TORONTO, May 28, 2025 – Patches O’Houlihan, Canada’s reigning Horse of the Year, will chase more graded stakes glory in the $150,000 Jacques Cartier (G3), Saturday at Woodbine. A six-furlong main track event for 4-year-olds and upwards, the Jacques Cartier marks the second start of the campaign for Patches O’Houlihan, the multiple graded stakes-winning 5-year-old son of Reload out of the Silent Name (JPN) mare Maythefourthbwithu. The Frank Di Giulio, Jr. homebred, trained by Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductee Robert Tiller, arrives at the Jacques Cartier off a brilliant 2025 debut on May 4. Patches O’Houlihan and jockey Sofia Vives winning the Thorncliffe Stakes on May 4, 2025 at Woodbine (Michael Burns Photo) Under two-time Canadian champion apprentice rider Sofia Vives, Patches O’Houlihan took the $100,000 Thorncliffe Stakes, a 5 ½-furlong main track event for 4-year-olds and up, by four lengths as the 2-5 choice. He stopped the teletimer in a blistering 1:02.28, which eclipsed the previous record mark of 1:02.62 set by Arzak on April 17, 2022. What impressed Di Giulio most? “I would think it would be the time and how easily he did it,” he said of the horse who was also feted as Canada’s champion male sprinter of 2024. “When I saw that he had run in 1:02 and change, I knew it was fast, but I didn’t know it was a track record. He seemed to do it pretty handily, so that was impressive as well.” Patches O’Houlihan – a nod to the Rip Torn character in the comedy movie Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story – launched his career in September 2022 and produced a 4 ½-length win at 5 ½ furlongs over the Woodbine main track. He hasn’t slowed down since. Between May and September of 2023, Patches O’Houlihan reeled off six consecutive victories. His record stands at 12-1-0 from 15 starts, along with $748,590 ($1,015,540 CDN) in purse earnings. “I am vocal near the end when I watch him run,” said Di Giulio, one of the country’s most accomplished owners and breeders. “I watch outside in the stands. I start off sitting and I end up standing after about the first quarter-mile. I’ll start cheering near the end. I have a tendency of getting a little too excited before the race is over – in a couple cases I almost got caught. The fact that he is usually on the lead, I am just cheering for him to stay there. He gives you a lot of confidence.” Patches O’Houlihan has also developed a strong following, drawing comparisons to Pink Lloyd, the eight-time Sovereign Award winner and 2017 Horse of the Year in Canada who Di Giulio co-owned under the Entourage Stable banner. Inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2023, Pink Lloyd won the Jacques Cartier four straight times, from 2017-20. “It would be great to win this race, to follow in his footsteps,” said Di Giulio. “I have to pinch myself to be so lucky to have two such amazing horses. I feel blessed to be a part of both of them.” Patches O’Houlihan breezed four furlongs over the Woodbine main track in :46.40 – fastest of 24 works – on May 22. “Bob [Tiller] was very happy with the work,” said Di Giulio. “He did it easily and galloped out well. He’s average in size, but he’s built like a truck, very powerful.” Clifford Knight is the groom. Other starters include Simcoe, a 5-year-old son of Uncle Mo out of the Pulpit mare Aurora Lights. Bred and owned by Chiefswood Stables and trained by Katerina Vassilieva, the 5-year-old son of Uncle Mo out of the Pulpit mare Aurora Lights enjoyed a productive winter at Turfway Park to kick off his current campaign. In three starts, Simcoe finished second and earned consecutive scores, including a two-length win at 6 ½ furlongs over the all-weather track on March 15. He now has two wins and three seconds from his last five starts. “Simcoe had a late start to his season at Woodbine last year, and at the end of the season ran two very solid races,” said Vassilieva, who is off to a strong start in 2025. “It didn’t seem to make sense to shut him down when he was gaining so much forward momentum. That’s when Rob (Chiefswood Stables GM, Landry) and I made the decision to send him to Turfway Park for the winter. He did very well there. “He continued to improve over the winter and has carried that with him into the spring. It’s interesting because he seems to have relished the cutback in distance that we tried. He went from liking two-turn route races earlier in his career to now doing very well in sprint races – he’s really stepped up his game and we are all happy to see him flourish. He’s a big, strong, athletic horse. He’s confident, professional and always very focused on his job.” His work tab includes a four-furlong breeze in :48.60 over the Woodbine main track on May 16. “Simcoe deserves a chance to take on stakes-caliber horses,” said Vassilieva. “Obviously, he will be up against some very good horses here, but we feel he belongs.” Jamar Goddard is the groom. Essence Hit Man netted the Jacques Cartier natural hat trick from 2011-13. Avelino Gomez and Robin Platts are tied for most wins (6) by a jockey. The race is named after Jacques Cartier (1491-1557), a French navigator, explorer and cartographer. He was the first European to explore the St. Lawrence River and to use the name Canada in his writings. The Jacques Cartier is listed as Race 1 on the 11-race card, with a first post of 1:05 p.m. The wagering menu for the race includes Rolling Double, Exacta, and 0.20 Pick 3 (Races 1-2-3). Fans can wager on all the action through HPIbet.com and bet365.com. Field for the Grade 3 $150,000 Jacques Cartier Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer 1 – Old Chestnut (S) – Eswan Flores – Marty Drexler 2 – Patches O’Houlihan – Sofia Vives – Robert Tiller 2 – Simcoe – Rafael Hernandez – Katerina Vassilieva 4 – Okiro (S) – Pietro Moran – Saffie Joseph, Jr. Chris Lomon, Woodbine Share This:Share
