TORONTO, September 18, 2025 – Cara Cara, trained by John Mattine, arrives at Sunday’s $100,000 Zadracarta Stakes at Woodbine in winning form. Sporting a mark of 5-7-6 ($354,113) from 27 starts, Cara Cara will take on seven rivals in the five-furlong event for Ontario-bred fillies, 3-year-olds and up, contested over the inner turf. Mattine, who trains for owner and breeder Norseman Racing Stable (Howard Walton), would like to see a repeat of the 5-year-old’s winning effort last time out when she recorded a rallying neck score at five panels on the Woodbine main track. “She can rate,” said Mattine. “Many times, she has been pushed to be in a front-running style. But if you look back at some of her past races, you can see that she can rate off the pace. “It actually worked out well in that last race. She got shuffled back, which may have helped her. She ran a fantastic race, too. She came up the rail and it was very gutsy. She put her ears back and was determined to go after the frontrunner.” Cara Cara at Woodbine (Michael Burns Photo) The daughter of multiple graded stakes winner Signature Red (also owned by Walton) out of the Stormy Atlantic mare Red Citrus Storm was third in last year’s edition of the Zadracarta, in what was her third stakes engagement. Cara Cara was also third in the 2022 edition of the Victorian Queen Stakes, in her second lifetime start, and fourth in the 2023 running of the Georgian Bay Stakes. The bay debuted with a fourth on September 10, 2022, in a 5 ½-furlong sprint over the Woodbine main track. She was then sidelined after the Victorian Queen. “I knew she was going to be a good one in her 2-year-old season,” recalled Mattine. “In the Victorian Queen, she took the lead, opened up and I thought, ‘Look at this.’ It turned out she had a chip in her knee, which happened in the race, and she just stopped. It wasn’t a gradual stop by any means. So, the next day, we had the x-ray taken, and then had the procedure done.” After 250 days, Cara Cara returned to race action and finished fourth in a five-furlong inner turf sprint on June 1, 2023. Ten days later, in her fourth career start, she broke her maiden 5 ½ furlongs on the Woodbine main track. Grabbing the lead early, Cara Cara, clear by 4 ½ lengths at the stretch call, went on to record a sharp five-length score in 1:03.91. “Thankfully, she came back to that high level,” said Mattine. “She showed us how much heart, grit and determination she has.” Cara Cara, who posted nine consecutive top four finishes to launch her career, has recorded 12 top three finishes over her past 15 engagements. “You have to be on your guard with her,” said Mattine. “She loves her mints, carrots and mints, but be careful. Don’t turn your back or she will lay you out. But that doesn’t bother me. She’s just being a horse. She is very professional on game day. I wouldn’t say she’s calm, but she’s not antsy or anything like that. “She’s not a big, tall filly, but she’s stocky and tough. She’s just a great mare.” Mark Manuk is the groom and the exercise rider is Charles Browne. Botta Swing, 2-2-2 from 10 starts, stakes winner Little Teddy, multiple stakes winner Olivia Rose, multiple stakes winner Pop Idol, Thermal, making her Canadian debut, Whiskey N Ice, 3-2-3 from 13 starts, and stakes-placed Zana are also slated to run. First post on Sunday is set for 1:05 p.m. Fans can wager on all the action via HPIbet.com and bet365.com. The wagering menu for the Zadracarta includes Rolling Double, Exacta, 0.20 Trifecta, 0.20 Superfecta, 0.20 Pick 3 (Races 6-7-8), 0.20 Pick 4 (Races 6-7-8-9) and $1 Swinger. Field for the $100,000 Zadracarta – Race 6 Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer 1 – Botta Swing – Ryan Munger – Barb Minshall 2 – Pop Idol – Sahin Civaci – George Weaver 3 – Whisky N Ice – Fraser Aebly – Mark Casse 4 – Little Teddy – Austin Adams – Santino Di Paola 5 – Zana – Jose Campos – Steve Flint 6 – Olivia Rose – Patrick Husbands – Mark Casse 7 – Thermal – Rafael Hernandez – John Sadler 8 – Cara Cara – Jeffrey Alderson – John Mattine Chris Lomon, Woodbine Share This:Share
