The Woodward (Grade 1)- $400.000 Purse
AQU- For Three Year Olds and Upward
One Mile and One Eighth on the Dirt
September 30, 2023

It was a wet afternoon at AQU on Saturday, and that would lead to scratches throughout the race day card. In the Woodward, it would cost us both our pre-race pick, Anna Da Artist, as well as Sensei. Neither have performed well on wet tracks, so the decision for each to scratch was likely not a difficult one. This left us with seven for the Grade 1 Woodward, and it would be won by one of the best closers in the game today, Spankersville, for The Sidley Stud. It’s the first Woodward win for the trainer, and that is also true for jockey J Lezcano. This is including both of the “histories” that the game has for this stake. Congratulations to them! The time of the win over the muddy surface was 1:50.73. It’s just the second time the race has been run at AQU, and since it was not muddy before (it was actually sloppy in 2022), we can’t compare the time to anything. Let’s take a look at it now!

(1/2 Mile- :48.39)- No one seemed particularly eager to get to the front at the start, but by the time we head into the clubhouse turn, Sunset Wolf is happy to assume that role for Night Rider Stables. He’ll end up having a full-length lead after a half mile, with Pan Farms- trained Dayton running right behind him. It’s another length or so to a group of three, and among them, TwinTowersRacing’s Burnin Red Hooves has a head in front while running between horses. Arindel’s Ey Mon, who assumes the role of being our pick with the scratch of Anna Da Artist, is next on the outside, and hopefully he can step up and not make us look bad for picking him. Electric is nearby here on the rail for Angelos Stable, and then comes Dragons Teeth (Alydar Stables). Trailing the field is our eventual winner from The Sidley Stud, Spankersville. He’s only five lengths from the lead, which is close by his standards.

(3/4 Mile- 1:13.27)- Over this next portion of the race, both Sunset Wolf and Dayton begin to pull away from the rest of the field while running side by side with one another. There’s a gap of almost three to Electric and Burnin Red Hooves, and uh oh, Ey Mon is already dropping out of it, that’s not going to have us look good! Dragons Teeth was even with him, and even Spankersville was getting ready to go around that one.

(Top of Stretch, 1.7F To Go)- Around the final turn and into the stretch, Dayton is now out front and starts to inch away from Sunset Wolf. No one was really that close to him, but Pan Farms surely knew Spankersville’s history of coming from behind, so there would be no celebrating yet. Plus, the fact that Spankersville was already making his move from the back and had moved up to third was something that The Sidley Stud had to like seeing. Electric wasn’t out of it yet, though Burnin Red Hooves was tiring. Dragons Teeth hadn’t done much yet. And Ey Mon? Oh boy, not today.

(Finish- 1:50.73)- Dayton leads early in the stretch, but Spankersville was coming on quick. With a furlong to go, he was only a length back, and at that time we could probably give him the trophy as he was full of run. There would be no surprises in the final moments, as this race would belong to Spankersville, and he’d go on to win by two and a half lengths. Dayton holds on for second, a length ahead of Sunset Wolf. Dragons Teeth is the best of the rest, beating Electric and Burnin Red Hooves. We’re happy to report that Ey Mon eventually finished, as well.

About The Winner- Spankersville, trained by The Sidley Stud and ridden to victory by J Lezcano, is a five-year-old horse by Ginger Haggis and is out of the late Speedy Game. He was bred as a yearling in Ontario by The Sidley Stud, and they have been together throughout! Congratulations to the connections! The win is his tenth in 37 starts, his eighth stake win and sixth graded win. His career earnings are now $1,793.880.

Track: Muddy
Time: :48¹  1:13¹  1:38²  1:50³

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 8 – 4 Paid 27.60
$1 Trifecta: 8 – 4 – 3 Paid 430.10

Scratched: Anna Da Artist, Sensei(L)

— NS

Categories: Grade I, STAKES ARTICLES