Victoria Stakes

Purse $125.00 – For Two Year Olds

5½ Furlongs – Dirt

Woodbine – July 12, 2026

As the juvenile division continues to take shape, another talented group of youngsters will look to make their mark in the 19th edition of the Victoria Stakes. This race was first contested back in 2006 with a distance of five furlongs. It has since been stretched another half-furlong, though one of its more unusual chapters came in 2015 when it was run on the turf. It probably won’t come as much of a surprise that Mb Stables is the race’s most successful owner, having already captured the Victoria Stakes four times!! It’s the kind of sustained excellence few stables can match. The record book features two familiar names at the top, as Sweet Caviar and Gorogue Laga remain co-holders of the stakes record after each posting a time of 1:03.13. Weather will not be a problem this weekend, providing an equal playing field for all entrants. One interesting note is that every entrant was bred by its owner, making this a true showcase of HRP breeding. There is very little to separate these two-year-olds on paper, as only one has reached the winner’s circle twice. Let’s see what each contender brings to the table!

1. Columbo – (John Henry, K. Kimura) An extremely well-bred colt by State Police out of the graded stakes winning mare Great Beneficiary. Columbo showed a lot of promise early on, getting inside the top 10% of the Del Mar Trials in March. Connections debuted this Florida-bred in early April at Tampa Bay Downs in a MSW. He ended up being the morning line favorite going two furlongs. Columbo broke great and got to the front of the pack early. He went nose and nose with another rival to the outside and kept that advantage all the way to the wire. It seems like John Henry has been experimenting in the morning since that win, as this colt will be adding Lasix for this race.

2. Boutte – (Royalty Stables, D. Moran) After falling short in the Super Bowl, this colt out of Valvano broke through with a maiden victory against state-bred company last time out. Just like his rival to his inside, we first saw Boutte at Tampa Bay Downs going two furlongs. He didn’t break on the lead and the wire came up too quickly, finishing third by just under a length. Connections made some big adjustments for Boutte’s second start at Saratoga, adding Lasix, Bute, and a shadow roll. It proved to be the right move as he made every pole a winning one in an eight-horse field. The final time was quick as well, so there’s a lot of promise for this homebred. Shouldn’t be underestimated against these.

3. Frampton – (Alydar Stables, E J. Wilson) This colt was first seen at Keeneland in an MSW back in April. He had some solid works in the morning, but ended up not firing to finish fifth by four lengths. Connections didn’t make any equipment changes and entered Frampton right back going four and a half furlongs. Things weren’t looking good at the start, however jockey Ben Curtis made up over two lengths in the stretch to win by a head. It does look like the more distance for Frampton, the better. A more favorable gate draw could help him improve after battling outside posts in recent outings. This West Virginia-bred will have to take another step forward this time around to be competitive in here.

4. Epic Command – (Paradise Stable, R M. Hernandez) Winner on debut against state-breds at Woodbine. This son of Commanding was first seen on the work tab publicly in May. Connections decided to enter a month later in a MSW going five and a half furlongs. Though it was a five-horse field, Epic Command broke very well from the outside and went wire-to-wire. His early fractions were: 22.55, 46.01, and 58.16. Looking at this colt’s humerus and stifles, everything points toward sprinting. So it makes sense that he went out to the lead quickly and put away the field late. I think Epic Command will be one of the early pacesetters in a field that is loaded with speed. Could surprise with the right trip setup.

5. Count Crapula – (Aer Stables, R W. Walcott) Couldn’t have been more impressive first time out after dominating at Charles Town, crossing the wire by three lengths. He led down the backstretch and just continued to open up all the way to the finish. Connections still took some time to try and improve this colt by adding Lasix for his next start. Count Crapula was entered in an N1X at Woodbine going five furlongs on the dirt. He lost a little bit of ground heading into the far turn and just couldn’t make up enough ground late to make an impact on the leaders. Aer Stables elects to remove Lasix and return to Bute, a change he hopes leads to an improved performance. I would like to see him routing in the future.

6. Sim Racer – (Blazin D, S. Civaci) A Pennsylvania-bred who had an eye-catching debut at Parx. The son of Mr Forgotten ran against state-breds around four and a half furlongs and just drew away from the competition late to win by two easy lengths. Connections didn’t have much to run in at that point, so Sim Racer was seen next on the turf in the Royal Palm Juvenile. He drew the rail in a packed field of twelve and actually went off as the favorite. Jockey J.G. Torrealba had this guy about a length off the speed with a clear running lane ahead of him. Sim Racer just didn’t seem to have the same kick as he did on debut. It’s worth noting that Blazing D gelded him just four days ago and is adding blinkers.

7. Lethal Sunset – (Nakamura Stables, L. Salles) Never been off the board in three career starts. This California-bred has displayed an off the pace running style in each race, starting back in April. Lethal Sunset was three lengths back in seventh and closed nicely to get second. The same thing happened in his next start, but actually lost a little bit of ground late. This colt got in the winner’s circle last time out at Santa Anita going five furlongs. Jockey Antonio Fresu had him a little closer to the pace and kicked away in the final stages to win by an easy length. A contested early pace could play right into the hands of Lethal Sunset, who has continued to do his best running late. A contender.

8. Showman – (Mb Stables, P. Moran) Interestingly enough, this is the only horse entered this year who has two wins. Connections had Showman ready to fire first time out and he showed up in impressive fashion. Sitting in sixth rounding the turn, jockey Jose Lezcano rallied this gelding late to win by a head. With few options to run, the Royal Palm Juvenile was next going five furlongs on the turf. Showman didn’t show much interest in the green stuff, fading late to lose by a couple lengths. However, last time out Mb Stables added Bute and ran him in the mud at Lone Star Park. Little by little he grinded away from the competition to score by a neck. Another one who will benefit with a fast pace.

9. Decimas Pride – (La Canada Racehorses, S. Chernetz) Things were looking a little shaky for this son of Pinks Pride after not picking up his feet in back-to-back starts. He was first seen at Parx in an open MSW drawn right in the middle of a field of ten. Decimas Pride didn’t break sharply and just stayed in the back of the pack to finish eighth. Connections added Lasix for his next outing, where he did the same thing on a sloppy track. It looked like new instructions were used most recently at Aqueduct against state-bred company. Not only was Decimas Pride stretching out in distance, but he broke quickly and made every pole a winning one. Could be a colt with some upside.

10. Warpaint In Grey – (Iwin Enterprise, Su. Singh) Another contender who is a perfect one-for-one in his career. The son of Crazy Horse was first seen at PEN in a Maiden Special Weight against state-breds. It was an extremely small field of four horses, but Warpaint In Grey came from off the pace nicely to win by a neck. That race was all the way back in April, so connections have probably been tinkering with him since then. Looking at his confirmation, the five-furlong distance of this race should not be a problem. Though Warpaint In Grey put up a 90 SRF speed figure, I’m going to side with other horses who have shown just a little bit more against stronger company.

11. Painted Sunset – (Nakamura Stables, D Z. Gaskin) The second entrant for Nakamura Stables trying to get his first Victoria Stakes win. They both have three career starts, but this gelding broke his maiden in his second race. Painted Sunset went off as the favorite at Park in a Maiden Special Weight. The distance was five furlongs and he kicked away late to win by just under a length. Connections entered in an N1X at Lone Star against Showman, who is also entered in this race. The track came up muddy and Painted Sunset just didn’t care for it at all. He faded late by a couple lengths to finish sixth. I’m sure Nakamura Stables is happy to get this guy back on a fast track.

12. Vinny Rocks – (The Sidley Stud, W T. Buick) It’s an unfortunate draw for this son of Old Harry Rocks, but it ensures he will have a clear running lane late. Vinny Rocks has shown that he likes to come from off the pace in his three career starts. He ran twice at Charles Town going four and a half furlongs and broke his maiden in the mud. Connections wheeled this colt back rather quickly after the win and ran in the Royal Palm Juvenile on the turf. He looked to be in good position rounding the far turn, but just didn’t have any interest in kicking on late. Jockey William Buick will have to maneuver Vinny Rocks perfectly down the backside and in the stretch to win against these.

– AJM

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded