Marchfield explodes late to take Breeders'

Sunday's C$501,600

Breeders' S., the third leg of Canada's Triple Crown, was billed as the

decisive match between Queen's Plate S. winner Mike Fox (Giant's Causeway) and

Prince of Wales S. victor Alezzandro (High Yield), but neither came within

shouting distance of MARCHFIELD (A.P. Indy) in the final furlong of the grassy 1

1/2-mile contest at Woodbine. Only sixth in the Queen's Plate and fifth in the

Prince of Wales, the Melnyk Racing Stables homebred reveled in the surface

switch and emphatically turned the tables in his first try on the turf.

Regular rider Patrick Husbands settled Marchfield at the back of the pack in

the early going, far off the pressured pace scenario that was unfolding at the

head of affairs. Alezzandro, the 7-5 favorite, first vied with Ice Bear (Maria's

Mon) through splits of :24 1/5 and :48 2/5, but as soon as that rival was

dispatched, Walk with Kings (Monarchos) moved up to hound the leader. Alezzandro

continued to show the way, carving out fractions of 1:13 2/5, 1:38 1/5 and 2:03

3/5, but he began to tire from the effects of running the gauntlet and soon came

up empty in the drive.

In midstretch, the Todd Pletcher-trained Twilight Meteor (Smart Strike)

launched what briefly looked like a winning bid, storming 1 1/2 lengths clear,

but he too became a bit leg-weary late. Meanwhile, Marchfield, who was still

last turning for home, unleashed a lethal charge in the center of the course to

sail past Twilight Meteor and claim the 117th running of the Canadian classic.

The Mark Casse pupil ran out a convincing one-length winner in a final time of

2:29 2/5 on the firm turf. Dispatched as the 7-2 second choice, Marchfield

returned $9.30, $4.80 and $3.90.

Twilight Meteor, the 4-1 third choice, gave back $5.40 and $4.10 for his

commendable runner-up effort. Another 2 1/2 lengths back in third came 48-1

longshot It's Like This (Ascot Knight), yielding $10.90. The exactor totaled

$46.40, the triactor $709, and the 10-4-6-5 superfecta $6,096.10, with 19-1

longshot Walk with Kings in fourth. Mike Fox crossed the line three lengths

ahead of Alezzandro to finish fifth, followed by Top Speed (Chester House),

Storm the Castle (Smart Strike) and Ice Bear. It's a Danzig (Danzig) was

withdrawn.

Marchfield was winning for the first time since he broke his maiden over

Woodbine's Polytrack in May. Long well regarded, the bay had finished runner-up

in both the Coronation Futurity last November and the Plate Trial S. in June.

With this prestigious victory, he boosted his bankroll to $433,886 from his

9-2-4-0 line.

Bred in Ontario, Marchfield was produced by multiple Grade 3 turf queen Pico

Teneriffe (Red Ransom), who also placed in the Flower Bowl Invitational H. (G1)

and Frizette S. (G1). He has a pair of younger half-siblings, an unraced

juvenile filly named Enterprise Beach (El Prado [Ire]) and an unnamed yearling

colt by Speightstown.

On the Breeders' undercard, Bruno Brothers Farms' homebred MAIN EXECUTIVE

(Bold Executive) justified his 8-5 favoritism when holding on by a neck in the

C$126,200

Shepperton S.  Guided by Richard Dos Ramos, the A.R. Loney charge

dueled with his stablemate, and older half-brother, Cool Selection (War Deputy)

through splits of :23 2/5 and :46 3/5 and appeared to put him away in the

stretch.

Putting a new spin on sibling rivalry, however, the eight-year-old Cool

Selection kept chasing and managed to inject some suspense approaching the wire.

The five-year-old Main Executive did just enough to secure the victory, stopping

the teletimer in 1:16 3/5 for 6 1/2 furlongs on the Polytrack. The popular

winner paid $5.30, $3.50 and $2.90 while keying exotics worth $32.70 (exactor),

$214.70 (triactor) and $736 (4-6-3-1 superfecta).

The Ontario-bred gelding was bagging his third career stakes, following

tallies in the New Providence S. and Kennedy Road S. last season, and now sports

a mark of 19-9-2-4, $473,020. Out of the Smarten mare Dream Smartly, Main

Executive is a full brother to Blonde Executive, Canada's champion sprinter of

2004, and a half-brother to a yearling colt named Trajectory's Dream

(Trajectory) and a 2007 filly by Mobil.