Palladio reigns supreme in Eclipse

Monday's $138,404

Eclipse S.

(Can-G3) at Woodbine featured no fewer than four Sovereign Award winners,

but Haras Santa Maria de Araras' homebred PALLADIO (Lycius) made his fellow

champions look ordinary as he unleashed an electrifying move on the far turn.

The Roger Attfield charge swept to the front beneath Richard Dos Ramos and

maintained his blistering speed through the stretch, setting a new track record

of 1:43.07 for 1 1/16 miles on the Polytrack while drawing 2 1/2 lengths clear.

In the process, Palladio ended a frustrating losing skid that dated back to the

fall of 2005, the year he was honored as Canada's champion three-year-old colt.

Palladio loped along toward the rear in the early going as Just Rushing (Wild

Rush) and three-time Canadian champion Judiths Wild Rush (Wild Rush) battled for

the lead. Just Rushing had his head in front through an opening quarter in :24

1/5, but Judiths Wild Rush commandeered a half-length margin through splits of

:48 2/5 and 1:12 4/5. Meanwhile, Palladio had commenced his sweeping move. The

five-year-old bay took control turning for home, and none of his rivals could

muster a response to his lethal surge. Sent off as the nearly 9-1 fifth choice

in a field of seven, Palladio returned $19.70, $8.30 and $4.70.

Judiths Wild Rush stayed on gamely to earn runner-up honors by 1 1/4 lengths,

giving back $9.30 and $4.70 at odds approaching 12-1. True Metropolitan (Proud

and True), Canada's reigning champion older male, was caught in traffic on the

far turn but didn't find much once in the clear. The 9-5 favorite furnished

$3.30 to show. The exotics were worth $179.70 (exactor) and $823.80 (6-7-3

triactor). Shillelagh Slew (Chief Seattle), last year's champion three-year-old

colt, checked in another 1 1/2 lengths back in fourth, trailed by Just Rushing,

Royal Challenger (Touch Gold) and Jade's Revenge (Quiet American).

By adding a fourth stakes victory to his resume, Palladio improved his record

to 17-6-0-1 with $585,547 in earnings. After finishing a close third in his

stakes debut in the 2005 Marine S. (Can-G3), he won the Victoria Park S. and

Ohio Derby (G2) in succession, and he claimed the Ontario Derby later in the

year. Palladio then was winless in his next five starts. He raced only once in

2006, finishing a remote fifth in the Ben Ali S. (G3) at Keeneland. From three

starts so far this year, his best effort was a close fourth to A. P. Arrow (A.P.

Indy) in the Skip Away H. (G3) at Gulfstream Park. Palladio was exiting a

closing sixth in the April 26 Ben Ali.

The Florida-bred was produced by the winning Mari's Book mare Gioia, who has

an unraced juvenile colt named Sormani (Halo's Image) and an unnamed yearling

filly by Northern Afleet.