Being the Queen's Plate favourite wasn't the kiss of death Sunday for Eye Of The Leopard
.
The Sam-Son Farm product took the lead in deep stretch and finished a neck ahead of Mr. Foricos Two U to win the 150th running of the prestigious race at Woodbine Racetrack. Eye Of The Leopard went off at 2-1 odds and became only the second favourite -- the other was Wando in 2003 -- to win the opening jewel of Canadian thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown in the last 15 editions.
Sam-Son Farm claimed the $600,000 winner's share in the $1-million race, registering its fifth career Queen's Plate victory and fourth for trainer Mark Frostad. Jockey Eurico Rosa da Silva recorded his first Plate win in his first-ever mount in the race.
"We've had a lot of great moments at the track," said Sam-Son Farm's Mark Samuel. "I don't think I've ever had a more emotional day at the track than today.
"Coming down that stretch, we were all riding him hard. It was very emotional."
And tense.
"The last 100 yards were very anxious," Frostad said. "I was wondering if we would get there or not.
"Well, it wasn't nearly as exciting as I had hoped," Frostad added, tongue firmly in cheek. "But we managed to win the race. It was very nice. The horse ran a super race. Mr. Foricos Two U ran a super race. (Jockey) Mike Smith was trying to steal it from us, but we got there."
Eye Of The Leopard claimed the win in 2:03.84 before a huge crowd at Woodbine. While attendance figures weren't made available, the lower grandstand was filled to capacity. Among those watching was Ontario Lieutenant Governor David C. Onley.
Sam-Son Farm has been one of Canadian racing's most dominant owners and breeders this decade despite dealing with family tragedy. In 2000, patriarch Ernie Samuel -- the affable horseman who started Sam-Son Farm -- died at the age of 69. His daughter, Tammy Samuel-Balaz, took over the operation following her father's death but died last year at the age of 48. Two months later, Liza Samuel, Ernie's wife and Tammy's mother, also passed away.
"In many ways this is sort of a legacy from the past and a branch into the future," said Mark Samuel. "The breeding would have come from my sister Tammy and Mark thinking it through.
"The name (Eye Of The Leopard) was one of the last crop of names that my mother named before her passing. Even his nickname harkens back to one of the favourite horses that dad loved, Imperial Choice. His nickname was lumpy and this nickname was lumpy."
Eye Of The Leopard broke cleanly from the No. 7 post and sat off the pace in fourth spot for much of the race. But he moved up to second at the head of the turn and from the outside overtook Mr. Furicos Two U in deep stretch.
"I thought the pace would be much faster," da Silva said. "Everything turned different at the five-eighths (pole).
"A horse came up to him from there and I had to move him a bit. At the quarter-pole another horse moved. I tried to ask him and I thought `This is not easy.'
"He got the job done, that is the most important thing."
Da Salvia said he was so concentrated on his horse that he didn't notice either Mr. Foricos Two U or Milwaukee Appeal as they all charged to the finish line.
"At that point you're so focused on your horse," he said. "My heart was in my hands and I was yelling at him trying to get everything I could from him."
A native Brazilian, da Silva made an official citizenship change following the 1 1/4-mile race.
"This is the most importance race in Canada," he said. "And now for me too because I am Canadian."
Mr. Foricos Two U held on for second, with filly Milwaukee Appeal taking third in the 13-horse field.
The remainder of the field, in order of finish, included: Tasty Temptation, Flip for the Coin, Keino West, Shut It Down, Rapid Release, Stardust Ziggy, Bucephalus, Resevoir, Active Duty and El Brujo.
Eye Of The Leopard returned $6.70, $4.10 and $2.90. Mr. Foricos Two U paid $7.20 and $4.60 while Milwaukee Appeal paid $3.70.
Eye Of The Leopard improved his record to three wins in four career starts -- he didn't race as a two-year-old. He's won his last three starts and sports a career bankroll surpassing $700,000. Eye Of The Leopard became the 24th horse to win both the Queen's Plate Trial as well as the Plate.
Milwaukee Appeal and Tasty Temptation were both trying to just the 34th filly to win the Queen's Plate. The two were the first and third early favourites after Milwaukee Appeal finished ahead of Tasty Temptation in the Woodbine Oaks just two weeks ago.
"Around the turn I thought we had a chance to win but they weren't coming back," said Stewart Elliott, the jockey for Milwaukee Appeal. "She ran a great race...she gave everything she had out there."
Added Patrick Husbands, Tasty Temptation's jockey: "It was a little tough coming back on two weeks. I was never able to get her to relax."
On the other hand, Eye Of The Leopard still looked fresh and relaxed following Sunday's race, positive signs the horse will go to the post July 12 for the $500,000 Prince of Wales Stakes, the second jewel of the Triple Crown. That race, though, will present a different test for Eye Of The Leopard as the track surface in Fort Erie, Ont., is dirt compared to the polytrack at Woodbine.
Today’s Queen’s Plate card registered a handle of $5,779,982, which is the highest total over the past six years, eclipsing the 2005 figure of $5,778,542. The actual race saw $1,843,587 wagered, topping the ’05 mark of $1,814,061.
(With files from the Canadian Press)