and was very dominant. At the three-eighths pole I got her into the bit again and she just kicked away. Riding for [trainer] Kenny [McPeek] is easy and he didn’t really give a lot of instructions. When the gates opened, she put herself into a great spot.”

Envoutante was a romping third-out graduate at Gulfstream in April, and took a local allowance two starts later May 29. She was third in Keeneland’s GI Ashland S. July 11, and fourth in the Aug. 15 Alabama. She made the grade in the Sept. 27 GIII Remington Park Oaks, scoring from off the pace as a heavy favorite.

“She was one-for-one at Churchill coming into this race,” said McPeek, who has also been represented this year by a granddaughter of Envoutante’s sire Uncle Mo in GI Darley Alcibiades S. romper Simply Ravishing (Laoban). “We were very confident by the way she was working in the mornings and hoping she was going to put it together in the afternoon. She’s worked against Swiss Skydiver and has really done well in her training. She’s done a lot of traveling this year and got her graded stakes win in the Remington Oaks so winning another one was very special.”

Thursday, Churchill Downs
FALLS CITY S.-GII, $200,000, Churchill Downs, 11-26, 3yo/up, f/m, 1 1/8m, 1:49.11, ft.
1–ENVOUTANTE, 118, f, 3, by Uncle Mo
                1st Dam: Enchante (MSP, $154,172), by Bluegrass Cat
                2nd Dam: Wear, by Arch
                3rd Dam: Abrade, by Mr. Prospector
($250,000 Ylg ’18 KEESEP). O-Walking L Thoroughbreds, LLC &
Three Chimneys Farm; B-Jumping Jack Racing LLC (KY);
T-Kenneth G. McPeek; J-Brian Joseph Hernandez, Jr. $120,280.
Lifetime Record: GISP, 9-4-1-2, $336,028. Werk Nick Rating: A.
   Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Bonny South, 120, f, 3, Munnings–Touch the Star, by Tapit.
O/B-Juddmonte Farms Inc (KY); T-Brad H. Cox. $38,800.
3–Another Broad, 121, m, 5, Include–Dynamic Deputy, by
Deputy Minister. ($340,000 4yo ’19 KEENOV). O-Farfellow
Farm, Ltd.; B-Fitzhugh, LLC (MD); T-Steven M. Asmussen.
$19,400.
Margins: 6, 3HF, HD. Odds: 2.60, 0.80, 24.70.
Also Ran: Our Super Freak, Smooth With a Kick, Over Thinking, Market Rumor, Cash Out. Scratched: High Regard. Click for the Equibase.com chart, the TJCIS.com PPs or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

Pedigree Notes:
Envoutante is one of 14 graded stakes winners this year–tops in North America–for Coolmore’s Uncle Mo. She is one of six graded winners out of Bluegrass Cat mares. Dam Enchante was a hard-knocking MSP sprinter and hails from the female family of Forty Niner. She has an unraced 2-year-old filly named Marla (Frosted) and a yearling colt by Classic Empire. Enchante was bred to Uncle Mo’s son Nyquist for 2021.

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Woodbine Meet Officially Over

While attempts were made to reach an agreement with the Ontario government to continue racing despite a mandatory 28-day lockdown of Toronto and its suburbs, Woodbine Entertainment announced Thursday that the track’s 2020 Thoroughbred meet was officially over.

“While I am extremely disappointed we are not able to complete the 2020 Thoroughbred meet, what we achieved this year in face of significant adversity is quite remarkable,” said Jim Lawson, CEO, Woodbine Entertainment. “I have been around horse racing my entire life and I can proudly say that I have never seen the industry come together as it did throughout this year.

“Together, we were able to develop, implement and follow strict COVID-19 Prevention Protocols that allowed us to be the first sport to return to competition in Canada since the shutdowns in March,” said Lawson. “We safely resumed racing in early June and ran almost 100 racing cards, more than 900 races, and the majority of our stakes schedule, including the 161st running of The Queen’s Plate.

“We hope the Government of Ontario has gained a better understanding of our business and appreciation of our safety record in operating live racing without spectators.”

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Woodbine Issues Statement on Sports Betting

Woodbine Entertainment issued the following statement Thursday:

In response to the Federal Government introducing a Bill that proposes to legalize single event sports wagering in Canada, Woodbine Entertainment would like to congratulate the Government of Canada for considering the potential impacts to the horse racing industry.

While the proposed Bill to Amend the Criminal Code would permit single event sports betting on most sports, Woodbine Entertainment is pleased that under the new proposed legislation, fixed odds wagering will not be permitted on horse racing.

“On behalf of the entire horse racing industry and the more than 50,000 jobs it represents throughout Canada, I would like to congratulate the Government of Canada and Minister Lametti for clearly considering the interests of horse racing as related to the potential legalization of single event sports wagering,” said Jim Lawson, CEO, Woodbine Entertainment.

“We look forward to continuing to represent the views of the horse racing industry throughout the legislative process in the House of Commons and the Senate of Canada to ensure that our role continues to be supported and strengthened where possible,” said Lawson. “This includes collaborating with the Federal and Provincial Government in future discussions regarding the impacts sports betting may have on horse racing while looking to enhance opportunities that would benefit the industry and the tens of thousands of people it employs.”

Woodbine Entertainment also offered its support for the legalization of fixed odds single event sports betting so long as it is provided an opportunity to be involved in a meaningful way.

“For many decades, Woodbine Entertainment has legally operated single event wagering through a pari-mutuel model, earning the trust of bettors and government agencies, while developing safe and secure technologies that could also benefit single event sports wagering,” said Lawson. “Throughout our future discussions with government authorities, we look forward to demonstrating how we can play a meaningful role in the execution of the legalization of sports betting that leverages our industry-leading experience and technology in single event wagering, while also offering a solution that would ensure any profits derived from sports betting remain in our economy.”

Operating without share capital, Woodbine Entertainment’s sole mission as an organization is to sustain the Ontario horse racing industry and the tens of thousands of jobs it supports.

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