Sam-Son Farms’ homebred Up With the Birds left the stinging memory of his
narrow loss in the Queen’s Plate well behind with a superb performance in
Sunday’s $484,426
Breeders’ Stakes at Woodbine, presenting his iconic owner/breeder with a
record sixth victory in the final jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown. Hammered
into 1-2 favoritism, the Malcolm Pierce pupil scythed through the field on the
far turn, repelled a challenge from River Seven, and kicked away by 2 3/4
lengths.
Up With the Birds was completing a big-race double for jockey Eurico Rosa da
Silva, who had earlier landed the Sky Classic aboard Forte Dei Marmi.
“He was a couple steps away from greatness in the Queen’s Plate,” said Mark
Samuel, Sam-Son Farms’ CEO and son of the late founder, Ernie Samuel. “We
thought we had a great horse going into that race and he ran a great race. He
proved his class on a different surface. He’s looking like he’s very versatile,
looks like he can go all sorts of different distances.
“I’ll wait to pass judgment on where he ranks in the annals of Sam-Son Farm
until his career is done. But he’s looking like a special horse.”
“I had a great trip,” da Silva said. “He was very aggressive. He was very
keen. He wanted to be there (up with the leaders). I think he knew he lost last
time (in the Queen’s Plate), so he said, ‘this time, Eurico, I do the job.'”
Up With the Birds lagged too far off the slow pace in the July 7 Queen’s
Plate on Woodbine’s Polytrack. The 8-5 favorite in the first jewel of Canada’s
Triple Crown, he launched a furious late charge, but the front-running Midnight
Aria held on by a diminishing half-length at the wire. There was to be no repeat
of that in the Breeders’ Stakes, staged over 1 1/2 miles on the E.P. Taylor
turf.
Always within striking distance, Up With the Birds was settled in sixth as
92-1 longshot Dragon Puff showed the way through splits of :25 2/5, :51 and 1:15
4/5. The odds-on favorite made a sudden move into second at the mile mark in
1:41, and took charge when reaching 1 1/4 miles in 2:05. River Seven was
traveling well on Up With the Birds’ flank, and a stretch battle appeared in the
offing.
But Up With the Birds simply drew off with authority, stopping the teletimer
in 2:28 3/5 on the firm turf and returning $3.10 to win.
“When he took the lead, it was hard for another horse to catch him because he
wants to take off,” da Silva said. “He’s all heart. He’s a very good horse.”
“What can I say, I’m very glad to be back,” said Pierce, who worked as an
assistant for Jim Day and Mark Frostad for Sam-Son Farms, before venturing out
on his own, only to return as sole head trainer for Sam-Son in 2012.
“We always try to freshen our horses and give them lots of time between
races. There would have been more pressure if he had won the Queen’s Plate to
try for the Triple Crown (by competing in the second leg, the July 30 Prince of
Wales at Fort Erie).
“But after getting beat in the Plate, it was an easy decision to wait for
this race.”
River Seven held second by a neck from Pyrite Mountain, with Global Express
fourth. Dragon Puff faded to seventh in the field of 10 Canadian-bred
three-year-olds.
An Ontario-bred sired by Stormy Atlantic, Up With the Birds has now
bankrolled $847,069 from his 8-5-2-1 line. The bay colt dominated last
November’s Coronation Futurity by 3 1/2 lengths, and opened his classic campaign
with an up-in-time score in the March 2 Black Gold at Fair Grounds in his turf
debut. He just missed to Jack Milton in the April 5 Transylvania on the
Keeneland turf, and made a triumphant return to Woodbine when romping by 4 3/4
lengths in the May 26 Marine, his Polytrack prep for the Queen’s Plate.
Up With the Birds is out of the winning Seeking the Gold mare Song of the
Lark, herself a daughter of Canadian Hall of Famer Wilderness Song. The
Sovereign Award winner as Canada’s champion older mare of 1992, Wilderness Song
scored her signature win in that year’s Spinster at Keeneland. The 10-time
stakes heroine also accumulated 13 stakes placings, including the 1991 Queen’s
Plate.
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