Artie's Storm will chase his second straight graded victory when he goes postward in the $175,000 Autumn Stakes (G2), Sunday at Woodbine.
Trained and owned by Paul Buttigieg, the 5-year-old son of We Miss Artie-Stormy Now heads into the 1 1/16-mile race for 3-year-olds and up off a 1 ½-length win in the 1 1/16-mile Durham Cup (G3), a race that saw the dark bay best Algiers (IRE), who is set to run in Saturday's Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) at Santa Anita.
Champion rider Emma-Jayne Wilson, aboard for the Durham Cup win, has high praise for the multiple graded stakes-winning gelding.
“Artie is amazing, he really is,” said the multiple grade one-winning jockey. “My appreciation for Artie's Storm started years ago from the times competing against him. You appreciated him as a contender that came to play every time. You could never underestimate him. You know he's going to come running with everything he's got, every single time.”
Which is precisely what Artie's Storm proceeded to do last time out.
“I was confident that he was going to give us a really good effort,” said Wilson. “Rick [assistant trainer, Hayashi], in the leadup to post parade, and seeing Paul in the backstretch in the days up to the race, they shared that they had him in good order and ready to go. Before the race started, you could feel that he was set to give it his all. But at the same time, you are going up against top-notch competition. Everyone comes to play, and everyone is a top contender. You couldn't just focus on Algiers as the horse to beat. You need to know who the competition is, where to be positioned and being aware of how the race was unfolding.”
Wilson, a winner of 1,869 races, recalled the moment she felt they had a big shot to win the Durham Cup.
“When we tipped out and straightened, and got first jump on Algiers, who had to work really hard, I knew we were travelling a little handier than everyone else. There was that feeling of, 'Hey, I think we've got this.'”
With the win, Artie's Storm, tenth in last year's running of the Autumn, improved his record to 7-5-5 from 22 starts.
Bred in Ontario by Sunrise Farm, he debuted in October 2020 at Woodbine and finished third, a neck away from taking the top spot in the 5 ½-furlong Tapeta race. He broke his maiden next time out, June 20, in his 3-year-old debut, over seven furlongs on the main track. After a runner-up result in the Queenston Stakes, he was back in the winner's circle, notching a half-length score in a 1 1/16-mile turf race July 24.
Artie's Storm went 1-3-1 from seven starts in 2022, the runner-up efforts coming in three grade 3 events, the Dominion Day, Seagram Cup, and Durham Cup. He concluded that campaign with a third in the 1 1/16-mile Steady Growth Stakes on December 11.
This year, he's 2-0-1 from five starts.
“To make that connection, to be part of that team, to be able to ride him, it is special,” said Wilson, who won last year's Autumn with Who's the Star.
First post time is 1:05 p.m. Fans can also watch and wager on all the action via HPIbet.com, bet365 and the Dark Horse Bets app.
Field for the Autumn (G2)
Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer
1 – Tyson – Rafael Hernandez – Josie Carroll
2 – Luckman – Ryan Munger – Vito Armata
3 – Wolfie's Dynaghost (S) – Kazushi Kimura – Jonathan Thomas
4 – War Bomber (IRE) – Sahin Civaci – Norman McKnight
5 – Win for the Money – Patrick Husbands – Mark Casse
6 – Artie's Storm – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Paul Buttigieg
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