Brazilian-bred Ice Chocolat had yet to win a stakes, or dictate the pace, since arriving in North America two years ago, but jockey Jose Ortiz’s inspired change of tactics in Saturday’s Poker S. (G3) produced a 24-1 surprise.

The Canadian International (G1) resumed from a one-year hiatus on Sunday, and Godolphin trainer Charlie Appleby provided a sense of continuity at Woodbine.

If not as straightforward a customer as his recently-retired Godolphin colleague Modern Games, Master of the Seas nevertheless resembled his undisputed authority in Saturday’s Woodbine Mile (G1).

Turf stars head to Woodbine this Saturday for a pair of lucrative graded stakes with possible Breeders’ Cup implications.