TORONTO, July 17, 2025 – The $150,000 Plate Trial Stakes, a key fixture on the road to this year’s King’s Plate (August 16), has drawn 10 hopefuls, including Scorching, who will be ridden by John Velazquez, Sunday at Woodbine. The 1 1/8-mile Plate Trial, for 3-year-olds foaled in Canada, has attracted top contenders being pointed towards the 166th edition of the longest continually run stakes race in North America. Trained by John Charalambous for Paul Braverman and Timothy Pinch, Scorching, a son of Mo Town out of the Consolidator mare Samal, heads into his latest test off a second, one length behind the winner, Mansetti, in the HPIbet Marine Stakes (G3), a 1 1/16-mile main track affair run on June 28. The dark bay colt was making his 3-year-old debut after a layoff since October 6, when he last raced in the $250,000 Cup & Saucer Stakes at 1 1/16 miles on the E.P. Taylor turf. In that race, restricted to Canadian-foaled 2-year-olds, Scorching finished second but was elevated to first place through disqualification. Scorching and jockey Patrick Husbands winning the Cup and Saucer Stakes on October 6, 2024 at Woodbine (Michael Burns Photo) “I was surprised by the performance,” said Charalambous, of the most recent effort. “He ran according to the way we wanted him to race – not the result, but how he sat off the pace. (Jockey) Dylan Davis did a great job with him. The horse stumbled out of the gate and then his competitiveness sunk in, and he wanted to start chasing, but Dylan settled him so well, and he had some horse left at the end, which I didn’t think he’d have. I really didn’t think he’d have that much left in the tank after being off for such a long time since his last race.” Eight months and 22 days, to be exact. Slated to contend the Coronation Futurity, a key 2-year-old race on the Woodbine calendar, Scorching spiked a temperature and had to be scratched. His connections regrouped and sent the colt to New York over the winter to prepare for the Gotham Stakes in March. But the day before the race, Scorching was scratched. “He was training in New York and scheduled to run on March 1,” said Charalambous. “The afternoon before the race, he’s ready to go and then he’s got a 104.5 temperature. I missed seven weeks with him. He was at a vet facility in New Jersey – Mid-Atlantic Equine – because he had that virus in his bloodstream. He then went to a rehab facility at Fair Hill for about a month before he came back to me. I didn’t get him back until the end of April. He went through a lot.” Scorching debuted over 5 ½ furlongs on the Woodbine main track on July 19, finishing second at 35-1. Five weeks later, he took top prize in the $200,000 Simcoe Stakes on August 25 at Woodbine, a five-length romp at 6 ½ furlongs on the main. “We liked him right from the start,” said Charalambous. “I don’t think I have ever been around a colt as professional as this horse. Ever.” For now, the focus is strictly on the Plate Trial. “I never make long-term plans,” said Charalambous. “I’m not going to talk about the Plate because a lot depends on what happens Sunday. I don’t know if he wants to go to a classic distance, but I do know one thing and that is he is competitive. When he has got something in his sights he wants to catch it.” Sandy Hartgrove, who has been a fixture on the Woodbine backstretch for 30-plus years and has worked in the Charalambous barn for over 20 years, is the groom. “He [Scorching] is a perfect example of the trust and bond that can be established between a groom and a horse,” said Hartgrove. “I knew from the first moment I met him that he was different. He had a certain way about him that just caught your attention. I love this guy.” Bred by Huntington Stud Farm Corp., Scorching was a $120,000 (CDN) purchase at the 2023 CTHS Ontario Premier Yearling Sale. Other starters include Notorious Gangster, winner of last year’s Coronation Futurity Stakes and this year’s Queenston Stakes, 2024 Bull Page Stakes winner and graded stakes placed Dewolf, last year’s Frost King Stakes winner Unbridled Weather, and Regal Guest, runner-up in this year’s Queenston Stakes. First post for Sunday is 1:05 p.m. The wagering menu for the Plate Trial includes Rolling Double, Exacta, 0.20 Trifecta, 0.20 Superfecta, 0.20 Pick 3 (Races 8-9-10) and $1 Swinger. Fans can wager on all the action through HPIbet.com and bet365.com. Field for the $150,000 Plate Trial – Race 8 Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer 1 – Call Me Sue – Daisuke Fukumoto – Alex McPherson 2 – Scorching – John Velazquez – John Charalambous 3 – Unbridled Weather – Rafael Hernandez – Angus Buntain 4 – Sedburys Ghost – Ryan Munger – Barb Minshall 5 – Regal Guest – Patrick Husbands – Mark Casse 6 – Autobahn Ace – Jose Campos – Pat Parente 7 – Watsonville Red – Leo Salles – Mike De Paulo 8 – Dewolf – Pietro Moran – Kevin Attard 9 – Forty N Five – Eswan Flores – Josie Carroll 10 – Notorious Gangster – Fraser Aebly – Josie Carroll Chris Lomon, Woodbine Share This:Share
