The King’s Plate (see picks below, after the King Edward selections) is not the only thrilling race on Saturday, August 15th. The Grade 2 King Edward Stakes, with a $200,000 purse, is set as the 11th race on the day’s card. Six 3-year-olds and up will compete over 1 mile on Woodbine’s inner turf. Last year, Gas Me Up won the King Edward Stakes, with Wyoming Bill in second by three quarters of a length. Several connections have succeeded in this race back-to-back; trainer Mark Casse has won four times with three different horses in the last six years, Javier Castellano rode horses to victory in both 2018 and 2019 and jockey Rafael Hernandez did the same in 2020 and 2021. Filo Di Arianna, a gelding by Drosselmeyer, won in 2022 as well as 2024. Can Gas Me Up win back-to-back or will one of the other five horses take the crown? King Edward Stakes – Race 11 Top Selection: #3 – Gas Me Up When he’s at his best, he is the best. Gas Me Up is back in town from a stint in Santa Anita where he was able to win the Grade 2 Joe Hernandez Stakes, which he won by 1 ¼ lengths in impressive fashion, coming from last to first and receiving a 100 Beyer Figure. The 6-year-old Ontario-bred gelding by Hard Spun is the class of the race – his last six races all being graded stakes races, winning two, including last year’s King Edward Stakes. Gas Me Up is coming off a long, five-month layoff, however, this is not the first time he has done so. He has been training well for Kevin Attard with a bullet on July 26th, making it look like he is the Gas Me Up of last year, who was able to win the King Edward with a dramatic turn-of-foot coming from off the pace. Jockey Fraser Aebly has piloted him to victory by nearly five lengths before. He will most likely be going off at very short odds. But note, Gas Me Up seems to show more success on Woodbine’s outer turf than he does on the inner turf. Gas Me Up. Michael Burns Photography Wildcard: #1 – Irish Aces Irish Aces has only raced at Woodbine once, however, he did so in an impressive manner. He came second in the Grade 2 Connaught Cup in July with jockey Pietro Moran aboard, half a length behind winner G T Five Hundred. The race was at 7 ½ furlongs, but this 6-year-old gelding out of Mshawish could benefit from the increased distance to one mile. The race gave him familiarity with the inner turf and sitting tactically, Irish Aces, trained by Brendan Walsh is bound to improve. Pietro Moran is in the saddle once more in this race. Let’s see if this pair can win. Longshot: #4 – Seminole Chief Seminole Chief is a strong longshot with a chance in this, his first race at Woodbine Racetrack. Since switching trainers and running styles, the 5-year-old gelding by Girvin is unbeaten in two races, with his most recent win being the Jonathan B. Schuster Memorial Stakes (Listed) at Horseshoe Indianapolis for which he received a 92 Beyer figure. This race may allow him to run to an uncontested lead in which he could be able to dictate the pace. If he gets soft fractions in the race and if he can keep the lead at the top of the stretch, he just may be able to hold on to the lead to the finish line on the short inner turf stretch. He has recently received competitive Beyers and he is back on Lasix, however, he is a shipper, making him an unknown. The Play: $5 WPS on #1 Irish Aces, $3 exacta #1 Irish Aces/#2 Gas Me Up, $2 exacta #2 Gas Me Up/#1 Irish Aces King’s Plate – Race 10 The 167th running of the King’s Plate is knocking at our doors, taking place this Saturday, August 15, filled with several outstanding horses who will try their luck at Canada’s most prestigious race of the year. Luster, one of the race’s only two fillies and the fantastic winner of the Woodbine Oaks, is breaking out of the one hole, the morning line calling her the even-money favourite. Post position 12 will be held by Military Time who was the talk of the town in his 2-year-old campaign and is looking for a win. And there is plenty of talent in between. Great horses are racing for their chance to cement their names in history, beside names such as Moira, winner of the 2022 King’s Plate (then Queen’s Plate), who went on to win the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf for trainer Kevin Attard. Perhaps the three most important factors to take into considering for the King’s Plate are distance, pace, and field size. A good pick would be one that checks off at least two of these criteria. So, let’s handicap the King’s Plate to find out who the winner may be. Top Selection: #1 – Luster Luster and Highwaytothemoon are going into the Plate in comparable fashion. Both the filly and gelding have won three of their four races of 2026, one of which being the Woodbine Oaks and Plate Trial quite impressively respectively. Both horses have had strong works after these big races, both receiving bullets. But Highwaytothemoon has one outstanding question, that being the distance, where Luster has one extra positive to give her an edge: Johnny V. Luster has shown extraordinary promise, starting off her 2026 campaign in Keeneland with a win by five lengths and winning two of her three starts on Woodbine’s all-weather track, the Grade 3 Selene Stakes and the Oaks, in which she beat the boys’ time in the Plate Trial, running away with the win by 5 ½ lengths. For the Selene Stakes and the Oaks, she received a 91 and 97 Beyer, respectively, making her the horse with the highest Beyers in this race. The scuttlebutt at the track is that Luster is a special horse and I cannot go against a special horse, but we’re trying to win some money here and Luster does not seem to be the money horse. Luster. Michael Burns Photography Wildcard: #9 – Brachetto Brachetto is a bit of a wildcard in this race, having skipped the Plate Trial and going into the King’s Plate straight from his win in the Grade 3 Marine Stakes at the end of June. The Manitoba-bred has won two of his three races of the year and has shown incredible talent during morning works, receiving bullets for two of his three most recent works, since the Marine Stakes. His post should set him up for a clean trip with jockey Ryan Munger in the saddle. “He’s passed every test with flying colours,” said Munger. Brachetto has taken the same route as last year’s King’s Plate winner Mansetti, using the Marine Stakes as his last prep race before the big day. But can he follow in Mansetti’s hoofsteps further and win the King’s Plate? Longshot: #12 – Military Time Military Time has been in conversations about the King’s Plate since his 2-year-old season. He has never been out of the money with jockey Fraser Aebly on board, winning his first race of the year, and crossing the finish line in second in the Queenston Stakes and third in the Plate Trial. Military Time, by Gun Runner, known for producing great route runners, has had two maintenance works since his most recent race with a one minute work coming out of the Plate Trial. One worry with this horse is his lack of focus, as his changing of leads down the stretch multiple times in the Plate Trial may have hindered his stretch run. The fact that he is now racing with blinkers on may help him with this. “Military Time is a smart horse,” said Aebly. “I think we haven’t seen the best of him yet.” Can Military Time take this or will his stakes pattern remain: Always a bridesmaid, never a bride? The Play: $5 WPS #8 Highwaytothemoon, $3 exacta #8 Highwaytothemoon/#1 Luster, $2 exacta #1 Luster/#8 Highwaytothemoon Share This:Share
