Joshua Tree wins another Canadian International

Two years ago, a three-year-old colt by the name of Joshua Tree shipped to Woodbine and pulled off a mild upset in the prestigious Pattison Canadian International (Can-I). Last year, he made a return trip and finished a strong second. Last Sunday, he made a third trip, and at odds of 4.35-1, held off a late run from Dandino to win the twelve-furlong turf by a half-length.

Ridden to victory by Frankie Dettori, Joshua Tree bounded out of the starting gate and quickly took command of the lead, rattling off very slow fractions of :25.51, :51.59, and 1:17.17 while being tracked by Air Support. Lay Time and Imperial Monarch were also fairly close to the pace, while Dandino, Forte Dei Marmi, and Prince Will I Am were content to race in mid-pack. Scalo, Reliable Man, and Wigmore Hall were the early trailers.

Entering the final quarter mile, Dettori asked Joshua Tree for his run, and the colt responded with a burst of acceleration that carried him to a two-length lead passing the eighth pole. Dandino put in a terrific late run on the far outside to loom a serious threat, but Joshua Tree found just enough left to hang on for a narrow victory, stopping the clock in 2:30.89 seconds over a course labeled good.

Forte Dei Marmi ran well to secure third, beaten just a length, while Wigmore Hall, Air Support, Imperial Monarch, Scalo, Reliable Man, Prince Will I Am, and Lay Time completed the order of finish.

The winner is trained by Marco Botti.

-Keelerman

Canadian International Entries: Imperial Monarch favored in deep field

Juddmonte Grand Prix de Paris (Fr-I) winner Imperial Monarch, 2011 Prix de Jockey Club (Fr-I) winner Reliable Man, 2010 Canadian Internaional (Can-I) winner Joshua Tree, and two-time Northern Dancer Stakes (gr. I) Wigmore Hall are among the leading contenders entered in Woodbine's $1,500,000 Pattison Canadian International (Can-I), which will be run on Sunday.

Leading American hopefuls in the twelve-furlong turf race include Al Khali, runner-up last time out to Wigmore Hall in the Northern Dancer Stakes, and Air Support, winner of the Bowling Green Handicap (gr. II) most recently. Prince Will I Am, winner of the Jamaica Handicap (gr. I) in 2010, will be attempting to pick up his first victory since February 2011.

PP	Horse	Weight	Jockey	Trainer	M. L. Odds
1	Lay Time	123	Jimmy Fortune	Andrew Balding	20-1
2	Dandino	126	Jim Crowley	J. R. Fanshawe	8-1
3	Forte Dei Marmi	126	John Velazquez	Roger Attfield	15-1
4	Scalo	126	Andrasch Starke	A. Woehler	12-1
5	Prince Will I Am	126	Ramon Dominguez	Michelle Nehei	20-1
6	Wigmore Hall	126	Jamie Spencer	Michael Bell	6-1
7	Reliable Man	126	Olivier Peslier	Alain De Royer-Dupre	4-1
8	Joshua Tree	126	Frankie Dettori	Marco Botti	5-1
9	Al Khali	126	Garrett Gomez	Bill Mott	10-1
10	Imperial Monarch	119	Ryan Moore	Aidan O'Brien	3-1
11	Air Support	126	Javier Castellano	Claude McGaughey, III	10-1

-Keelerman

Wigmore Hall Repeats in the Northern Dancer Stakes

Last year, Wigmore Hall shipped to the United States from Europe to contest a pair of prestigious grade I races in North American -- the Arlington Million and the Northern Dancer Stakes. While he could only manage a fourth-place finish in the first-mentioned race, he rebounded in good fashion to win the Northern Dancer by a neck. This year, Wigmore Hall's American campaign has been very similar -- following up a seventh-place finish in the Arlington Million with a repeat victory in the Northern Dancer, once again winning by a neck.

With jockey Jamie Spencer aboard, Wigmore Hall did not get off to a very good start, coming out of the gate a step slowly before settling into the seventh position early on. In the meantime, Irish Mission and Celtic Conviction exchange the lead through slow fractions of :24.85, :50.15, and 1:14.83 seconds. Scalo, Ojibway Signal, and Al Khali were racing in mid-pack, followed by Musketier, Wigmore Hall, and Forte Dei Marmi.

Rounding the far turn, Irish Mission made a bold run to take command and passed the quarter pole with a one-length lead. But Al Khali and Wigmore Hall were charging as a pair on the outside, and the pair soon over the top spots while dueling with each other for the victory. Passing the eighth pole it was Al Khali on top by a head, but Wigmore Hall was able to wear him down late to win the race in gritty fashion, stopping the clock for the twelve furlongs on turf in 2:28.28.

Forte Dei Marmi put in a good late run to finish third, followed by Scalo, Irish Mission, Musketier, Ojibway Signal, and Celtic Conviction.

The winner is a gelded son of High Chaparral out of the Theatrical mare Love And Laughter. Trained by Michael Bell and owned by Mark B. Hawtin, Wigmore Hall has compiled a record a 7-4-3 from 27 starts with earnings of $1,952,744.

-Keelerman

Northern Dancer Stakes Entries and Post Positions

Here are the entries and post positions for the $500,000 Northern Dancer Stakes Presented by Vtech (Can-I), to be run on Sunday at Woodbine. The prestigious twelve-furlong turf race has drawn a spectacular field of eight, including group I winner Scalo, Sky Classic Stakes (Can-II) winner Forte Dei Marmi, seven time grade/group stakes winner Musketier, 2011 Northern Dancer Stakes winner Wigmore Hall, Breeders' Stakes winner Irish Mission, and the consistent grade I-placed Al Khali.

1 Celtic Conviction
2 Ojibway Signal
3 Al Khali
4 Scalo
5 Forte Dei Marmi
6 Musketier
7 Wigmore Hall
8 Irish Mission

-Keelerman