Princess Elizabeth Stakes- $225.000 Purse
WO- For Fillies Two Years Old Foaled in Canada
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Dirt
October 29, 2017

This Sunday, a field of five goes to post for the 10th running of the Princess Elizabeth Stakes, which offers a nice purse for two year old Canadian fillies. The purse had been a little bigger in the past, but still is a nice sum of money awaiting the winner. Mb Stables has won the race in two of the last three years, including last year with Darling Smile. While she is not the biggest name in the division these days, she has still gone on to have a great career. Team 7 Illusions is also a two time winner of the race, but you have to go back a little bit for his winners. Both of them have a chance to win their third Princess Elizabeth title, so let’s meet their entries and the three others now!

#1- Arguing (Team 7 Illusions, ridden by J M Campbell)- An interesting entry, in that she is a maiden, going 0-for-2 in her career thus far, but we have seen maidens win races like this before. Even more intriguing is that she comes into the race on a nearly four month layoff. Recently, she was acquired in private sales from Mb Stables for $100.000, so that was an impressive vote of confidence. Works look a tick slower then some of her competitors here, so I am going to look elsewhere.

#2- Tulia (Crocker Ggs, ridden by P Husbands)- Looks like a talented filly, but has not quite put it all together yet. She’s won just once in her four starts, coming here in May. After that win, she’s placed at the ungraded stake level, but did not make her presence felt in either of those two starts. The works are good, and I think she is going to go on and have an excellent career. She’s going to have her bust-out race eventually. This could be it.

#3- Exempt (Mb Stables, ridden by L Contreras)- The filly by Five Fives, with General Assembly on the dam side is off to a promising start. So far, there is one win in three starts, and that came in her last start out at FE, in a state bred. She was particularly strong in that race, and has just been waiting for these races to get longer in order for her to showcase her best ability. Expect her to be a threat, but this is the toughest field she has seen. Exempt can handle them if she is at her best.

#4- Informant (Smokey Stover, ridden by G Boulanger)- Very impressed by the way this one looks early in her career. She’s a perfect two-for-two in her career as the trainer has brought her along in a patient manner. That victory came in an allowance towards the end of August, and it showed that she has also been waiting to increase her distance, and she will like these conditions quite a bit. She is showing steady improvement with her works, and a recent mile work at BEL is an eye-opener. Furthermore, she is simply beautiful, with a triple ideal conformation, and excellent pedigree. A bright future awaits.

#5- Sweet Oly (Fractious, ridden by D Moran)- If you added up the career earnings of the rest of the field, you would not get what Sweet Oly has earned in her young career. Towards the end of June, she was victorious in the $100.000 My Dear here at WO, and in August she won the $200.000 Muskoka also here, making her 2-for-2 at this track in her career. Overall, she has won three of five. Graded attempts have not gone as well, but it might not be a bad thing if she can find a niche here against other Canadians. Sweet Oly has put up strong speed figures at this track, but the question about her is whether or not she really wants to go over a mile. I see that going either way right now at this stage of her career. She is the biggest threat to Informant.

Prediction: 4-5-3-2

— NS

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded