Be Vewy Vewy Quiet favoured in Colin Stakes

​TORONTO, August 31 – Undefeated two-year-old Be Vewy Vewy Quiet headlines the $100,000 Colin Stakes co-featured this Saturday, Aug. 2 at Woodbine Racetrack.

Trained by Robert Tiller and owned by Frank Di Giulio Jr., Anthony D’Onofrio, and J. Peri, Be Vewy Vewy Quiet heads into the six-furlong stakes event following victories in a maiden allowance on July 19 and the $125,000 Clarendon Stakes on August 5. He is the even-money favourite on the morning line.

Jockey Sheena Ryan, who worked with the Silent Name-Advanced Green gelding leading up to his races and was aboard for both of his victories, will be back in the saddle on Saturday.

“Right from day one, he was a complete professional,” said Ryan. “He never really acted like a baby. As soon as you got on the track, he was all business and he just enjoyed doing it. Right from start, he did everything really easy. He’s just a natural athlete and he’s smart. It was exciting and fun to get him ready for the races.”

Be Vewy Vewy Quiet drew clear in both of his victories over 5/1-2 furlongs on the Tapeta track at Woodbine, breaking his maiden with a 11-1/4 length romp and winning his stakes debut by two and a quarter lengths over Eskiminzin, who went on to win yesterday’s Simcoe Stakes. Perfect on paper, Ryan says the promising gelding’s only quirk is taking notice of the illuminated toteboard, which is not uncommon for young horses with little race day experience and a quirk they easily outgrow with familiarity.

“He seems like you can do anything you want with him in the race — he’ll settle, he’ll relax, when you ask him to go, he goes,” said Ryan. “He just keeps finding more gears and he gallops out really nice, I wonder if he could eventually go longer. Both the races that he’s run so far, he’s done it fairly easy so it will be interesting to see once he gets tested what he can do. Like I said, he’s a natural athlete; it just comes easy for him.”

In preparation for the Colin Stakes, Ryan worked the bay gelding last Thursday, breezing five furlongs in 1:02.40 on the all weather track.

“He worked really well last week and I’m sure Bob has him in good order,” said Ryan. “I only worked him the one day, but he seemed happy. I saw him this morning actually and he seemed eager to get out and train this morning and he seemed like he was hyper and really happy and probably ready to go again.”

Be Vewy Vewy Quiet will face Tenacity Zip, who won his career debut on June 11 and was a runner-up in the Victoria Stakes on July 8. The City Zip-On the Podium colt is one of two freshmen in the race trained by Nicholas Gonzalez. The other is Like What I See, a four-time starter entering the Colin Stakes off a seven furlong, maiden-breaking victory on August 20.

The field also includes the Kevin Attard-trained Piven, who nosed out the other Colin Stakes contender, Roger Attfield trainee Wam Bam, in their first career start on August 13.

Saturday’s co-feature is the $100,000 Belle Mohane Stakes for fillies and mares three years old and up at 1-1/16 miles on the Woodbine main.

Owned by Stronach Stables and trained Sid Attard, graded stakes winner Ice Festival is the 7-5 morning line favourite following back-to-back runner-up finishes in the Trillium Stakes on June 18 and Grade 3 Ontario Matron Stakes on July 22. David Moran retains the mount on the five-year-old Awesome Again-Phil’s Pill mare, who is a four-time career winner and has earned over $355,000 in purses from 24 starts.

With just over $400,000 banked in her 12-race career, Gamble’s Ghost is the richest in the field and the 2-1 second choice on the morning line. The four-year-old Ghostzapper-Gambling Girl mare is a multiple graded stakes winner. Following a June 9 victory in a 1-1/16 mile allowance race on the Tapeta, she enters the Belle Mahone off a fifth-place finish in the Grade 2 Dance Smartly Stakes contested on July 2 over 1-1/4 miles on the turf.

The field of six also includes defending Belle Mohane Stakes champion Uchenna, who will be looking to return to winning form for trainer Mark Casse and owner Gary Barber. Cced, Midnight Crossing and Silver Sidney complete the line-up.

Below are the complete fields for Saturday’s stakes in post position order. First race post time is set for 1 p.m.

#100,000 Belle Mahone Stakes (Race 6)
PP – Horse – Driver – Trainer – Morning Line Odds
1. Ice Festival – David Moran – Sid Attard – 7-5
2. Cced – Eurico Rosa Da Silva – Roger Attfield – 9-2
3. Gamble’s Ghost – Luis Contreras – Josie Carroll – 2-1
4. Midnight Crossing – Rafael Hernandez – Roger Attfield – 6-1
5. Silver Sidney – Slade Callaghan – Warren Wilcox – 15-1
6. Uchenna – Patrick Husbands – Mark Casse – 8-1

$100,000 Colin Stakes (Race 8)
PP – Horse – Driver – Trainer – Morning Line Odds
1. Wam Bam – Rafael Hernandez – Roger Attfield – 8-1
2. Be Vewy Vewy Quiet – Sheena Ryan – Robert Tiller – 1-1
3. Tenacity Zip – Jesse Campbell – Nicholas Gonzalez – 3-1
4. Piven – Patrick Husbands – Kevin Attard – 6-1
5. Like What I See – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Nicholas Gonzalez – 4-1