Celebrating the 2-Year-Olds
- HBPA
- 2 minutes ago
- 5 min read
Celebrating the 2-Year-Olds
Coronation Futurity and Princess Elizabeth This Weekend
By Jennifer Morrison
Two of the most important stakes races for Canadian bred 2-year-olds take place at Woodbine on Saturday, November 29 and for bettors, both race present handicapping puzzles.
The Coronation, first run in 1902 at Old Woodbine, will be run for the 122nd time and it is a much different race today than it was when it was created in celebration of the August 9, 1902 coronation of Edward VII of the United Kingdom.
The race began as a short sprint and gradually got longer in distance until it was made a 1 1/8 mile test in 1961 when it was won by E.P. Taylor's Choperion, a half brother to Nearctic who went on to be second in the next year's Queen's Plate.
The Coronation winner can sometimes be named the Canadian Champion 2-year-old colt, the 1962 winner, Alberta-bred Welcome Pardner, was named that year's champ. Others include a fellow by the name of Northern Dancer plus Regal Classic, Rainbows for Life, Talkin Man, Leonnatus Anteas and King and His Court. It has been eight years since the Coronation winner has been voted champion, however.
(image from "The Plate" book by Lou Cauz and Beverly Smith)
Of course, horse racing history buffs also know that while the Coronation, with its $250,000 purse, is a coveted prize, the winner has not come back to win the next year's Plate since Norcliffe did it in 1976.
On a sidenote in reference to this year's Coronation which has the filly Dixie Law in the field, it is unusual to see a filly in the race rather than the Princess Elizabeth. In fact, you have to go back to the 1950s to find a filly who won the Coronation (when the races were also not on the same day); Canadiana, the great Canadian racemare, won the 1952 Coronation, Baffin Bay won it in 1954 and Stole the Ring in 1957 was the last filly to win the Coronation.
Princess Elizabeth Stakes
The 1 1/16 mile race for Canadian bred 2-year-old fillies also has a $250,000 purse and a victory adds considerable value to a filly. The race is not as old as the Coronation as it was first run in 1946 and moved out to today's distance in 1961.
The first winner of the Princess Elizabeth, the black mare Casa Camara, interestingly, also won the 1946 Coronation as did Canadiana (1952).
The roll-call of PE winners includes great racemares and great broodmares such as Fanfreluche (she won the Princess Elizabeth in '69 and then won or placed in 13 stakes the following year in Canada and the U.S.), who produced stars La Voyageuse, Medaille d'Or and Plate winner L'Enjoleur.
Since 2000, three PE winners have gone on to win the next year's Woodbine Oaks.
Handicapping the 2025 Princess Elizabeth
Race 8, Woodbine, Nov. 29, Post time 4:30 p.m.
Winners vs. Maidens
There are four winners and four maidens in the eight-horse field for this year's race. Maidens and first time starters have won the Princess Elizabeth so don't be quick to dismiss those entrants.
Having said that, the winners in this year's field, (2) Bells of Paradise, (4) Piper's Gift, (6) La Culasse and (7) Katie's Grace, appear to be far ahead in development than the non-winners.
Pedigree, Distance
The lone stakes winner in the field, Piper's Gift, won the Glorious Song Stakes at seven furlongs but she has plenty of stamina points in her breeding. While her sire Yorkton was strictly a sprinter, his offspring have shown an ability to stretch out to route distances with success. Piper's Gift's dam, Piper's Legacy, won two route races at Woodbine.
Bells of Paradise won a six furlong dash first time out and is also by a sprinter (Yaupon) but her dam produced route stakes winner Notorious Gangster,
La Culasse won her maiden at 1 1/16 miles and Katie's Grace was third in the 1 1/16 mile Mazarine Stakes (G3) after trailing a slow pace and racing wide into the stretch,
The picks
4 – PIPER'S GIFT's trainer Dale Desruisseaux has a 36 percent win rate when moving horses out from sprints to routes (last two years). This exciting filly should be close in the early stages and the pace could be slow.
7 – KATIE'S GRACE did well to finish third behind Dixie Law in the Mazarine and that filly is entered in the Coronation Futurity. Katie's Grace's pedigree goes back to Princess Elizabeth winner and champion Fanfreluche.
LONGSHOT: (3) ASHLEE B's first career race was better than it looks. She lacked speed but was also very wide against the strong inside bias.
Handicapping the 2025 Coronation Futurity
Race 10, Woodbine, Nov. 29, Post time 5:44 p.m.
The story of this year's is the presence of the stakes winner filly Dixie Law in field. She is a three time winner in 2025, a graded stakes winner and is proven at a route distance. Dixie Law rated kindly in the Mazarine and appears to have plenty of speed to stalk in the longer Coronation. She will be tough to beat but the odds won't be in our favour.
What about the other winners in the field? Some of them have questions to answer. (3) Imyourmedicineman won with the strong wind in his favour on Nov. 16 to win a maiden/optional claiming race while (5) Deputy Curlin was the lone speed in a five-horse field when he won last month. Amore Mio won his maiden when he was moved to the grass and Fire and Wine won a maiden claiming race as the lone speed, albeit by a whopping 13-lengths,
(9) Military Time is a puzzle. He won his debut with an impressive 80 Beyer Speed Figure, drawing away at 6 1/2 furlongs. The Gun Runner colt faded in the Cup & Saucer on the grass, however, and that was a surface his dam liked. (8) Speights Will appears to be a colt who might like the longer distance.
The picks
In search of a price, I am going with the lone maiden in the field:
(4) BUIUM (boo-yum) who should have a strong pace to run at. He was third in the Cup & Saucer Stakes on turf and then had little chance in the Grade 3 Grey Stakes when he was too far back and extremely wide against the inside bias from the turn for home.
(2) DIXIE LAW is simply more further advanced than most 2-year-olds in Ontario at this time.
(9) MILITARY TIME might be the best in this field, especially if he didn't care for the grass last time.