Pebble Beach reaches new height as Breeders Crown champ
MILTON, ONTARIO – Pebble Beach shored up his rock-solid resume with another classic Canadian performance, this time in the $911,250 Breeders Crown for 3-year-old pacing colts and geldings.
He didn’t go off as the post-time choice, but the son of Downbytheseaside-Santa Rosa was on top when it mattered most, trouncing his nine rivals to the tune of a brilliant 3 ½-length score on Saturday night at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
And with the win, the bay made it a perfect five-for-five in Canada. Meadows-based Bythemissal, winner of five straight, finished third. Ponda Warrior, leaving from post eight, crossed over to take the early lead with longshot Greatest Ending also getting away smartly and tucking into second. Todd McCarthy slotted 7-5 Pebble Beach into third with Captain Cowboy in fourth.
Pebble Beach, who took the $1 million Pepsi North America Cup in June, was guided to the front after a quarter in :25.4 and assumed a 1½-length lead at the half in :54.1. Bythemissal, at even money, was eighth and had his work cut out for him as the field approached the three-quarters mark.
Reaching three-quarters in 1:21.2, McCarthy and Pebble Beach looked large and in charge in early stretch, gliding away from their foes with ease down the lane, stopping the teletimer in 1:48.1. I Did It Myway was second, Bythemissal rallied for third and Greatest Ending was fourth.
Pebble Beach paid $4.90 for the win.
Pebble Beach previously defeated Bythemissal in an Adios eliminations. Bythemissal defeated Pebble Beach in the Adios final.
“He does very well up here, he feels happy when I sit behind him, and he shows it when he races as well,” said McCarthy. “He was certainly very impressive tonight.”
With the victory, Pebble Beach, owned by Patricia Stable, Joe Sbrocco, Country Club Acres and Laexpressfoderadeovolente, is now 8-6-1 from 15 starts on the season. Overall, the colt, bred by Brittany Farms, is 15-8-3 from 26 starts.
In another race with a local horse, Ecurie D DK became the first repeater of the Breeders Crown Open Trot Championship in nineteen years on Saturday night at Woodbine / Mohawk Park, tying the stakes record of 1:51 in winning the $600,000 event while matching the successive scores of Fool’s Goal in 2002-2003, the latter win at Woodbine.
Trainer Åke Svanstedt, winning his second Crown of the night and third of the weekend, selected Dexter Dunn to handle Ecurie D DK (the “DK” indicates he is Danish-bred; the breeder is Jean Pierre Dubois) as one of four horses he sent out in this Crown. Ecurie D DK had gotten “hot” in the Yonkers International in his last start and tired after setting scalding fractions, going right out to the lead ahead of 2021 sophomore Crown winner Jujubee, and set fractions of :27.1, :55.2, and 1:23, at the last pole starting to go clear of his field.
No one was able to get near Ecurie D DK in the stretch, with Meadows-based Jujubee three lengths behind in closest pursuit of the winner at the finish.
Unfortunately, Jujube made a break nearing the wire, and after an inquiry he was placed back to fourth, with Amigo Volo (ironically, the 2020 3YO Crown winner, and let go here at 102-1) elevated from third to second and It’s Academic moved up from fourth to third.